Superannuation has been all over the arts press lately, and for good reason. Recent changes to how and when super is paid, combined with closer ATO scrutiny, mean many people and organisations that engage artists are still catching up with what’s actually required of them. This applies far more broadly than most people realise — a local council commissioning a public artwork, a gallery hiring an installer, a festival booking performers, and an artist paying a studio assistant or collaborator are all bound by the same rules.
The rate has gone up, and the rules are stricter than you’d think
From 1 July 2025, the Superannuation Guarantee (SG) sits at 12% of “ordinary time earnings” — for contractors, that’s the labour component of an invoice, not materials or reimbursed expenses. Whether it’s a whole season of programming or a single day’s help in the studio, that’s a meaningful cost on top of the agreed fee, and it catches a lot of people out.
The most common misconception is that an ABN gets you off the hook. It doesn’t. As Penelope Benton of the National Association for Visual Artists (NAVA) explained to ArtsHub, anyone paying a worker mainly for their labour is legally required to pay super, even if that worker invoices under an ABN — and that includes artists themselves, as sole traders, engaging assistants. The ATO applies what’s known as the “control test”: if you control the nature of the work someone does for you — whether that’s an assistant helping install your show, an artist installing a council-commissioned mural, or a performer at a civic event — super is likely payable, regardless of how the arrangement is structured on paper.
There’s a narrow exception. If a worker contracts their services through a company, partnership or trust, super may not be payable — but the ATO can, and does, look through these structures where it suspects they’re being used to avoid the obligation.
Another myth worth retiring: the old $450-a-month earnings threshold, once used to exempt small or casual payments from super, was abolished back in 2022. That means a single one-off commission, a short residency, or a day of studio assistance can still attract super obligations, no matter how modest the payment.
It’s not just organisations — artists engaging other artists are covered too
Councils, galleries, festivals and arts organisations are an obvious focus, but the same obligations apply just as squarely to artists engaging other artists. If you’re a sole trader who hires a studio assistant, brings in a collaborator to help install or deliver a project, or pays another artist to assist on a commission, you’re the one legally responsible for paying their super — not them. As NAVA’s Penelope Benton put it in comments to ArtsHub, an assistant doesn’t need to ask for it or include it on their invoice to be entitled to it. Michael Fox of Michael Fox Arts Accounts & Valuers, also speaking to ArtsHub, notes this is genuinely confusing territory for many artists, particularly those who’ve never received super themselves, even in situations where it should have been paid.
Group commissions add a further layer of complexity, wherever they sit: a single invoice from a lead artist or collective may mask different arrangements for each individual involved, some of whom may be sole traders and others operating through entities. It’s worth understanding who is actually being paid before assuming super doesn’t apply.
Across a busy program of commissions, workshops, exhibitions or events, this adds up quickly. An artist or assistant engaged for a $1,000 fee could effectively cost $1,120 once super is factored in — whether that’s one project for a sole trader or a full annual program for a council or festival.
Payday Super changes the timing
Perhaps the biggest operational shift is Payday Super. From 1 July 2026, super contributions must now generally be made within seven business days of paying a worker, rather than by the old quarterly deadline. For sole traders, arts organisations, councils and event producers alike, this means super needs to be built into your payment process from the outset, not reconciled after the fact.
Missing the mark isn’t cheap: unpaid super triggers a shortfall statement to the ATO, an administration fee, interest on the late payment, and the shortfall itself isn’t tax deductible.
What this means for you
Both NAVA and industry accountants are consistent on this point: budget for super as a genuine line item, not an afterthought. That applies whether you’re an artist engaging an assistant on a project grant, or an organisation commissioning artists at scale. In practice, that means building super into project, grant and commissioning budgets from the start; reviewing contracts and invoice templates to confirm who’s responsible for what; and checking whether the person you’re engaging is a sole trader or operating through an entity before assuming super doesn’t apply.
Structural gaps remain — too many artists reach retirement with little or no super, and NAVA continues to call for reform to better protect artists as workers. Getting the basics right, whoever you’re engaging, is one of the clearest ways for the whole sector to close that gap.
Where to go for more detail
Creative Australia’s Creative Workplaces initiative has a dedicated superannuation section covering who’s entitled to super, how to set your organisation up to pay it, making payments correctly, and the shift to Payday Super — written specifically for artists, arts workers and the organisations that engage them. It’s a solid next stop if you want to check your own arrangements: creativeworkplaces.gov.au/contracts-and-payment/superannuation.
This article is general information, not financial or legal advice. If you’re unsure how these rules apply to your situation, it’s worth speaking with an accountant or the ATO directly.
Sources:
Gina Fairley, “Fact sheet: Superannuation for artists – what you need to know”, ArtsHub, 30 September 2025.
Michael Fox “Superannuation for artists”, Michael Fox Arts Accountancy, 13 October 2025 .
Sam Bacigalupo, “Superannuation and live entertainment: what you need to know”, Pitcher Partners, 20 July 2026.