QuickSuper Paying for contributions www.clearinghouse.australiansuper.com
QuickSuper Paying for contributions Document History Date Description 15 May 2011 Initial release to include Direct Debit and EFT payment methods. 18 May 2011 Minor revision 09 Mar 2012 Updated with new QuickSuper URL 07 Dec 2014 Updated to include unmatched payment functionality Page 2
QuickSuper Paying for contributions Table of Contents 1 Introduction... 4 1.1 Overview... 4 1.2 What are the available methods?... 4 1.3 Which method should I choose?... 7 2 Payment Matching... 9 2.1 Payment Matching Mechanism... 9 2.2 Resolving Unmatched Payments... 10 3 Additional options for Multiple Employer Facilities... 11 3.1 Employer Payment Methods... 11 3.2 EFT Payment Account... 11 4 Frequently Asked Questions... 13 4.1 Can I change to the EFT method if I started using the Direct Debit method or vice versa?... 13 4.2 Can I still include an authorisation step for the method I choose?... 13 4.3 With Direct Debit, what happens if the debit fails?... 13 4.4 If I have chosen to pay via EFT, why do I still need to enter a settlement account?.. 13 4.5 How do I make an EFT payment?... 13 4.6 Why can t I see an EFT payment I have just made reflected in QuickSuper?... 14 4.7 Why are the clearance periods different for Direct Debit and EFT?... 15 4.8 When will the fund receive the payment?... 15 4.9 When do I need to make contributions via QuickSuper in order to meet the Super Guarantee cut-off dates?... 16 4.10 With EFT, what happens if the payment cannot be matched to contributions?... 17 Page 3
QuickSuper Paying for contributions 1 Introduction 1.1 Overview Within the QuickSuper team, we understand that every business is different. The payroll system that you use and your internal processes will be specific to your needs. That s why we provide different ways to pay for contributions in QuickSuper so you can choose the best method for your business. 1.2 What are the available methods? One of the main features of QuickSuper is that it greatly simplifies your payments to multiple funds. You can make a single payment to QuickSuper and then we will manage the separate payments to the funds. Please note that the way you pay QuickSuper is different to the method by which QuickSuper may then pay the fund. This guide is only about the way you pay QuickSuper. QuickSuper provides two different methods for you to pay for contributions: Direct Debit Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) The following pages provide a description of each method followed by a comparison table to help you choose. Page 4
QuickSuper Paying for contributions 1.2.1 Direct Debit payment method The Direct Debit payment method works in a similar way to direct debit arrangements that many households have entered into to automate bill payments. That is, if you wish to pay via Direct Debit within QuickSuper, you will agree online to allow us to direct debit your nominated account. However, unlike household billing arrangements, each debit is effectively initiated by yourselves as we will only debit your account once you have submitted and optionally authorised the contributions. If you choose the Direct Debit payment method, the process is: 1. You will enter your contributions, either by creating online or uploading a file. 2. You will review totals and then submit the file for processing on a scheduled date. 3. If required by your business, an optional authorisation step may be incorporated into the workflow before the file is processed. 4. QuickSuper will debit your nominated account on the scheduled date for the total contribution amount. 5. After the clearance period is complete, QuickSuper will make the payments and send remittance advices to the funds. Page 5
QuickSuper Paying for contributions 1.2.2 EFT payment method The EFT payment method involves you logging into your own financial institution s online banking site and making a payment using the instructions we provide within QuickSuper. This may also be referred to as a pay anyone or direct credit payment. The instructions we will provide will include: BSB and Account Number to pay to; Reference value to include with the payment; and Amount to pay. If you choose the EFT payment method, the process is: 1. You will enter your contributions, either by creating online or uploading a file. 2. You will review totals and then submit the file for processing on a scheduled date. 3. If required by your business, an optional authorisation step may be incorporated into the workflow before the file is processed. 4. You will pay for contributions by EFT using the instructions provided by QuickSuper. QuickSuper will match the EFT payment received with the contributions you have entered. 5. After the EFT payment has been received, QuickSuper will make the payments and send remittance advices to the funds. Page 6
QuickSuper Paying for contributions 1.3 Which method should I choose? The following table provides a comparison to help you choose the best method for your business: Item Direct Debit EFT Enter Contributions Authorisation process Cancellation prior to payment Either create online or upload file. Yes (optional). Yes, contributions may be edited or deleted prior to the debit being processed. Either create online or upload file. Yes (optional). Yes, contributions may be edited or deleted prior to your payment being received. Clearance period 3 banking days. 1 banking day. Cancellation prior to paying funds Contribution fee applicable when... Payment history and reporting Possible Limitations Yes, within clearance period, with money returned to your account. Debit to your account is attempted. Yes. Some accounts do not allow direct debits. You should check with your financial institution to ensure that your account allows direct debits. Yes, within clearance period, with money returned to your account. EFT payment has been received and matched to contributions. Yes. Many financial institutions impose daily limits on payments you can make through an online banking facility. You should check with your financial institution to ensure that your facility has sufficient limits to allow your expected payments. Page 7
QuickSuper Paying for contributions Item Direct Debit EFT Potential Issues Debit fails as your account does not allow direct debit; Debit fails due to insufficient balance in your account; or Debit fails as you specified the wrong BSB and/or account number in QuickSuper. You are unable to make the required payment due to daily limits on your account; EFT payment is returned because it did not match an authorised contribution file in QuickSuper; EFT payment is returned because you specified the wrong BSB and/or account number when making the payment; or Contribution processing is delayed because the EFT payment is made after the cut-off stated by your financial institution. Choose option when... this Your business policy allows you to pay via Direct Debit; AND Your business policy does not allow you to pay via Direct Debit; OR You want to do everything within QuickSuper, without needing to log into online banking; The shorter clearance period is important to you. OR You want to remove the possibility of unmatched payments. You should also review fees associated with contributions processed via direct debit vs EFT and consider these when choosing your payment method. Page 8
QuickSuper Paying for contributions 2 Payment Matching When you have chosen to initiate the payment to QuickSuper using the details provided, QuickSuper will perform the following matching logic to identify your payment and match it to your contributions. While we encourage you to make an exact payment where possible, there could be instances where you might prefer to make separate payments or make an overpayment. This section does not apply to payments made using Direct Debit - as QuickSuper initiates the payment the payment will always match the contributions exactly. 2.1 Payment Matching Mechanism QuickSuper utilises a set of payment matching sequence and logic to reduce the likelihood of unmatched payments and streamline the contribution payment cycle for you. QuickSuper follows the following matching sequence: 1. Single Payment to Single Contribution 2. Single Payment to All Contributions 3. Multiple Payments to All Contributions 4. Multiple Payments to Single Contribution In the event that a match could not be found, the payment(s) will be left as unmatched. These unmatched payment(s) are then measured against the following threshold: If the payment(s) are less than the contributions, the payment(s) will be accepted and held within QuickSuper If the payment(s) are more than the contributions, but are less than or equal to $5.00 over the contribution total, then the payment(s) are matched to the contributions and the remainder is credited back to the employer If the payment(s) are more than the contributions, and are more than $5.00 over the contribution total, then the payment(s) are accepted and held within QuickSuper Page 9
QuickSuper Paying for contributions 2.2 Resolving Unmatched Payments When there are unmatched payments that are accepted and held within QuickSuper, you will be notified by email and the relevant notification will be displayed on the dashboard. The following steps explain how to resolve for the unmatched payment(s): 1. Click on View unmatched payments on the dashboard 2. If you have a multiple employer facility and more than one employer has an unmatched payment, you will need to select the employer you wish to review and click View Detail 3. On the Unmatched Payment Details page, you will be provided with a list of options you can undertake. Actions differ between under and over payments. For an Underpayment, you may choose to: Make an additional payment to make up the shortfall between the payments and contributions Return the payment to their nominated account Do nothing at this time (will lead to automatic resolution if no action is taken within three banking days) For an Overpayment, you may choose to: Match the payment to the contributions and the remainder will be returned to your nominated account the next business day Return the payment to your nominated account Do nothing at this time (will lead to automatic resolution if no action is taken within three banking days) The Automatic Resolution that is carried out after three banking days will be either: Underpaid: If the payment(s) are less than the contributions then the total of all unmatched payments will be credited back to the settlement account. This means no contributions will be made to superannuation funds. Overpaid: If the payment(s) are more than the contributions then the payment(s) will be matched to the contributions and the remainder will be credited back to the settlement account. The contributions will be made to the superannuation funds. Select the appropriate action and click Next. NOTE: When viewing an unmatched payment, there are a number of additional actions which an employer may choose to perform: Return a specific payment - can elect to return a specific payment to their nominated account by viewing the details of that payment and selecting to Return this payment Marking a payment as not belonging to you - if your facility has received a payment not made by your staff, you can mark a payment as not belonging to you. This will flag the payment for investigation by QuickSuper staff and not return it to your nominated account. Page 10
QuickSuper Paying for contributions 3 Additional options for Multiple Employer Facilities This section is only relevant for clients with a multiple employer facility. If you only have a single employer in your facility you may go straight to the Frequently Asked Questions section. 3.1 Employer Payment Methods If you have multiple employers in your facility, you have the option of choosing: Direct Debit as the payment method for all employers; EFT as the payment method for all employers; or Select the payment method that will apply per employer. You can change the payment method to be used within your facility under the Administration Payment Method menu. The following shows the screen for clients with a multiple employer facility. If you choose the Select per Employer option, you will be able to set the payment method separately for each employer. You may want to use this setting if you administer contributions for multiple employers but the employers want to use different payment methods. When you submit contributions for a given employer, the payment method for that employer will apply. If you upload a contribution file for multiple employers, the payment method for each employer will be applied to the relevant contributions. You can change the payment method to be used for a given employer by first searching for the employer under the Employers menu and then clicking View Details. Click on the payment method tab and choose the preferred payment method. Click Next and then Confirm in the following screen to finalise the change. 3.2 EFT Payment Account If you choose to pay via EFT, by default you will be provided with a single BSB and Account Number to use when paying for contributions for all employers. However, you also have the choice to use a separate BSB and Account Number to use when paying for each employer. You can change this preference under the Administration Preferences menu. If you have chosen a payment method of EFT or Select per Employer, an item for EFT Payment Accounts will be shown. The options are: Single account for all employers (default); or Separate account per employer. The differences between these options are best illustrated through an example. Assume that two employers exist within a multiple employer facility and that EFT has been selected as the payment method. If a contribution file containing employee contributions for both employers is uploaded and the file is authorised, the payment instructions will be displayed. Page 11
QuickSuper Paying for contributions If Single account for all employers is selected, the payment instructions will include a single BSB, Account Number, Reference and Amount to pay. A single payment should be made to cover the total of the contribution file. If Separate account per employer is selected, the payment instructions will include separate sets of BSB, Account Number, Reference and Amount to pay. Separate payments should be made to cover the employer sub-totals in the contribution file. This option is provided for clients who have a need to segregate the EFT payments for each employer. If each employer pays to a separate account, it is clear who made the payment when it is received. An example where this might be important is where you have two employers who must pay the same amount to cover outstanding contributions. The comparison is as follows: If a payment is made using a single account common for all employers, QuickSuper will arbitrarily match it to the outstanding contributions for one of the employers, which may or may not be the employer that made the payment. If a payment is made using a separate account per employer, QuickSuper will match it to the outstanding contributions for the employer that has made the payment. Page 12
QuickSuper Paying for contributions 4 Frequently Asked Questions 4.1 Can I change to the EFT method if I started using the Direct Debit method or vice versa? Yes. You can change the payment method to be used within your facility under the Administration Payment Method menu. 4.2 Can I still include an authorisation step for the method I choose? Yes. Regardless of the method you choose, you can still include an authorisation step prior to the payment being processed. 4.3 With Direct Debit, what happens if the debit fails? A direct debit attempt can fail for a number of reasons. These include: Your account does not allow direct debit; The balance in your account is insufficient to cover the amount being debited; or You have specified the wrong BSB and/or account number to debit. If a debit attempt fails, your business will receive an email advising of the failure and no further processing will occur for the affected contributions. If you wish to retry the contributions, you will need to re-enter and submit the contributions again. Your financial institution may charge a fee for a failed debit attempt. You will need to check fees associated with your account to confirm this. QuickSuper may also charge a fee for a failed debit attempt. You will need to check your fee schedule to confirm this. 4.4 If I have chosen to pay via EFT, why do I still need to enter a settlement account? If we attempt to pay a fund at your request but the fund returns the contribution, we will need to return the money to you. You must provide an account that we can use for this purpose. 4.5 How do I make an EFT payment? If you have chosen to pay via EFT, we will provide payment instructions you in QuickSuper. EFT payment instructions are not provided until after the file has been submitted and, if applicable, authorised. This is to reduce the risk of payment being made prior to the file being in a state that would allow matching with the incoming payment. Once the file is ready, the EFT payment instructions will be displayed on the screen. If you make a payment Page 13
QuickSuper Paying for contributions The instructions we will provide includes: BSB and Account Number to pay to; Reference value to include with the payment; and Amount to pay. In order to make the payment, you will need to login to your own financial institution s online banking site. The way to make an EFT payment will differ from one financial institution to another, however the function may be referred to as a pay anyone or direct credit payment. The process may involve some or all of the following steps: Select the account you are paying from; Enter a reference or description to appear on your statement, which can be any value of your choosing; Enter the BSB and Account Number you are paying to, which should be the values provided in QuickSuper; Enter a reference or description to appear on the recipient s statement, which should be the Reference value provided in QuickSuper; Enter the amount to pay, which should be the amount provided in QuickSuper; and Select a date that you want the payment to be made, which can be today or a future date. You should be aware that many financial institutions impose daily limits on payments you can make through an online banking facility. You should check with your financial institution to ensure that your facility has sufficient limits to allow your expected payments. If you are unsure how to make an EFT payment, you should contact your financial institution for further assistance. 4.6 Why can t I see an EFT payment I have just made reflected in QuickSuper? When you make an EFT payment from your own online banking, the amount is immediately debited from your account and will be reflected in a reduced account balance. However, the payment is not received by QuickSuper immediately and will not be visible in QuickSuper until the payment is received. This can be delayed if you pay after the cut-off specified by your financial institution (e.g. 6pm Sydney time) or if payment is made on a national public holiday (e.g. Australia Day). This is best described in examples: If you make a payment on a Monday, which is a normal banking day, and payment is made before cut-off then we would expect to receive the payment overnight. If Tuesday is a normal banking day, you would expect to see the payment reflected in QuickSuper by 9am on Tuesday. If you make a payment on a Friday, which is a normal banking day, and payment is made before cut-off then we would expect to receive the payment over the weekend. You would expect to see the payment reflected in QuickSuper by 9am on Monday. Page 14
QuickSuper Paying for contributions If you make a payment on a Monday, but it is a national public holiday, then it will not be processed until the next business day and we would expect it on the following night. If Tuesday and Wednesday are normal banking days, you would expect to see the payment reflected in QuickSuper by 9am on Wednesday. 4.7 Why are the clearance periods different for Direct Debit and EFT? With Direct Debit, if we attempt to debit your account, your financial institution has up to 3 banking days to reject the debit. Therefore we must wait until this period is complete before we make the payment to the fund. We will only schedule debits on banking days but the clearance must still take into account national public holidays and weekends. This is best described in examples: If we debit your account on a Monday, the debit will be considered cleared on the Thursday (assuming that Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday are banking days). If we debit your account on a Friday, the debit will be considered cleared on the following Wednesday (assuming that Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday are banking days). With EFT, we will consider the payment as cleared as soon as we receive it. However, there is a difference of one banking day between when you make the payment and we receive it. Therefore, this is indicated in the comparison table as a one banking day clearance period. 4.8 When will the fund receive the payment? The time that it takes for a fund to receive your payment will depend on: 1. The way you are paying QuickSuper (Direct Debit or EFT); and 2. The way QuickSuper is paying the fund (Direct Credit or Cheque). Note: The following examples assume that all weekdays are normal banking days and that your EFT payments have been made prior to the cut-off specified by your financial institution. Paying the fund via Direct Credit If paying the fund via direct credit, QuickSuper will make the payment to the fund when your payment has been received and cleared. The fund will receive a remittance email on the day that we pay them and will be able to confirm the payment on their own online bank statement on the following day. Page 15
QuickSuper Paying for contributions Your payment to QuickSuper via... You paid on... Cleared on... Paid to Fund on... Direct Debit Monday Thursday Thursday Direct Debit Friday Wednesday Wednesday EFT Monday Tuesday Tuesday EFT Friday Monday Monday Paying the fund via Cheque If paying the fund via cheque, QuickSuper will request the printing of the cheque when your payment has been received and cleared. The actual cheque is printed and mailed on the following banking day. The day that the cheque is actually received by the fund will be dependent on physical mail delivery timeframes and when the fund processes their incoming mail. If your payment to the fund is time critical, please ensure that you allow sufficient time for the cheque to be delivered and deposited by the fund. Your payment to QuickSuper via... You paid on... Cleared on... Cheque printed and mailed on... Direct Debit Monday Thursday Friday Direct Debit Friday Wednesday Thursday EFT Monday Tuesday Wednesday EFT Friday Monday Tuesday 4.9 When do I need to make contributions via QuickSuper in order to meet the Super Guarantee cut-off dates? Under superannuation legislation, you must pay superannuation guarantee amounts to the employee s nominated super fund at least four times a year. Please refer to the Australian Tax Office for more details on your super obligations. The superannuation guarantee quarterly cut-off dates are shown in the following table. When a cut-off date for payment falls on a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday, you can make the payment on the next working day after the cut-off date. Page 16
QuickSuper Paying for contributions Quarter Period Cut-off date 1 1 July 30 September 28 October 2 1 October 31 December 28 January 3 1 January 31 March 28 April 4 1 April 30 June 28 July Under current legislation, the super guarantee contribution is counted as being paid on the date that the super fund receives it, not the date that you pay QuickSuper. Using the fund payment timings noted previously, you should make sure you allow enough time for the payment to be received by the fund before the cut-off date. 4.10 With EFT, what happens if the payment cannot be matched to contributions? You will be notified if we are unable to match a payment to contributions. When making an EFT payment, there are a number of reasons why QuickSuper cannot match the payment to contributions. This can include: Contributions have been entered but have not been authorised. QuickSuper will not match payments to contributions that are not in an authorised state. BSB and/or account that payment has been made to are incorrect and therefore QuickSuper cannot identify that the payment is from you. Payment amount is incorrect and therefore QuickSuper cannot match the payment to the contributions. If QuickSuper cannot match the payment to contributions, the money will be automatically returned back to your financial institution after three banking days. Within these three banking days, you can either: For underpayment you can make additional payment until it matches For overpayment you can either match the payment and have the remainder returned or return the payment to your account. Please refer to Section 2.2 - Resolving Unmatched Payments for actions that can be undertaken for unmatched payments. Your financial institution may charge a fee for a returned EFT payment. You will need to check fees associated with your account to confirm this. QuickSuper does not charge a fee for a returned EFT payment. Page 17