Super stapling is an Australian rule that ties a single superannuation account to you so it follows you from job to job, instead of a fresh default account being opened every time you start with a new employer. It has applied since November 1, 2021, under the Your Future, Your Super reforms, and it exists to stop retirement savings from being eroded by duplicate fees and insurance premiums across forgotten accounts.1Parliament of Australia. Treasury Laws Amendment (Your Future, Your Super) Bill 2021
What Changes When You Start a New Job
The rule flips what happens by default. Before November 2021, starting a new job without nominating a super fund meant your employer opened a new default account for you. Do that a few times over a career and you end up paying admin fees, investment fees, and insurance premiums out of several small balances at once.
Now, if you don’t nominate a fund, your new employer has to ask the Australian Taxation Office whether you already have one. If you do, that account is your “stapled” fund, and your contributions go there. Doing nothing keeps your existing account working for you rather than spawning another one.
You can still choose a different fund at any time. Stapling changes the default, not your rights.
How to Find Your Stapled Super Fund
You can look up which fund the ATO has recorded against your tax file number through your myGov account. Sign in to myGov, link or select the Australian Taxation Office service, and open the “Super” section. From there you can view your fund details, see any lost super, and check balances across accounts.2Australian Taxation Office. Keeping Track of Your Super Online
If more than one account shows up, that’s a sign you accumulated default accounts under the old rules. You can transfer balances between funds directly through the same myGov screens. Read the section on insurance below before you close anything.
How to Choose a Different Fund
If you’d rather your super go somewhere other than the stapled account, fill in a Superannuation Standard Choice Form and give it to your employer. Employers have to offer eligible new starters this form within 28 days of their start date.3Australian Taxation Office. Superannuation Standard Choice Form
Once you nominate a fund, your employer has two months to redirect your contributions to it.4Australian Taxation Office. Stapled Super Funds for Employers
Consolidating Old Accounts: Check the Insurance First
Rolling multiple super accounts into one usually saves money on fees. But many super accounts include life cover, total and permanent disability cover, or income protection bundled in. When you close the account, that insurance goes with it.
If your health has changed since the cover was first issued, you may not be able to buy the same protection again, or it may cost significantly more. Before closing any account, look at what insurance is attached, whether you still need it, and whether the fund you’re keeping offers comparable cover. Losing a policy you can’t replace tends to be a larger risk than a second set of admin fees while you sort things out.
How Employers Handle the Stapled Fund Check
If you’re an employer, the stapled fund check sits inside your onboarding process. When a new employee starts and doesn’t hand you a Standard Choice Form, you request their stapled fund details through ATO online services. The request can only be made after you’ve lodged either a Tax File Number declaration or a Single Touch Payroll pay event for that person, so the ATO knows the employment relationship exists.4Australian Taxation Office. Stapled Super Funds for Employers
There isn’t a set number of days to lodge the request, but the practical deadline is the quarterly superannuation guarantee due date: contributions must reach the employee’s fund by the 28th day after the end of each quarter. Miss that window because you sent the money to the wrong place, and you become liable for the superannuation guarantee charge, which includes the shortfall calculated on total salary and wages, nominal interest of 10% per year from the start of the quarter, and a $20 per employee per quarter administration fee. Unlike regular contributions, the charge is not tax-deductible.5Australian Taxation Office. The Super Guarantee Charge
If the employee later submits a Standard Choice Form nominating a different account, contributions must move to that fund within two months.4Australian Taxation Office. Stapled Super Funds for Employers
When There’s No Stapled Fund
Not everyone has a stapled fund. A first-time worker, or someone whose earlier accounts have all been closed, may return a nil result from the ATO. If the employee hasn’t nominated a fund either, the employer pays contributions into their default fund. That default has to be a complying fund registered with APRA and must offer a MySuper product.6Australian Taxation Office. Select Your Default Super Fund
Temporary Residents and Contractors
Temporary visa holders working in Australia can’t choose their own super fund, but the stapling check still applies. Employers must request stapled fund details from the ATO. If one exists, contributions go there; if not, the employer uses their default fund.4Australian Taxation Office. Stapled Super Funds for Employers
Some independent contractors count as employees for super guarantee purposes. If the contractor is eligible to choose a fund but doesn’t, the hiring business has to request stapled fund details the same way it would for any other employee. Skipping the check exposes the business to the same penalties as any other wrong-fund contribution.7Australian Taxation Office. Super for Independent Contractors