Is super paid on overtime? It depends on whether it's part of the amount your employees earn during their normal work hours – which is called ordinary time earnings (OTE).
For overtime, the answer is usually ‘no’. This is because it mostly falls outside OTE.
For bonuses, the answer is usually ‘yes’. This is because it’s mostly part of OTE.
If yes, you must pay 11.5% of OTE into your employee’s fund as part of the super guarantee (SG)1.
Some businesses pay their employees more super as part of an employee benefit or enterprise agreement, so it’s worth checking what agreements you have in place.
When do you pay super on overtime?
Check out the table below for different types of overtime and bonuses.
When you look at the table, note that OTE is the amount you pay employees for their ordinary hours of work, including commissions and shift loadings.
If there is a tick against ‘OTE’ for a specific payment below, you’ll need to pay 11.5% super against it. If there is a cross, you don’t have to pay super on that amount3.
Overtime, casual and piece work
| Payment type | Salary or wages | Ordinary time earnings (OTE) |
|---|---|---|
| Overtime | ||
| Overtime: where the ordinary hours of work are not stated in an award or agreement, or not separated from other hours | ||
| No ordinary hours of work stated | ||
| Piece-rates: no ordinary hours of work | ||
| Casual employee: shift loadings (i.e. employees are asked to work their ordinary hours outside of normal business hours) |
Allowances
| Payment type | Salary or wages | Ordinary time earnings (OTE) |
|---|---|---|
| Danger allowance | ||
| Expense allowance expected to be fully used | ||
| On-call allowance for doctors | ||
| Retention allowance (i.e. a financial incentive to keep a key employee on the job) | ||
| Unconditional extra payments |
Bonuses
| Payment type | Salary or wages | Ordinary time earnings (OTE) |
|---|---|---|
| Bonus relating to overtime only | ||
| Christmas | ||
| Ex gratia but relating to ordinary hours of work | ||
| Performance |
What if I missed a super payment?
Not paying super on time may result in penalties and interest charges from the ATO, such as the Superannuation Guarantee Charge (SGC). You use salary and wages to work out the SGC. Salary and wages are similar to OTE but also include any overtime payments2.
Find out more about what happens if you don’t pay super or visit the ATO.
More for employers
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Important information to consider
- Australian Taxation Office, Super guarantee, ATO website, accessed 18 July 2024.
- Australian Taxation Office, List of payments that are ordinary time earnings, ATO website, accessed 18 July 2024.
- An exception to this rule is if you make a delayed payment, on salary.
- QuickSuper is a registered trademark and a product owned and operated by Westpac Banking Corporation ABN 33 007 457 141. Westpac’s terms and conditions applicable to the QuickSuper service are available after your eligibility for the clearing house service is assessed by AustralianSuper. A Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) is available from Westpac upon request. AustralianSuper doesn’t accept liability for any loss or damage caused by use of the QuickSuper service and doesn’t receive any commissions from Westpac if employers use this service. You can choose to make your contributions using a different service, but it needs to meet the government’s minimum data standards, visit ato.gov.au