What do payroll services cost on the Gold Coast? Payroll is included in our monthly bookkeeping packages — $347 per month for Essentials or $650 per month for Professional. No per-payslip fees and no hourly billing.
Who is legally allowed to run your payroll for a fee? Only a registered BAS agent or tax agent. Payroll, PAYG withholding and superannuation are BAS services under the Tax Agent Services Act. Our registration number is 26308439.
What changed on 1 July 2026? Payday super. Superannuation must now reach the employee’s fund within 7 business days of payday instead of quarterly.
Last updated 21 September 2026 by a registered BAS agent (TPB registration 26308439).
| Service area | Registered BAS Agent | Software | Coverage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Payroll, STP & superannuation | 26308439 | Xero · MYOB · QuickBooks | Gold Coast onsite, Australia-wide remote |
What is Single Touch Payroll?
Single Touch Payroll (STP) is the ATO reporting system that requires employers to report wages, PAYG withholding and superannuation information every time they pay staff. Reporting happens on or before payday rather than once a year, and it replaced the old payment summary and annual report process.
In practice this means three things for a Gold Coast employer. Every pay run must be reported to the ATO the day it is paid. Your employees see their year-to-date figures in their myGov account as the year progresses. And at the end of the year you must lodge an STP finalisation declaration by 14 July, which is what makes your employees’ income statements ‘tax ready’ so they can lodge their returns.
What changed with payday super on 1 July 2026?
Since 1 July 2026, superannuation contributions must be received by the employee’s fund within 7 business days of you paying their salary or wages. The old quarterly deadlines no longer apply. For a newly hired employee, the first contribution has an extended deadline of 20 business days from the first payment of salary or wages.
This is the largest change to Australian payroll in years, and it catches employers in two ways. The obvious one is cash flow: super now leaves the business in the same week as wages rather than being held until the quarter. The less obvious one is timing — the deadline is when the money arrives in the fund, not when you submit it. Clearing houses take time, so a payment initiated on day six can still be late.
| Situation | Deadline | Measured from |
|---|---|---|
| Ongoing employee | 7 business days | The day salary or wages are paid |
| Newly hired employee, first contribution | 20 business days | The first payment of salary or wages |
Source: Fair Work Ombudsman, Payday Super: new rules starting 1 July 2026, and the ATO’s super for employers guidance.
What happens if super is paid late?
Late super triggers the super guarantee charge. Three things make it worse than simply paying late: the charge is calculated on total salary and wages rather than ordinary time earnings, interest and an administration component are added, and — unlike ordinary super contributions — the super guarantee charge is not tax deductible.
Late payment can also breach the Fair Work Act or the applicable award or enterprise agreement, which is a separate exposure from the tax one. If you are behind on super, the position generally gets worse with time rather than better, and it is worth dealing with deliberately.
What is included in our payroll service?
- Pay runs on your cycle — weekly, fortnightly or monthly
- Award interpretation, including penalty rates, loadings, allowances and junior rates
- Single Touch Payroll reporting to the ATO on every pay run
- Superannuation calculated, submitted and tracked to arrival within the 7 business day window
- Leave accruals, leave loading and public holiday entitlements
- New starter onboarding, tax file number declarations and super choice
- Terminations, notice, unused leave and employment termination payments
- Payslips issued to staff
- STP finalisation by 14 July each year
- Payroll reconciliation to your BAS and to your accounts
How much does payroll cost?
| Service | Price | What it suits |
|---|---|---|
| Essentials package | $347/month ($80/week) | Small teams with a straightforward pay cycle, bookkeeping included |
| Professional package | $650/month ($150/week) | Larger or award-complex payrolls with higher transaction volumes, bookkeeping included |
| Superannuation lodgement | $50 | Super guarantee processing and lodgement as a standalone service |
| IAS lodgement | $66 | Monthly PAYG withholding obligations |
| BAS lodgement | $150 | Quarterly activity statement, prepared and lodged |
Payroll is not billed per payslip, so your cost does not jump the month someone works extra shifts.
Which awards do Gold Coast employers most often get wrong?
Award interpretation is where small employers face the most exposure, because errors compound quietly across years before anyone notices. These are the awards we deal with most often on the Gold Coast and the mistakes that recur in each.
| Award | Common Gold Coast employers | The error we correct most |
|---|---|---|
| Hospitality Industry (General) | Hotels, bars, clubs, accommodation | Split-shift allowances and evening penalty rates omitted from rostered casuals |
| Restaurant Industry | Cafes and restaurants in Broadbeach, Burleigh, Miami | Public holiday and Sunday rates applied at the weekday rate |
| General Retail Industry | Shops and centre tenancies | Junior rates not stepped up on the employee’s birthday |
| Building and Construction General On-site | Trades through Nerang, Coomera, Molendinar | Site, travel and tool allowances missing, and apprentice progression not applied |
| Clerks — Private Sector | Offices in Southport, Bundall, Robina | Overtime treated as ordinary hours for salaried administrative staff |
Which award applies depends on the work actually performed, not on what the business calls itself. A cafe inside a hotel and a standalone cafe may sit under different awards. We confirm the correct award before the first pay run rather than assuming.
How do I switch payroll providers partway through the year?
You can change payroll providers at any point in the financial year. The thing that must not break is Single Touch Payroll continuity — if year-to-date figures are not carried across correctly, your employees’ income statements will be wrong at 30 June and they will not be able to lodge their returns properly.
The process takes six steps:
- Confirm the last completed pay run and check it was reported through STP.
- Export year-to-date figures for every employee — gross wages, PAYG withholding, super and leave balances from 1 July to the changeover date.
- Set up employees in the new system with the correct award classification, pay rate, TFN declaration details and super fund.
- Enter opening year-to-date balances so STP continues from the right position rather than restarting at zero.
- Run one pay period in parallel across both systems and reconcile line by line.
- Report the first pay through STP and confirm the ATO has accepted it.
Done properly, your employees notice nothing except that their payslips look slightly different.
Payroll and your BAS
PAYG withholding from wages is reported on your activity statement, so payroll and BAS are the same job done twice if they are handled by different people. We reconcile the two — the wages and withholding in your payroll must agree with the W1 and W2 figures on the statement, and with the wages expense in your accounts.
Lodging through a registered BAS agent also gives you the concessional dates on three of the four quarterly statements.
| Quarter | Standard due date | Through a BAS agent |
|---|---|---|
| Q1 — July to September | 28 October | 25 November |
| Q2 — October to December | 28 February | 28 February (no extension) |
| Q3 — January to March | 28 April | 26 May |
| Q4 — April to June | 28 July | 25 August |
Source: ATO, BAS agent lodgment program 2026–27. Monthly activity statements are due on the 21st of the following month.
More on activity statements: BAS lodgement Gold Coast. For the full bookkeeping service, see bookkeeping Gold Coast, and for accounting software setup see Xero setup and migration.
Gold Coast suburbs we service
Payroll runs remotely, so location is no barrier. We also visit clients onsite across the Gold Coast:
- Southport
- Nerang
- Burleigh Heads
- Robina
- Bundall
- Coomera
- Surfers Paradise
- Broadbeach
- Varsity Lakes
- Molendinar
- Helensvale
- Palm Beach
- Currumbin
- Ashmore
- Arundel
- Carrara
- Labrador
- Mudgeeraba
- Oxenford
- Miami
- Mermaid Beach
Payroll and Single Touch Payroll FAQs
How much do payroll services cost on the Gold Coast?
Payroll is included in our monthly packages: $347 per month for Essentials or $650 per month for Professional. Superannuation lodgement as a standalone service is $50. There are no per-payslip fees and no hourly billing.
What is Single Touch Payroll?
Single Touch Payroll, or STP, is the ATO reporting system that requires employers to send wage, PAYG withholding and superannuation information to the ATO every time they run a pay. It replaced the old annual payment summary process. Reporting happens on or before each payday, not at the end of the year.
When does super have to be paid under payday super?
Since 1 July 2026, superannuation contributions must arrive in the employee’s fund within 7 business days of you paying their salary or wages. For a new employee, the first contribution has an extended deadline of 20 business days.
What happens if I pay super late?
Late contributions attract additional charges from the ATO, and late payment may also breach the Fair Work Act or the applicable award or enterprise agreement. Unlike ordinary super contributions, the super guarantee charge is not tax deductible.
Do I still have to lodge an STP finalisation?
Yes. STP finalisation is due by 14 July each year. Until you finalise, your employees’ income statements show as ‘not tax ready’ and they cannot lodge their tax returns.
Which award applies to my employees?
It depends on the work performed, not on what your business is called. The awards we deal with most on the Gold Coast are the Hospitality Industry (General) Award, Restaurant Industry Award, General Retail Industry Award, Building and Construction General On-site Award and the Clerks — Private Sector Award. We will check which one applies before the first pay run.
Can you take over payroll partway through a financial year?
Yes, and it is common. We carry across year-to-date figures for every employee so their STP reporting stays continuous and their income statement at year end is correct.
Do you handle terminations and redundancy payments?
Yes. Notice, unused leave, redundancy pay and the tax treatment of each are calculated and reported correctly through STP, including employment termination payments where they apply.
Are you a registered BAS agent?
Yes. Registration number 26308439 with the Tax Practitioners Board. Payroll, PAYG withholding and superannuation are BAS services, which means they can only be provided for a fee by a registered BAS agent or tax agent.
Do you do payroll for businesses outside the Gold Coast?
Yes. Payroll runs entirely remotely, so we work with employers anywhere in Australia. Onsite visits are Gold Coast only.
Talk to a registered BAS agent about your payroll
Call 0488 993 679, email admin@precisionbasandbookkeeping.com.au, or book a free 20-minute chat. If your super is not yet set up for the payday super rules, that is the conversation worth having first.