Taxation Administration – Single Touch Payroll – Exemption for payments made to Members by Portable Long Service Leave and Portable Redundancy Scheme Providers

Administered by Department of the Treasury

Legislation au F2019L00457 Not in force Legislative Instrument

Legislation content

Explanatory Statement

 

Taxation Administration – Single Touch Payroll – Exemption for payments made to Members by Portable Long Service Leave and Portable Redundancy Scheme Providers

 

 

 

General Outline of Instrument

  1. This instrument is made under subsection 389-10(1) of Schedule 1 to the Taxation Administration Act 1953.
  2. This instrument exempts entities which administer a Portable Long Service Leave scheme or a Portable Redundancy scheme from reporting under Single Touch Payroll in respect of payments made to members of the scheme.
  3. The instrument is a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislation Act 2003.
  4. Under subsection 33(3) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901, where an Act confers a power to make, grant or issue any instrument of a legislative or administrative character (including rules, regulations or by-laws), the power shall be construed as including a power exercisable in the like manner and subject to the like conditions (if any) to repeal, rescind, revoke, amend, or vary any such instrument.

Date of effect

5.      This instrument commences on 1 July 2018.

6.      It applies retrospectively from 1 July 2018 to ensure that affected entities will not be disadvantaged by not having the exemption apply from the beginning of the financial year.  It applies for the 2018‑2019 and 2019-2020 financial years.

7.      For the purposes of subsection 12(2) of the Legislation Act 2003 this instrument does not adversely affect the rights or liabilities of any person. 

What is this instrument about

6.      Division 389 of Schedule 1 to the Taxation Administration Act 1953 establishes Single Touch Payroll reporting. That Division provides for the reporting of employee payroll and superannuation information by certain employers from 1 July 2018.

6.      Subsection 389-10(1) allows the Commissioner of Taxation to exempt by way of legislative instrument a class of entities from reporting under Single Touch Payroll.

7.      This instrument only exempts those entities who administer a Portable Long Service Leave scheme or Portable Redundancy scheme.

8.      Portable Long Service Leave scheme providers are not required to report long service leave payments made to members of the scheme, as would otherwise be required by section 389-5 of Schedule 1 to the Taxation Administration Act 1953.

9.      Similarly, Portable Redundancy scheme providers are not required to report termination of employment payments made to members of the scheme, as would otherwise be required by section 389-5.

10.  Portable Long Service Leave scheme and Portable Redundancy scheme providers are still required to report under Single Touch Payroll payments made to individuals who are not members of their respective schemes.

11.  This transitional relief from reporting under Single Touch Payroll is limited to the 2018-19 and 2019-2020 financial years.  Portable Long Service Leave scheme and Portable Redundancy scheme providers are required to commence reporting member payments through Single Touch Payroll from 1 July 2020.

 

What is the effect of this instrument

12.  An entity that meets the requirements specified in the instrument is exempted from reporting under Single Touch Payroll for the 2018‑2019 and 2019-2020 financial years.

13.  However, such an entity may still choose voluntarily to report under Single Touch Payroll in accordance with Division 389 notwithstanding their exemption.

14.  This determination applies retrospectively.  It provides certain entities with an exemption from their reporting obligations under Single Touch Payroll until 30 June 2020.  No individual with be detrimentally affected by retrospective application of the instrument.   

15.  An assessment of the compliance cost impact indicates that the impact will be minor for both implementation and on-going compliance costs. The instrument is of a minor or machinery nature.

Consultation

16.  The rules specified in this instrument have been developed in consultation with payroll software developers and bodies representing payroll users. Additionally, the relevant state and territory bodies who administer Portable Long Service Leave schemes have also been consulted.

 

 

 

Legislative references:

Acts Interpretation Act 1901

Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011

Legislation Act 2003

Taxation Administration Act 1953

Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights

 

This Statement is prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.

 

Taxation Administration – Single Touch Payroll – Exemption for payments made to Members by Portable Long Service Leave and Portable Redundancy Scheme Providers

 

This Legislative Instrument is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.

Overview of the Legislative Instrument

 

The Commissioner will afford an exemption to employers that administer a portable Long Service Leave scheme or make payments of long service leave to members of the scheme. Additionally, Portable Redundancy scheme providers are not required to report termination of employment payments made to members of the scheme in the 2018‑2019 and 2019‑2020 financial years. This will provide extra time to update software so that these employers/entities can be compliant with the Single Touch Payroll reporting requirements.

Human rights implications

This legislative instrument does not engage any of the applicable rights or freedoms because it is of a minor or machinery nature as it provides certain entities with an exemption from a reporting requirement for the 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 financial years.

Conclusion

This legislative instrument is compatible with human rights as it does not raise any human rights issues.

 

 

Overview

The Taxation Administration – Single Touch Payroll – Exemption for payments made to Members by Portable Long Service Leave and Portable Redundancy Scheme Providers legislative instrument was enacted in 2019 under subsection 389-10(1) of Schedule 1 to the Taxation Administration Act 1953. This legislation addresses the need to provide relief to entities that administer Portable Long Service Leave schemes and Portable Redundancy schemes from Single Touch Payroll reporting requirements. The instrument was developed by the Commissioner of Taxation and seeks to ensure that these entities have sufficient time to update their software to comply with the new reporting requirements, which were introduced to streamline payroll reporting processes. The exemption is intended to be temporary, applying only for the 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 financial years, after which the entities will be required to report through Single Touch Payroll from 1 July 2020.

Scope and Application

The legislative instrument F2019L00457 pertains to a specific exemption under the Taxation Administration Act 1953, focusing on Single Touch Payroll (STP) reporting obligations for certain entities. This instrument exempts entities administering Portable Long Service Leave schemes and Portable Redundancy schemes from STP reporting for payments made to scheme members during the 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 financial years. This exemption applies retrospectively from 1 July 2018 to ensure that affected entities are not disadvantaged. However, these entities must still report under STP for payments made to non-scheme members and are required to commence STP reporting for scheme member payments from 1 July 2020. The instrument is made under the authority of subsection 389-10(1) of Schedule 1 to the Taxation Administration Act 1953, and its effect is limited to the specified financial years, ensuring minimal impact on compliance costs and human rights.

Key Provisions

This legislative instrument, made under subsection 389-10(1) of Schedule 1 to the Taxation Administration Act 1953, provides a temporary exemption from Single Touch Payroll (STP) reporting requirements for entities that administer Portable Long Service Leave schemes or Portable Redundancy schemes (sections 8 and 9). These entities are not required to report payments made to members of their respective schemes as would ordinarily be required by section 389-5 of Schedule 1 to the Taxation Administration Act 1953. However, it is important to note that entities administering these schemes are still required to report under STP for payments made to individuals who are not members of these schemes. This exemption is limited to the 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 financial years, with reporting through STP required to commence from 1 July 2020 (section 11). Entities that qualify for this exemption must be those that administer either a Portable Long Service Leave scheme or a Portable Redundancy scheme. These entities must ensure that they do not report under STP for payments made to members of their respective schemes during the specified financial years. However, these entities retain the option to voluntarily report under STP in accordance with Division 389 of Schedule 1 to the Taxation Administration Act 1953, despite the exemption (section 13). The legislative instrument imposes certain obligations on the entities that qualify for the exemption. Primarily, these entities must refrain from reporting under STP for payments made to members of their respective schemes during the 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 financial years. Failure to adhere to these obligations may result in a breach of the instrument, although no specific offences, penalties, or civil/criminal consequences are outlined in the text for such breaches (section 12). The instrument's minor or machinery nature suggests that compliance costs will be minimal for both implementation and ongoing compliance.

Legal classification tags

Area of Law
Taxation Law
Instrument
Legislative Instrument
Concepts
Commencement Provisions
Exemptions & Exclusions
Reporting & Disclosure Obligations

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Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation at 26 August 2026. For the latest information on Australian Government law please go to https://www.legislation.gov.au.