Answer
Lightning Payroll gives you the ability to control your super and pay directly to any major super fund or SMSF, without the need for a clearing house or 'middleman'.
How Should I Be Paying Super In Lightning Payroll?
The typical super procedure is as follows:
- Click Super Fund Deposits.
- Click Create Deposits.
- Choose the dates and employees to pay super for.
- Follow the prompts to send the resulting SuperStream Contribution messages directly to each super fund.
- Make an internet banking payment to each fund using either the Direct Entry file, or the details in the Direct Entry preview report generated by Lightning Payroll.
Following this structure above rarely results in errors, however they can occur. Please see this other FAQ on how to pay super for more info.
What Causes Errors?
The two main causes of errors are:
- Steps 4 (sending messages) and 5 (making payment) above are not executed on the same day. The longer you delay between sending messages and making payment, the higher the chance that the message and/or payment will be rejected by each destination super fund. Please make sure you are not processing super until you are ready to pay, and please make payment on the same day you send your super messages.
- The ABA/lodgement reference does not match the 18 digit reference number included in the message, which Lightning Payroll generates. The reference number must match, or the payment will likely be lost and a mystery that the super fund will not be able to allocate.
Below is an example diagram to show the basic structure of a single SuperStream Contribution message and payment.