PAYG Payment Summaries in 2026: Income Statements, 'Tax Ready' and What Employers Must Do

Searching for your PAYG payment summary and can't find a piece of paper? That's normal now. Most Australian employers stopped issuing payment summaries once Single Touch Payroll (STP) took over, and the same figures now appear as an income statement in myGov. This guide is for employees looking for their end-of-year figures and for small business owners who run payroll. It explains what replaced payment summaries, when an income statement turns "tax ready", the employer's 14 July finalisation deadline, who still has to issue paper summaries, how contractors fit in, and how mistakes get fixed.

Quick answer

A PAYG payment summary shows a worker's pay and tax withheld for the financial year. If your employer reports through Single Touch Payroll, you won't get one — your income statement in ATO online services (via myGov) replaces it. Employers must finalise STP data by 14 July; your statement then shows as 'tax ready'.

• Find it: myGov → ATO → Employment → Income statement (or the ATO app)

• Wait for 'tax ready' before lodging; ask your employer if it isn't by 31 July

• Employers not finalising through STP still give payment summaries by 14 July and lodge an annual report by 14 August

• Closely held payees (e.g. family members) have later dates — 30 September or the payee's return due date

What a PAYG payment summary is — and what replaced it

Under pay as you go withholding, an employer takes tax out of each pay and sends it to the ATO. At year-end the worker needs a record of total pay and total tax withheld to complete their tax return. For decades that record was the PAYG payment summary – individual non-business (NAT 0046), sometimes still called a "group certificate" by people who've been working a long time.

Single Touch Payroll changed that. With STP, payroll software sends pay, tax withheld and super details to the ATO every payday. The ATO says STP began on 1 July 2018 for employers with 20 or more employees and on 1 July 2019 for those with 19 or fewer, and it's mandatory. From 1 January 2022, Phase 2 widened the data collected. Because the ATO already holds the figures, the employer simply makes a finalisation declaration at year-end instead of printing summaries.

Once an employer has reported and finalised a worker's pay through STP, the ATO's guidance is clear: the employer doesn't have to give that worker a payment summary, and doesn't have to lodge a payment summary annual report for those amounts. The employer can still hand out a summary as a courtesy, but the official record is the income statement.

Payment summaries haven't vanished entirely. They're still required for payments that weren't reported and finalised through STP — for example, if an employer is exempt from STP, or for some non-employee payments. We cover those cases below.

Where to find your PAYG summary: the income statement in myGov

If your employer uses STP, the ATO's instructions are:

How to get your PAYG summary (income statement)

1. 1

   Sign in to myGov

   Use your myGov account linked to the ATO. If you don't have one, create a myGov account and link the ATO first.

   ATO — access your income statement
2. 2

   Open ATO online services → Employment

   Select Employment, then Income statement. You'll see each employer for the year, your pay and the tax withheld.

3. 3

   Or use the ATO app

   Log in to ATO online services in the app, choose Employment, then pick the income year.

4. 4

   Check the status says 'Tax ready'

   Don't lodge using figures marked 'Not tax ready' — your employer may finalise different amounts.

5. 5

   Or ask your tax agent

   Registered agents see the same income statement through their software or Online services for agents.

Your income statement shows year-to-date salary and wages, tax withheld and super. If you had several employers, you'll have several statements — or a mix of statements and paper summaries if one employer wasn't using STP. When you lodge through myTax, finalised STP figures pre-fill automatically.

If you can't see an income statement at all, the ATO says the usual cause is that your employer's STP data couldn't be matched to you — often because the tax file number they reported doesn't match ATO records. Call the ATO on 13 28 61 in that case. If you can't create a myGov account and don't have a tax agent, the same number can help.

Lost or missing payment summary from an older year

For years before your employer moved to STP, or from a non-STP payer, the ATO lists several options if the paper copy is lost: ask the employer for a copy, or for a letter stating your income and tax withheld; use the pre-fill service in myTax; or rebuild figures from payslips, timesheets and bank statements. The ATO says you no longer need a statutory declaration. If nothing works, you estimate the figures — the ATO's gross pay estimator converts your net pay into an estimated gross amount — and keep notes on how you worked them out.

When your income statement becomes 'tax ready'

The status of your income statement changes through the year. The ATO describes three stages:

• Year-to-date — during the financial year, as your employer reports each payday.
• Not tax ready — from 1 July, until your employer submits the finalisation declaration.
• Tax ready — once the employer finalises. The ATO pre-fills your return and sends a notification to your myGov inbox when all your income statements are tax ready.

Most employers have until 14 July to finalise. Many do it in the first week of July; some leave it until the deadline. If your statement still isn't tax ready after 31 July, the ATO tells employees to speak to their employer.

Lodging early, before your statement is tax ready, is allowed — the ATO will flag that the data isn't final, and you have to acknowledge that your employer may finalise different amounts and that you might need to amend your return and pay extra tax. For most people, waiting a couple of weeks is the safer choice.

Worked example. Mia worked at a Brisbane cafe from July to February, then started a new job in March. On 3 July she opens myGov and sees two income statements, both "Not tax ready". The cafe finalises on 8 July and her new employer on 14 July. She gets a myGov message on 15 July saying all her income statements are tax ready, and her myTax return pre-fills both. Had she lodged on 3 July and her new employer's final pay run included a back-payment, she'd have had to amend.

What employers must do: the 14 July finalisation deadline

For employers, the "payment summary season" is now about one task: the STP finalisation declaration. The ATO says you need to make it by 14 July each year so employees can access finalised figures. If you can't meet the date, apply for a deferral before it passes.

End-of-year payroll dates (each financial year)

9 June

Last day a non-STP worker can request a part-year payment summary in writing

30 June

Financial year ends — last pay date counted in the year

1 July

Employees' STP figures switch to 'Not tax ready'

14 July

STP finalisation for arm's-length employees; payment summaries due to workers not finalised through STP

14 August

Payment summary annual report due for amounts not finalised through STP

28 August

Taxable payments annual report (TPAR) for businesses in reportable industries

30 September

STP finalisation for closely held payees (20+ employees, or small employers with mixed staff)

The ATO points to some common mistakes:

• Finalising the wrong financial year. This happens when the declaration goes in after 30 June and the software defaults to the new year. Double-check the year before you submit.
• Leaving out part-year workers. You must finalise everyone you paid and reported during the year, including staff who left and casuals who only worked a few shifts.
• Changing payroll software mid-year. If you bring year-to-date balances into new software, you either zero them out in the old system or tell the ATO your previous software's ID (if your software supports it). Otherwise an employee's income can be double-counted.

You can finalise an individual employee at any time during the year — for example, when they leave. The ATO notes that the data still won't pre-fill into the employee's return until after 30 June, so someone leaving Australia mid-year follows the part-year return process.

What to tell staff. The ATO expects employers to explain that payment summaries are no longer issued for STP-finalised amounts, that "income statement" is the new name, that they should wait for "tax ready", and that they should keep their personal details current in ATO online services — wrong details can stop the data matching.

Closely held payees

A closely held payee is someone directly related to the business — for example, a family member in a family business, a director, or a shareholder or beneficiary. The ATO sets separate dates:

Source: ATO, End-of-year finalisation through STP. Small employers are those with 19 or fewer payees.

For a small family company where only the directors are paid, the finalisation date follows each director's own tax return due date — so check with your tax agent, because a return lodged through an agent can have a later date than one lodged yourself.

Who still gets a paper PAYG payment summary

Payment summaries remain the rule for any payment you didn't report and finalise through STP. The ATO lists the most common forms:

PAYG payment summaries still in use

Form	Used for	When to give it
Individual non-business (NAT 0046)	Salary and wages, directors' fees, allowances not reported through STP	By 14 July
Business and personal services income (NAT 72545)	Voluntary agreement and labour-hire payments, attributed personal services income	By 14 July
Employment termination payment (NAT 70868)	ETPs such as some redundancy and termination payments	Within 14 days of paying the ETP
Foreign employment (NAT 73297)	Income from foreign employment	By 14 July
Superannuation lump sum / income stream (NAT 70947 / 70987)	Super fund payments	By 14 July
Withholding where ABN not quoted (NAT 3283)	Payments to suppliers who didn't quote an ABN	When you pay, or as soon as practicable after

Individual non-business (NAT 0046)

Used for

Salary and wages, directors' fees, allowances not reported through STP

When to give it

By 14 July

Business and personal services income (NAT 72545)

Used for

Voluntary agreement and labour-hire payments, attributed personal services income

When to give it

By 14 July

Employment termination payment (NAT 70868)

Used for

ETPs such as some redundancy and termination payments

When to give it

Within 14 days of paying the ETP

Foreign employment (NAT 73297)

Used for

Income from foreign employment

When to give it

By 14 July

Superannuation lump sum / income stream (NAT 70947 / 70987)

Used for

Super fund payments

When to give it

By 14 July

Withholding where ABN not quoted (NAT 3283)

Used for

Payments to suppliers who didn't quote an ABN

When to give it

When you pay, or as soon as practicable after

The ATO says a payment summary is due even if the amount withheld was nil. Electronic summaries are allowed if you lodge online, as long as they can't be edited, print clearly and are delivered securely — and you must offer the worker a choice of paper or electronic.

A worker can also ask, in writing and before 9 June (21 days before year-end), for a part-year payment summary. You then have 14 days to provide it. Their year-end summary only covers the period after the part-year one.

The payment summary annual report

If you issued payment summaries, you also send the ATO a PAYG payment summary annual report — the payment summary statement plus the ATO copies of each summary, or an electronic file from compliant payroll software. The ATO says it generally needs to reach them by 14 August. The statement totals all payments and withholding for employees, voluntary-agreement contractors, labour-hire workers, ETPs and attributed personal services income. Keep records for at least five years.

You can lodge online through Online services for business (Lodgments → File transfer), through your agent, or from Standard Business Reporting-enabled software. The ATO can't process payment summaries printed from your payroll software, so don't post those in.

STP exemptions: who doesn't use income statements

Some employers don't report through STP at all. According to the ATO:

• Employers with a withholding payer number (WPN) — payers without an ABN, such as a household that employs a nanny — are exempt until 30 June 2033. They don't need to apply. The ATO also notes that WPN holders who choose to report through STP need to use an authorised representative from 1 July 2026.
• Small employers (19 or fewer employees) with low digital capability or unreliable internet, and employers in an area with no internet service, can apply for an exemption for a financial year (or several).
• Employers hit by exceptional or unforeseen circumstances can apply under the ATO's practice statement on extensions.

You or your registered agent apply online — in Online services for business, under Employees → STP deferrals and exemptions — explaining your headcount, why you can't report and what you've tried. If you don't qualify, a deferral may still help.

An exemption doesn't remove your other obligations. Exempt employers still withhold and pay PAYG and super, give each worker a payment summary by 14 July, and lodge the annual report by 14 August. Workers of an exempt employer receive a payment summary instead of an income statement, and need to enter its figures in their return if they don't pre-fill.

Contractors: no payment summary in most cases

Many small businesses pay contractors rather than employees. A contractor who quotes an ABN and invoices you has nothing withheld, so there's no PAYG payment summary and no income statement — they report the income in their own tax return. Our guide to working as a sole trader covers what the contractor needs to do.

There are three exceptions:

1. Voluntary agreements. If a contractor asks you to withhold tax under a voluntary agreement, you withhold and report it. The ATO's STP Phase 2 guidelines say reporting contractors through STP isn't mandatory — but if you already run them through payroll you should keep doing so, and if you report voluntary-agreement payments through STP you don't need to give those contractors a payment summary. If you pay them through accounts payable instead, give them a business and personal services income payment summary.
2. No ABN quoted. If a supplier doesn't quote an ABN, you must withhold 47% and give them a "withholding where ABN not quoted" payment summary when you pay, or soon after. Our PAYG withholding guide explains the no-ABN rules.
3. Reportable industries. Separate from payment summaries, businesses that pay contractors for building and construction, cleaning, courier, road freight, IT, or security, investigation and surveillance services must lodge a taxable payments annual report (TPAR) by 28 August. Paper TPARs are no longer accepted.

Don't misclassify workers to avoid payroll. Whether someone is an employee or a contractor depends on the working relationship, not on whether they have an ABN.

Fixing mistakes: corrections after finalisation

Errors happen — a missed allowance, a back-payment, wrong tax treatment. The ATO's Phase 2 guidelines set the rules for employers:

• Correct within 14 days of finding the error, or by your next regular pay event if your pay cycle is longer (for example, monthly).
• After finalisation, lodge an update event with the corrected year-to-date figures and the finalisation indicator. The employee's income statement refreshes.
• If you can't fix it straight away, lodge an update event that removes the finalisation indicator. That tells the ATO the data isn't final and shouldn't pre-fill your employee's return. If you can't re-finalise by the due date, apply for a deferral.
• Then revise your activity statement — PAYG withholding labels W1 and W2 for the relevant period. Our BAS guide shows where those labels sit.
• Time limit: finalised STP information can be amended up to 5 years after the end of the financial year.

Correcting STP data after finalisation

Step 1

Error found

Step 2

Update event

within 14 days

Step 3

Income statement refreshes

Step 4

Revise W1/W2

on the BAS

Step 5

Tell the employee

Worked example (employer). A Perth hardware store finalised on 10 July. On 2 August the owner notices a casual's last-week overtime of A$640 (with A$154 withheld) was missed. Within 14 days, the bookkeeper lodges an update event with the higher year-to-date gross and tax, keeping the finalisation indicator, and revises W1 and W2 on the June-quarter BAS. The store emails the employee to say their income statement has changed. The employee, who lodged on 20 July, amends their return.

For employees, the ATO's guidance is simple: if a figure is wrong, ask your employer to fix it. If you've already lodged and the corrected amount differs, request an amendment to your return.

Common questions from employees and employers

"I got a paper payment summary and an income statement — which do I use?" Both, if they cover different jobs. One employer might use STP while another, such as an exempt one, issues a paper summary. Pre-fill picks up the STP figures; check the paper summary figures are also in your return.

"My employer closed down and never finalised." Your year-to-date STP figures should still show in ATO online services. Use the payslip records you have to check them and talk to the ATO on 13 28 61 if the amounts look wrong or incomplete.

"Do I need to keep payment summaries?" Keep paper summaries and your end-of-year income statement information with your tax records — the ATO expects you to be able to show how you reached your income and tax withheld figures.

Official ATO links

• Access your income statementEmployees: myGov and ATO app steps
• End-of-year finalisation through STPEmployers: 14 July deadline, closely held payees
• PAYG withholding payment summariesPayment summary types and rules for non-STP amounts
• Payment summary annual reportLodging by 14 August
• Exemptions from STP reportingWPN holders and other exemptions
• Lost or missing payment summaryOptions when you can't find yours

What to do next

Employees: check myGov now and confirm each income statement for 2025-26 says "tax ready" before you lodge. Employers: put 14 July in next year's calendar, test a finalisation in your payroll software before 30 June, and keep your withholding right all year with our PAYG withholding guide. If you're setting up payroll records for the first time, our small business bookkeeping guide and free salary slip generator are good next steps.

This is general information, not legal or tax advice — confirm on the official source or with a professional.

Frequently asked questions

What is a PAYG payment summary?

It's the end-of-year statement an employer or other payer gives a worker showing how much they were paid in the financial year and how much tax was withheld. For employers reporting through Single Touch Payroll, it has been replaced by an income statement in ATO online services. Paper payment summaries are still used for payments not finalised through STP.

Where do I find my PAYG payment summary?

If your employer reports through STP, sign in to myGov, open ATO online services, select Employment, then Income statement. You can also use the ATO app or ask your registered tax agent. If your employer isn't using STP, they must give you a paper or electronic payment summary by 14 July.

When will my income statement be tax ready?

When your employer makes the STP finalisation declaration. Most employers must do that by 14 July. The ATO sends a myGov inbox message once all your income statements are tax ready. If yours still isn't tax ready after 31 July, contact your employer.

Do employers still have to give payment summaries?

Not for amounts reported and finalised through STP — those employers also skip the payment summary annual report. Employers that are exempt from STP, or that paid amounts outside STP, must still give payment summaries by 14 July and lodge the annual report by 14 August.

Do contractors get a PAYG payment summary?

Usually not. Contractors who quote an ABN and invoice you have no tax withheld, so they don't get a payment summary or an income statement — they report the income themselves. Exceptions: contractors with a voluntary withholding agreement, and suppliers who didn't quote an ABN, whom you withheld 47% from.

My income statement is wrong — what do I do?

Ask your employer to fix it. They correct STP data by lodging an update event, and the ATO refreshes your income statement. If you've already lodged your return using the wrong figures, you may need to amend it once the corrected statement shows as tax ready.

Sources & verification

Figures on this page were checked against the sources below when it was last reviewed on 9 October 2026. Each rate and limit is stored once with its own official source and review date, and official update channels are monitored daily so changes are picked up. How we verify

1. 1.End-of-year finalisation through STP — Australian Taxation Office · accessed 9 October 2026
2. 2.PAYG withholding payment summaries — Australian Taxation Office · accessed 9 October 2026
3. 3.Access your income statement — Australian Taxation Office · accessed 9 October 2026
4. 4.Lost or missing payment summary — Australian Taxation Office · accessed 9 October 2026
5. 5.STP Phase 2 employer reporting guidelines — Finalising your STP data — Australian Taxation Office · accessed 9 October 2026
6. 6.STP Phase 2 guidelines — Payments you must report — Australian Taxation Office · accessed 9 October 2026
7. 7.Exemptions from STP reporting — Australian Taxation Office · accessed 9 October 2026
8. 8.How to lodge your payment summary annual report — Australian Taxation Office · accessed 9 October 2026
9. 9.What STP is — Australian Taxation Office · accessed 9 October 2026
10. 10.Taxable payments annual report (TPAR) — Australian Taxation Office · accessed 9 October 2026