Single Touch Payroll, or STP, reports your payroll to the ATO automatically every time you pay staff. Before it existed, you ran payroll through the year and then sent the ATO one summary after year end. Now the report goes out with each pay run, on or before the day you actually pay people. One action covers paying staff and reporting it at the same time. That is where the single touch comes from.
Each pay run sends the ATO your year to date figures: gross wages, the PAYG you withheld, and the super each person is owed. It also flags things like employment type and whether someone has stopped working for you. You do not file anything on the side. If your software is set up, it happens as you click through pay.
Reporting once, feeding several places
The reason it matters that you report once is that the same data then flows out to a few places at the same time.
Your BAS gets easier, because W1 (gross wages) and W2 (PAYG withheld) arrive prefilled instead of being keyed in by hand. Your employees see a live income statement in myGov that updates every payday, which is why the old annual group certificate no longer exists. And government agencies, including Services Australia, see income data as it happens rather than a year later.
Payday Super changed the stakes
This part carries more weight from 1 July 2026 than it used to. Payday Super is now law. Super is no longer something you batch up and pay each quarter. It has to be paid every payday, and it has to reach the employee’s fund within 7 business days. STP is the reporting backbone that makes this workable, because the super owed is captured on every run. If your habit was paying super quarterly, that habit is now a compliance risk, not just an admin choice. The Small Business Superannuation Clearing House closed on the same date, so if you relied on it you need a SuperStream compliant replacement.
Finalising at year end
Once a year you make a finalisation declaration. For most employers it is due 14 July. For closely held payees, meaning people like family members in a family business, it is 30 September. Once you finalise, each employee’s income statement is marked tax ready in myGov, which is what lets them or their agent lodge. If you catch an error, you generally have 14 days to fix it in your next report without a penalty.
One thing STP does not cover is contractors you pay on an invoice. They sit outside payroll. If they work in building, cleaning, courier, IT or security, you may instead have to report them through a Taxable Payments Annual Report, which is a separate obligation.
One report at each payday, out to your BAS, your employees, and super and agencies, then finalised once a year.
Where HPLedger fits
HPLedger includes a payroll module, currently in beta. Worth being precise about scope: it is not a registered STP enabled product, so it helps you prepare payroll figures rather than lodging STP reports to the ATO for you. Treat HPLedger as help getting the numbers right, and keep your STP lodgment through your registered payroll channel.
The technical detail
Framework. STP operates under Division 389 of Schedule 1 to the Taxation Administration Act 1953. STP Phase 2 has been mandatory since 1 January 2022 and is the permanent standard.
Each pay event. Employers report year to date amounts on or before payday: disaggregated gross, PAYG withholding, super liability, employment basis, tax treatment and cessation details. TFN declaration information is captured through STP rather than a separate form.
Finalisation. Finalisation declaration due 14 July for most employers, 30 September for closely held payees; registered agents may hold deferrals. On finalisation the employee income statement is marked tax ready. Corrections are generally accepted within 14 days without penalty.
Payday Super (from 1 July 2026). Superannuation must be paid on each payday and reach the fund within 7 business days; the super guarantee rate is 12 percent, calculated on qualifying earnings. The Small Business Superannuation Clearing House closed on 1 July 2026, aligned with SuperStream 3.0. Legislated by the Treasury Laws Amendment (Payday Superannuation) Act 2025 and the Superannuation Guarantee Charge Amendment Act 2025.
Records. Payroll and STP records must generally be kept for 5 years. See what records to keep for tax.
Current as at July 2026. General information only, not personal tax advice.
Frequently asked questions
What is Single Touch Payroll?
Reporting payroll to the ATO every time you run a pay, rather than once at year end. Salary, withholding and super information go through with each pay event.
Does STP replace activity statement reporting?
For the withholding labels, largely yes. The ATO prefills them from your STP data, so you no longer report those amounts separately.
What changed with Payday Super?
From 1 July 2026 super has to be paid each payday rather than quarterly, and it is calculated on qualifying earnings. That makes accurate STP reporting a cash flow issue, not just a compliance one.
How do I finalise STP at year end?
Lodge a finalisation declaration for each employee. Until you do, their income statement stays marked as not tax ready and they cannot lodge.
