Single touch payroll, also commonly referred to as STP has been in play for companies with 20+ team members since July 2018. As an employee, you may not have noticed the switch but there’s been a lot of work going on behind the scenes. STP supports employers to seamlessly gather information related to wages, superannuation, and tax and share it effortlessly with the Australian Tax Office so everyone’s on the same page at all times. This simple system came as a blessing to managers across the country who were able to scrap pay summaries and use STP software to manage payroll, but why should you care? Well, if you continue reading you’ll find out what this real-time reporting tool means for you and why the benefits are endless.
Say Goodbye To Payment Summaries
Remember when you’d have to wait for a payment summary at the end of the financial year to find out all the information relating to your annual salary? Well, now all your information is centralized and ready to access at any time, thanks to STP. This benefits you as an employee who is entitled to see this detail and the ATO who also have instant access to it. Your myGov account is the portal to this vast wealth of intelligence and you can see it when you please. This means you can challenge any discrepancies as they arise and keep track of your personal details when you feel the need.
Streamlined Reporting
With STP software came streamlined reports. To minimize the risk of receiving reports that do not satisfy or getting reports that include irrelevant information STP software creates compliant and detailed reports that are sent to the ATO automatically. It also ensures that they are all in the same format so it’s easy for the ATO to pull data from them to utilize effectively. This benefits employers who would have previously produced the reports manually, it also benefits you as an employee because you know the ATO is receiving accurate information about your employment.
Accuracy
Before STP software was implemented it was the responsibility of a payroll clerk to enter details and produce reports manually. Even the most skilled and experienced worker is bound to make a mistake eventually when you’re spending your days crunching numbers. Luckily STP software minimizes this risk and gives employees like you peace of mind that their payslips will be accurate and their wages exact. Whether it’s due to the slip of a finger or a miscalculation the impact a simple payroll-related mistake can have could be devastating. Not to mention the implications of paying the wrong amount of tax or superannuation.
Digitalization
It’s no secret that businesses who embrace change and adapt to overcome new challenges come out on top. When the government is forcing companies to digitalise and use technology to centralize information, the employers who embrace this and roll with the punches are likely to be successful overall. Not only can you be sure that your employer is complying with ATO legislation but it gives you confidence that your boss is forward-thinking and adaptable.
Summary
With the end of payment summaries and a more accurate and streamlined process for payroll, you can see why this makes a difference to you and why keeping up with ongoing changes is so important.
