Payroll and super check (Australia)

What it does

Checks a pay run before money moves: totals hours, flags anything odd, lists award questions to answer from Fair Work tools, checks cash for wages, tax and super, and reminds the owner of Single Touch Payroll (STP) and super deadlines. It does not work out award rates and never runs payroll.

When to use it

• "Run payroll", "pay is due Friday", "check the timesheets", "can I make payroll".
• A new starter, leaver, pay rise or public holiday falls in the period, or an annual wage review has changed minimum rates (for example, for pay periods starting on or after 1 July 2026).

What you need

• Pay period, pay date and the list of people in this run.
• Timesheets or rosters (software export, spreadsheet or photos of paper sheets).
• Each person's employment type, award and classification.
• Bank balance, for the cash check.
• Optional connectors: Xero, MYOB or QuickBooks payroll reports; Google Sheets or Excel for timesheets.

Steps for Claude

1. Fix the period and roster. Confirm dates, pay date, starters, leavers and anyone on leave. For new starters, check the owner has a TFN declaration and a super choice form (or has requested stapled fund details). Never repeat TFNs, bank details, dates of birth or addresses in any output.
2. Total the hours. One row per person per day: start, finish, breaks, ordinary hours, overtime, leave. Never guess a missing time; mark it unknown.
3. Flag anomalies per person, with the date: missing punches, hours well over roster, zero hours for a regular, overlapping shifts, rate changes, leave beyond balance, someone missing since last run, a name with no start record.
4. List award items to check, don't calculate them. For each person, list what to look up in the Fair Work pay guide or Pay and Conditions Tool (PACT) for their award: overtime, weekend and public holiday penalties, shift loadings, allowances, casual loading, minimum engagement and breaks. Flag software that hasn't picked up the latest wage review rates. If the award is unknown, point to Find your award.
5. Cash check. Estimate net wages on pay day, PAYG withholding for the next BAS and super due within the Payday Super window, against the bank balance. If short, suggest au-cash-flow-and-invoice-chase.
6. Super under Payday Super (from 1 July 2026). Super guarantee is worked out on qualifying earnings at the current rate on the ATO page (don't hard-code it). The fund must receive it within 7 business days after payday, or 20 business days for the first contribution for a new employee or a new fund. Business days exclude weekends and any public holiday covering a whole state or territory, even one where you don't operate. Give an estimated "must be received by" date and tell the owner to allow for clearing house processing time. Contractors paid mainly for their labour can be employees for super.
7. STP reminders. Report each pay through STP Phase 2 enabled software. Payslips go out within 1 working day of pay day. Finalise STP by 14 July each year.
8. Resolve flags one at a time. Each flag is someone's pay; never batch them into one "looks good?".
9. Approval gate. State headcount, hours, gross, cash leaving the account, pay date and open flags. The owner runs the pay; Claude never submits it.

Output format

• Header line: "Pre-pay-run check. Not payroll, tax or legal advice."
• Run sheet: person, hours by type, flags, award items to check.
• Totals and cash needed, with the super "must be received by" date.
• Reminders: STP, payslips, super and missing new-starter paperwork.

Australian rules and sources (checked 27 September 2026)

• New employee forms (TFN declaration, super standard choice form, stapled fund): https://www.ato.gov.au/businesses-and-organisations/hiring-and-paying-your-workers/engaging-a-worker/hiring-a-new-worker
• Fair Work pay guides: https://www.fairwork.gov.au/pay-and-wages/minimum-wages/pay-guides
• Pay and Conditions Tool (PACT) and Find your award: https://calculate.fairwork.gov.au/FindYourAward
• Pay slips: https://www.fairwork.gov.au/pay-and-wages/paying-wages/pay-slips
• Record-keeping (time and wages records kept for 7 years): https://www.fairwork.gov.au/pay-and-wages/paying-wages/record-keeping
• Super guarantee rate (always check the current rate here): https://www.ato.gov.au/tax-rates-and-codes/key-superannuation-rates-and-thresholds/super-guarantee
• About Payday Super: https://www.ato.gov.au/businesses-and-organisations/super-for-employers/about-payday-super
• Payday Super payment deadlines: https://www.ato.gov.au/businesses-and-organisations/super-for-employers/paying-super-on-payday/payment-deadlines-for-payday-super
• What STP is: https://www.ato.gov.au/businesses-and-organisations/hiring-and-paying-your-workers/single-touch-payroll/what-is-stp
• STP finalisation: https://www.ato.gov.au/businesses-and-organisations/hiring-and-paying-your-workers/single-touch-payroll/start-reporting/end-of-year-finalisation-through-stp

Limits

This is not payroll, tax, legal or HR advice. Claude does not calculate award rates, decide classifications or decide whether a worker is an employee or contractor. If Fair Work tools and the award differ, the award applies. The Small Business Superannuation Clearing House has closed, so owners need another way to pay super. When unsure, ask the Fair Work Ombudsman, the ATO or a registered agent.

Example requests

• "Here's this fortnight's timesheet export. Check it before I run pay on Thursday."
• "We have a new casual starting Monday. What do I need before their first pay, and when is their first super due?"
• "Can I cover wages and super this week? Bank balance is $18,400 and the run is about $12,000 gross."