Single Touch Payroll (STP) is an Australian Government initiative designed to streamline employers’ reporting burdens to government agencies. STP become mandatory on 1 July 2018 for employers with 20 or more employees, and 1 July 2019 for employers with 19 or fewer employees.
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) have provided several concessions depending on business, industry, or employer types. Most of these concessions end on 1 July 2021. Employers who have not started reporting through STP, need to start reporting before 1 July 2021 through an STP enabled software.
In the 2019–20 Budget, the Government announced that the ATO would expand the data collected through STP to include additional information (known as STP Phase 2). This will reduce employers need to provide information about employees to multiple government agencies. It also supports the administration of the social security system.
Employers will report the additional information through STP on or before each pay day. The mandatory start date for STP Phase 2 reporting is 1 January 2022.
The majority of accounting software are STP-enabled software, and the software provider will advise you when the software will be ready to start reporting the STP Phase 2 expanded data.
What do Employers need to do?
If you are already lodging through STP compliant software, there is nothing employers need to do right now. However, if you have not previously been required to lodge through STP or are not yet using an STP enabled software, you will need to be ready to do so by 1 July 2021.
The ATO are working closely with software providers who will update their software for Phase 2 of STP reporting.
To help you get ready for the changes, further detailed information can be found here: STP Phase 2 Information
We can support you through this transition. Please contact our office should you have any questions.
