Quick answer
You can get a business loan with unpaid super, but lenders treat it as one of the most serious debts on a file because it's employees' money and carries director penalty risk. Small arrears with strong bank statements can suit unsecured lenders; larger or older arrears usually need property security. Since Payday Super began on 1 July 2026, super is due within seven business days of each payday, so arrears build quickly.
Key points
- From 1 July 2026, super must reach the fund within 7 business days of each payday in most cases
- Arrears for earnings paid before 1 July 2026 still fall under the old quarterly charge rules
- Unpaid super is within the director penalty regime, so directors can become personally liable
- Lenders usually want super arrears cleared from the loan at settlement, before anything else
Super is usually the first bill that slips when cash gets tight, and it’s easy to see why. Wages have to go out on Thursday or staff walk. Super felt like it could wait until the end of the quarter. For years, that gap gave employers a few weeks of breathing room.
That breathing room has closed. Since the Payday Super rules took over this financial year, they’ve changed both how fast super arrears pile up and how quickly they become visible. If you’re behind, the sooner you deal with it, the more ways out there are.
What’s different now that super follows payday?
The quarterly rhythm has been replaced. Each pay run now carries its own super deadline.
| Old quarterly rules (earnings to 30 June 2026) | Payday Super (earnings paid since) | |
|---|---|---|
| Deadline | The 28th day of the month after each quarter | Usually 7 business days after payday, measured by when the fund gets it |
| New employees | Same quarterly date | Up to 20 business days for the first contribution |
| What it’s calculated on | Ordinary time earnings | 12% of qualifying earnings |
| If it’s late | Quarterly super guarantee charge | The new Payday Super charge regime |
Two practical consequences for an owner who’s behind:
- Arrears build weekly. A business paying fortnightly can now be in arrears 26 separate times a year, rather than four.
- There are two sets of rules in play. Earnings paid up to 30 June 2026 still sit under the quarterly regime, so older arrears and newer arrears may be calculated and paid differently. Your accountant or payroll provider will need to split them.
Compliance hinges on the date the money lands with the fund and can be allocated; the day you press ‘pay’ doesn’t count. If you use a clearing house, allow processing time on top.
Why do lenders treat unpaid super so seriously?
From a lender’s point of view, super arrears aren’t just another creditor. Three things set them apart.
It’s employees’ money. Unpaid super is an employee entitlement, and arrears suggest the business has been funding operations with money that belongs to staff. Lenders want to know that has stopped.
Directors can become personally liable. Super is within the director penalty regime. Once a DPN is issued, the shortfall can follow the directors home, which puts their personal assets, including any property offered as security, under pressure. See director penalty notice funding if a notice has already arrived.
It costs more the longer it runs. The super guarantee charge isn’t tax deductible, and late amounts carry extra components on top of the shortfall. A loan that clears the arrears early often costs less in total dollars than letting them run.
That’s why most lenders will make clearing super a condition of the loan, paid at or straight after settlement.
Which funding options suit super arrears?
Banks first, as always. If your arrears are small, short-lived and caused by a clear one-off, talk to your bank, particularly if you’ve been with it for years. Bank money is usually the cheapest money available. If it can’t help, here’s how the alternatives line up.
- Short-term working capital. For arrears of a few weeks’ worth of super in an otherwise healthy business, a working capital loan sized on bank statements can clear it quickly. Check that the repayment doesn’t recreate the problem next month.
- Invoice finance. If super fell behind because customers pay slowly, invoice finance turns unpaid invoices into cash and fixes the underlying timing problem.
- Property-secured loans. For larger arrears, or super alongside GST and PAYG debt, a second mortgage or caveat loan lets the lender focus on equity. Often the ATO and super arrears are paid together from settlement.
- A payment arrangement with the ATO. For older arrears under the quarterly rules, the ATO may agree to a plan. Ask your adviser how this works for amounts under the new regime before relying on it.
Weighing these up? Outline the arrears for us and we’ll tell you which looks most realistic.
Example: a café group catching up after a slow winter
An illustrative case. A company running two Hobart cafés with 22 casual and part-time staff fell behind on super from May. By September it owed about $38k: roughly $16k from the April to June 2026 quarter under the old rules, and $22k from fortnightly paydays since July.
Bank statements were reasonable but tight, and a fast unsecured lender offered $25k, which didn’t cover it. One director’s home carried substantial equity, which opened the door to a $60k second mortgage: the super arrears were cleared at settlement through the correct channels for each period, $12k went to a GST balance, and the rest stayed as a buffer. The directors moved payroll and super to the same day so super now goes out automatically with wages. The cash runway calculator helped them size the buffer.
Steps to take this week
- Work out the arrears by period, splitting anything before 1 July 2026 from paydays after it.
- Ask your accountant what’s owing under each regime and whether lodging a disclosure would reduce the cost.
- Check for any ATO notices, especially director penalty notices, and note their dates.
- Fix the timing. Set super to pay automatically with each payroll run, even if the amount is small at first.
- Choose the funding route based on the size of the arrears and whether property is available. Our page on funding superannuation payments compares them.
- Tell your staff the plan if they ask. Honest communication keeps good people.
What not to do
- Don’t keep using super to cover wages. Under Payday Super, that gap compounds every pay cycle.
- Don’t take a daily-debit loan that squeezes the next payroll. You’ll be back in arrears within weeks.
- Don’t hide it from the lender. Super arrears tend to surface in ATO statements, and an unexplained discovery undermines the whole application.
- Don’t wait for a notice. Directors who act before the ATO does have more choices than directors who act after.
Staff super behind? Let’s get it sorted properly
Falling behind on super doesn’t make you a bad employer; it usually means cash flow got squeezed and wages came first. We help owners in exactly this spot, and we know which lenders will fund super arrears and which will just add pressure.
Give us about sixty seconds on the form. Asking us is invisible to the credit bureaus, and your situation isn’t passed along to every lender out there. One of our specialists reviews it personally and phones you. Note how much super is owing, for which periods, and any other ATO amounts, so we can recommend the option that clears it all in one go.
Frequently asked questions
Will a lender fund unpaid super?
Many will, as long as the loan clears the arrears. Lenders generally prefer to see super paid first from the proceeds, because unpaid employee entitlements and director penalty risk both threaten the business's ability to repay.
What changed with Payday Super?
From 1 July 2026, employers pay super with each pay cycle rather than quarterly. Contributions generally need to be received by the employee's fund within 7 business days of payday, with up to 20 business days for a new employee's first contribution. Super is calculated as 12% of qualifying earnings.
Is the super guarantee charge tax deductible?
No. The super guarantee charge, which applies when super isn't paid on time, can't be claimed as a deduction, which is one reason late super costs more than paying on time. Ask your accountant how this applies to your periods.
Can directors be personally liable for unpaid super?
Yes. Unpaid super guarantee amounts fall within the director penalty regime, so the ATO can issue a director penalty notice making directors personally liable. Acting early keeps more options open.
Can I use an unsecured loan to catch up super?
For smaller arrears, often yes, if your bank statements show the business can carry the repayment. Larger amounts, or arrears alongside other ATO debt, usually get a better result with property security.
Do lenders find out about unpaid super?
Usually. Super arrears show up in ATO statements, and lenders often ask directly about employee entitlements. Disclosing it upfront, with a catch-up plan, reads far better than a lender finding it.