Do under 18s get super? Only in a week they work more than 30 hours
If you pay anyone under 18 (a junior, a casual, or your own kids in the business), super works differently for them. They only get super in a week they work more than 30 hours.
Week by week, not averaged
The 30 hours is assessed for each week on its own. It isn't averaged across a pay period or a month. So a week over 30 hours attracts super, and a week of 30 hours or less doesn't, even inside the same pay.
How much, in a week that counts
In a week where they work more than 30 hours, super guarantee is 12% of what the ATO calls qualifying earnings: ordinary pay, not usually overtime.
When it's due
Under payday super, which started on 1 July 2026, super has to reach the fund within 7 business days of the day wages are paid, or 20 business days for a new employee's first contribution.
Getting it right without a spreadsheet
Komiti's free payday catch-up applies the under-18 rule using the hours they usually work each week and their age on each payday. If their hours swing above and below 30, check the actual weeks too. It lists every payday since the last one fully done, the wages and super for each person, and which super is already late. No account, no AI, and nothing you enter is stored.
Questions
- Does a 17-year-old casual get super?
- Only in a week they work more than 30 hours. Each week is assessed on its own.
- Is the 30 hours averaged over a fortnight?
- No. It's week by week, not averaged.
- What happens in the week they turn 18?
- From the payday after they turn 18, super applies whatever their hours. The payday catch-up uses their age on each payday. If a pay period spans their birthday, check with your accountant or the ATO.
General information only, not legal, tax or financial advice.