Payroll guide
Outsourced payroll for Adelaide small businesses
What it costs, what's included, and the 2026 compliance changes you need to know about.
Quick answer
The short version
Outsourced payroll in Adelaide typically costs from $8 per employee per month (minimums around $40), covering pay runs, Single Touch Payroll reporting, super guarantee calculations, and leave tracking. For most small businesses, outsourcing removes the two biggest risks: late STP reporting and super mistakes — both of which carry ATO penalties.
The workload
What payroll actually involves in 2026
Payroll looks simple until you list everything a compliant pay run requires. For each employee, every pay cycle, someone must get the gross pay right, apply the correct tax, calculate super, report to the ATO, and keep records that survive an audit.
Single Touch Payroll Phase 2. Every pay run must be reported to the ATO on or before pay day, with detailed breakdowns — gross pay, allowances, deductions, and tax, all categorised. STP isn't a quarterly task; it's a per-pay-run obligation.
Super guarantee at 12%. The super guarantee rate reached 12% on 1 July 2025. And from 1 July 2026, payday super takes effect: super must be paid within 7 business days of payday, not quarterly. Businesses still batching super quarterly need a new process before July.
Awards and Fair Work obligations. Overtime, penalty rates, leave loading (typically 17.5%), and annualised salary arrangements all come from the applicable modern award. Rates change each 1 July. Award misinterpretation is the most common payroll error we see in small businesses — and underpayments now carry serious consequences.
State payroll tax. In South Australia, payroll tax kicks in at $1.5 million in annual Australian wages. Most small businesses sit under it, but growing businesses should know where the threshold is before they cross it.
Terminations and EOFY. Final pays, unused leave payouts, employment termination payments, redundancies, and end-of-year income statements each have their own rules. These are the moments DIY payroll most often breaks.
The service
What outsourced payroll includes
A proper outsourced payroll service handles the full cycle, not just the pay run:
Pay run processing. Gross-to-net calculations, tax withholding, allowances, deductions, and overtime — processed on your schedule, weekly, fortnightly, or monthly.
STP filing. Reported to the ATO on or before each pay day, with errors investigated and corrected — not just filed and forgotten.
Super calculations and scheduling. Super computed per employee per pay run, with payments scheduled to meet the payday super deadline from July 2026.
Leave and entitlements. Annual leave, personal leave, and long service leave balances tracked and accrued correctly — including leave loading where the award requires it.
Starters, leavers, and EOFY. New employee setup with TFN declarations, termination calculations, and end-of-year income statements finalised in STP.
Payslips and records. Compliant payslips issued each pay run, and payroll records kept to ATO standards.
At FinanceDesk, payroll is a $8-per-employee-per-month add-on (minimum $40) to our bookkeeping packages — so a 5-person team costs $40 a month and a 10-person team costs $80. It's accountant-led: the same team reconciling your books runs your payroll, so the numbers always tie together. See all pricing.
The maths
DIY vs outsourced: the honest comparison
DIY payroll costs the software subscription plus your time: 1–3 hours per pay run for a small team, more when awards, leave, or terminations get involved. Then add the risk premium — a late STP report, a super shortfall, or an award underpayment each costs far more than the payroll fee you saved.
Late super is the expensive one. Miss the super deadline and you owe the Super Guarantee Charge: the shortfall plus interest plus an administration component — and unlike normal super contributions, the charge is not tax-deductible. One missed quarter for a 10-person team can cost thousands.
Outsourced payroll at $8 per employee per month is $80 a month for 10 staff — less than one hour of most owners' time. The break-even isn't close for any business where the owner currently touches payroll. The real question isn't cost; it's whether your current process would survive payday super without changes.
Timing
When to make the switch
Your first employee. The moment you hire, you inherit STP, super, workers' comp, and record-keeping obligations. Setting up outsourced payroll from day one is cheaper than fixing a DIY setup later.
Award complexity arrives. Hospitality, retail, healthcare, and trades awards have penalty rates and allowances that spreadsheets handle badly. If you're Googling award clauses before each pay run, it's time.
You've missed something. A late pay run, a super shortfall, an STP error — one incident is a warning. The second is a pattern the ATO notices.
Growth past 5 staff. Payroll admin scales faster than headcount. Five employees is roughly where the owner's time cost exceeds the outsourcing fee.
Before 1 July 2026. Payday super changes the rhythm of super payments for every employer in Australia. Switching to a managed payroll process ahead of the change beats scrambling after it.
Related reading
Keep going
- What does outsourced bookkeeping actually include? — the monthly deliverables checklist.
- Fixed-fee vs hourly bookkeeping — the break-even maths.
- Bookkeeping services in South Australia — our SA packages and pricing.
- All FinanceDesk pricing — every package and add-on, published.
FAQ
Payroll questions, answered
How much does outsourced payroll cost in Adelaide?
From around $8 per employee per month, with minimums near $40. FinanceDesk charges $8 per employee per month (minimum $40) as an add-on to bookkeeping packages — a 5-person team costs $40/month, a 10-person team $80/month.
What is payday super and when does it start?
From 1 July 2026, employers must pay super within 7 business days of payday instead of quarterly. Late payment triggers the Super Guarantee Charge — shortfall plus interest plus an admin component — which is not tax-deductible.
Does my bookkeeper need to be a BAS agent to run payroll?
No. Payroll processing and Single Touch Payroll reporting don't require BAS agent registration. BAS lodgement is separate and only a registered BAS agent can do it — a bookkeeper prepares BAS-ready ledgers and your BAS agent or accountant lodges.
What happens if Single Touch Payroll is reported late?
The ATO can apply failure-to-lodge penalties, and repeated issues escalate your risk profile. STP Phase 2 must be reported on or before each pay day — which is why pay runs need a reliable process, not a best effort.
Can outsourced payroll handle awards and penalty rates?
Yes. Awards, overtime, penalty rates and leave loading are configured in the payroll software and updated when Fair Work rates change each 1 July. Award interpretation is where DIY payroll most often goes wrong, which is exactly why businesses outsource it.
Payday-ready payroll, without the admin.
From $8 per employee per month. We'll get your awards, STP, and super sorted before payday super hits.
Response within 1 business day.