Single Touch Payroll (STP) is a government initiative to streamline employer reporting obligations.
Using STP, employers can report their employees’ salaries and wages, pay as you go (PAYG) withholding and super information to us from their payroll solution, at the same time they pay their employees.
STP reporting started on 1 July 2018 for employers with 20 or more employees. It was extended to include small employers (with 19 or less employees) from 1 July 2019. Some exceptions may apply, for more information, see Single Touch Payroll on ato.gov.au.
STP phase 2
The government announced in the 2019-20 Federal Budget that it would expand the data collected through Single Touch Payroll (STP) by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO).
The STP phase 2 changes are now law and are reflected in:
- The Changing Income Reporting and Other measures Act 2020 (which changes the Social Security assessment model) will come into effect 7 December 2020
- The Treasury Laws Amendment (2020 Measures No.2) Bill (which allows the Commissioner to collect CSA amounts) passed and received Royal Assent
Building on STP’s first phase of streamlining the way employers report payroll and superannuation information to the ATO, STP phase 2 will assist in the administration of social security for citizens in a more efficient, accurate and timely manner. This will be delivered through the new PAYEVNT.0004 2020 service.
The technical service design artefacts for PAYEVNT.0004 (2020) (STP phase 2) are now available. Message Structure Tables and validation rules have been published on the Standard Business Reporting website and the service is available in our External Vendor Testing Environment (EVTE) and Production.
Information, resources and a range of consultation and engagement activities are available to assist with the build, test and implementation of the new PAYEVNT.0004 (2020) service.
Technical documentation
The technical service design artefacts for PAYEVNT.0004 (2020) (STP phase 2) are available on the Standard Business Reporting website - Business Implementation Guide, Message Structure Tables and Validation rules, and the service is available in our External Vendor Testing Environment (EVTE) and Production.
To help you build, test and implement the new service, a range of STP phase 2 information is available in Online services for DSPs. This includes guidance notes, position papers, DSP industry updates, frequently asked questions and our consultation and engagement activities.
If you’re a DSP and have not yet registered, refer to Online services for DSPs for information on how to access this service.
Note: For the best user experience and improved functionality, we recommend using Firefox or Google Chrome browsers when accessing Online services for DSPs.
See also
- STP phase 2 position papers
- STP phase 2 guidance notes
- Single Touch Payroll document library
- Sending service providers and Single Touch Payroll
- Single Touch Payroll consultation
- Listing your Single Touch Payroll product
Contact us
For further information and to provide feedback email the Single Touch Payroll mailbox.