Super contributions are changing for Queensland Government employees

Superannuation is a way of saving money while you’re working so that you will have money when you retire. The Queensland Government has announced it will make some changes to employee and employer super contributions for its employees in 2023.

How it currently works

Most employers pay the Superannuation Guarantee (SG) rate of 10.5% to super. But most Queensland Government employees also make employee super contributions (which we call ‘standard contributions’). Most Queensland Government employees who make a standard contribution receive more super from their employer.

Here's a summary of how super contribution arrangements currently work for Queensland Government employees.

Here’s what’s changing from 1 July 2023

• If you’re a Queensland Government employee, you’ll receive an employer contribution of 12.75% (18% for police) on ordinary time earnings (OTE)¹, even if you don’t make a standard contribution.
• All employer contributions will be calculated on ordinary time earnings including when you are on paid leave. This means that super may be paid on more types of earnings than it was before².
• So under the changes, you may potentially receive more employer contributions.

If you have a Defined Benefit account

There will be no changes to defined benefit member contributions. If you have a Defined Benefit account, you will still need to make standard member contributions.

If you have a Defined Benefit account you will also receive top-ups into your Accumulation account to bring your employer contributions to 12.75% (or 18% for police) of your OTE.

Learn more about how your Defined Benefit account works.

There’s also a change from 1 April 2023

• From 1 April 2023, you can choose to reduce your standard contribution to 0%. If you do this, the employer contribution will decrease to 10.5% of OTE, with the reduction recovered by a one-off top-up in employer contribution in 2023-24.
• The standard contribution you currently pay will not change automatically. If you want to change it, you will need to request a change through your payroll.

One-off top-up super contribution

Between July and September 2023, if you’re eligible, you’ll receive a one-off top-up contribution to bring your 2022-23 financial year employer contributions to a total of 12.75% (or 18% for police) of your 2022-23 OTE.

If you’re eligible, you’ll receive this even if you’re no longer employed by the Queensland Government at the time the payment is made.

This amount will be paid into your Accumulation account (including for defined benefit account holders).

1. A person's OTE is generally what an employer pays them for their ordinary hours of work, including commissions, shift loadings, and allowances, but not overtime payments. If you're not sure whether a payment type is OTE, you can ask your employer.
2. The Australian Government’s definition of OTE limits the amount of superannuation contributions an employer must pay. The current limit is 10.5% of $60,220 per quarter, or $6,323 per quarter or $25,292 per financial year. This limit does not apply under the Queensland Government’s arrangements.
As there is no limit on the level of employer contributions made, some employees may exceed their concessional contribution cap, which is $27,500 per year plus carry forward amounts since 1 July 2018. Learn more about contribution caps.