Super payments doubled since July 1: ASFA

Four months into Payday Super, the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) said the policy is working as intended, with the number of payments going into Australian workers' super accounts each month having more than doubled since July 1.

Around 54 million super payments were processed in August, compared with an average of around 25 million a month in 2025-26. July reached 64 million, as employers made their last quarterly payments under the old rules alongside their first payday contributions.

ASFA expects monthly numbers to stay around the August level.

ASFA chief executive Mary Delahunty said the research shows Payday Super is working as intended.

"Payday Super was designed to make sure super is paid at the same time as wages. Two months in, the data shows that is happening for millions of workers," Delahunty said.

"When super is paid sooner, it is invested sooner and earns returns for longer. A 25-year-old on average wages will have around $5000 more in retirement just from more frequent payments. It has also made it less likely that workers will miss out on being paid the super they are entitled to."

ASFA's preliminary estimates show around seven million workers who were paid super once a quarter are now getting it with their wages, mostly weekly or fortnightly. A further two to three million are likely to have moved from monthly payments to weekly or fortnightly.

ASFA said small businesses were the most likely to pay super quarterly, so their employees are seeing the largest change.

"Younger Aussies, tradies, and hospo staff are among the workers most likely to miss out on super because of unpaid contributions. They are the people Payday Super was designed to protect," Delahunty said.

"Under the quarterly system, workers often noticed missing super four to six months after they earned it.

"By then the business may have gone into liquidation, and the super may never be recovered. Employers now have seven business days after payday to get super into a worker's fund, so a missed payment can be identified within weeks, not months."