Add, Edit or Delete a Superannuation Item – Astute Payroll Help Centre

Overview

Superannuation Guarantee Contributions (SGC) and Additional Employer Contributions are managed in Config > Payroll > Superannuation. Any other super contribution types that you may need to configure in your portal are set up in Astute as Deductions.

The Superannuation screen lists all the configured superannuation items for your portal, along with a summary of the current configuration settings and any GL accounts that have been allocated.

Add a Percentage Based Superannuation Item

To create a superannuation item with a Percentage Calculation Method:

Go to Config > Payroll > Superannuation > Create New Super Guarantee.
Enter a Name for the superannuation item. This is how the item will display on employee pay advices.
Select ‘Percentage’ as the Calculation Method. An additional row will appear on-screen for you to set the:
- Start Date. This mandatory field sets the first date that this percentage rate should apply when calculating super, remembering that superannuation will calculate based on the Pay Date of a pay run.
- Finish Date. This is an optional field to set if there is a fixed end date for this super rate to apply
- Percentage (%). Enter the percentage value (to 4 decimal places) that will be applied to employees who are assigned this item in their user profile.
In ‘Calculated On’, click which Pay Items will be included in the superannuation calculation. If you choose ‘Selected Pay Items’, you will also need to tick the checkbox next to each Pay Item that you would like to include.
Enter any limits which apply to the superannuation item:
- Minimum Monthly Earnings is the minimum value that an employee will need to earn before they can start accruing superannuation
- Maximum Monthly Earnings is the maximum value that an employee earns in a month that superannuation will calculate on
- The ‘Do not apply super’ options will exclude employees outside of particular age limits and hours worked from accruing superannuation.
Select the Reporting Type: Superannuation Guarantee or Additional Employer Contributions (RESC).
Enter the GL Expense and Liability Codes that the superannuation amounts will be reported against.
Set the Payment Summary settings.
Select the STP Reporting Settings. This section has been introduced in preparation for changes to STP reporting requirements which will come into effect later in the 2020/21 financial year. You can categorise a superannuation item as:
- Not Applicable
- Superannuation Liability
- Reportable Employer Superannuation Contribution
Set the Payroll Tax settings. If you tick the checkbox, any amounts reported using the superannuation item will be exempt from Payroll Tax.
Click Save.

Important: The STP Report Settings fields for a superannuation item will lock once that superannuation item is included in a pay run that has a Pay Date on or after 1 July 2021 and is marked as Paid.

Add a Fixed Amount Superannuation Item

To create a superannuation item with a Fixed Calculation Method:

Go to Config > Payroll > Superannuation > Create New Super Guarantee.
Enter a name for the new superannuation item, as it will display on employee advices.
Select Fixed Amount as the Calculation Method. An additional row will appear on-screen for you to set the:
- Start Date. This mandatory field sets the first date that this percentage rate should apply when calculating super, remembering that superannuation will calculate based on the Pay Date of a pay run.
- Finish Date. This is an optional field to set if there is a fixed end date for this super rate to apply.
- Fixed Amount ($). Enter the amount (to 4 decimal places) that will be applied for any employee that has been assigned this item in their user profile. If the item will be applied to multiple employees with different rates, you can set the value to 0.0000 here and set individual values in the employee profiles.
In ‘Triggered On’, select the Pay Items which will trigger the fixed superannuation to be included in a pay. If you choose ‘Selected Pay Items’, you will also need to tick the checkbox next to each Pay Item that you would like to include.
Select the Reporting Type: Superannuation Guarantee or Additional Employer Contributions (RESC).
Enter the GL Expense and Liability Codes that the superannuation amounts will be reported against.
Set the Payment Summary settings.
Select the STP Reporting Settings. This section determines how data is reported via STP. You can categorise a superannuation item as:
- Not Applicable
- Superannuation Liability
- Reportable Employer Superannuation Contribution
Set the Payroll Tax settings. If you tick the checkbox, any amounts reported using the superannuation item will be exempt from Payroll Tax.
Click Save.

Edit a Superannuation Item

To edit a superannuation item, click on the name of the item to open the settings page.

Once a superannuation item has been linked to payroll, you won’t be able to edit the Payment Section drop-down field. All other fields can be edited.

Click Save to apply any changes and return to the Config > Payroll > Superannuation screen.

Delete a Superannuation Item

To delete a superannuation item:

Tick the checkbox to the left of the item name
Click ‘With Selected…’
Set ‘Delete’ in the drop-down field > Go.

Superannuation items can only be deleted if they haven’t been assigned to an employee or contractor profile. An error banner will display if you try to delete a superannuation item that has been assigned to one or more users.

Edit or Delete a Superannuation Rate

Once a rate is assigned to an employee in their Pay Item tab, the Start Date and Percentage or Fixed Amount fields will be read only. You will be unable to edit these values, and will need to add a new rate line if amendments need to be made.

From Config > Payroll > Superannuation:

Click the superannuation item you need to edit.
Click Add Rate.
Enter the new Start Date and Percentage or Fixed Amount to apply.
Enter a Finish Date for any previous rates. If the Finish Date field on previous rates is not filled in, you will receive an error.
Click the Save icon to the right of the rate details. When the rate is saved, the Created field will populate with the time and date of creation.

You can delete a rate by clicking the ‘X’ icon to the right of the rate details. This icon will only appear if the superannuation rate has not been assigned to an employee.

IMPORTANT: When a rate is updated for a superannuation item, it will automatically apply to all employees assigned that item in their user profile, but only if no custom values have been manually entered on the profile.

If a custom value has been entered for the employee, this will be retained and anything set at a company level will be overridden. If you have added a custom value in error, you will need to manually correct this.