HR record-keeping requirements in Australia
Reviewed by Mellow Editorial Team, HR & payroll content team
Good record-keeping is a legal requirement in Australia, not optional housekeeping. Employers must retain specific employment records for minimum periods set under the Fair Work Act 2009 and related instruments — and failing to do so can result in civil penalties.
What records you must keep
The Fair Work Regulations 2009 set out a detailed list. At a minimum, employers must keep records covering:
- Employee details — full name, the basis of engagement (full-time, part-time, casual), start date, and date of birth if the employee is under 21 or an apprentice or trainee.
- Pay records — the rate of pay, gross and net amounts paid, and any loadings, penalty rates, or allowances paid.
- Hours worked — for employees paid by the hour, a record of ordinary hours and any overtime worked. For annualised salary employees under certain modern awards, employers must also record start and finish times and unpaid breaks.
- Leave records — leave taken and the balance of leave accrued or remaining.
- Superannuation contributions — the amount contributed, the fund it was paid to, and the period it covers.
- Individual Flexibility Arrangements and guarantees of annual earnings — a copy of any such agreement must be kept for the life of the agreement.
- Termination details — the method and date of termination for each employee who leaves.
How long to keep them
The standard retention period is seven years, and it applies to all of the categories above. The seven-year clock typically runs from the date the record was created or the relevant act occurred — not from the end of the employment relationship.
Payroll and tax records have an overlapping obligation under the ATO. Because PAYG withholding amounts form part of your BAS and income tax obligations, the ATO expects those records to be kept for five years from the date you lodged the relevant return — but in practice, keeping everything for seven years satisfies both frameworks.
If an employee lodges a workers' compensation or general protections claim, do not destroy records that are potentially relevant to that claim, regardless of where you are in the retention cycle.
Payroll and STP records
Since Single Touch Payroll became mandatory for all employers, each pay event is reported to the ATO in real time. That reporting creates a data trail, but it does not replace your own record-keeping obligation. The ATO's systems are not a substitute for your internal payroll records.
At the end of each income year, you must finalise your STP data by 14 July. Employees then use their income statement in myGov in place of a payment summary. You should retain your own copies of the payroll data underlying each STP submission — including PAYG withholding amounts, superannuation contributions at the Superannuation Guarantee rate, and any HECS/HELP repayment amounts withheld on the banded repayment scale.
Pay slips
Every employee must receive a pay slip within one working day of being paid. Pay slips must be in writing (electronic is fine) and include:
- Employer name and ABN
- Employee name
- Pay period dates
- Gross pay and net pay
- Any individual components — base rate, loadings, allowances, deductions
- Superannuation fund name and the amount of the contribution for that period
- If the employee is paid an hourly rate, the rate and the number of hours paid at that rate
Keep a copy of every pay slip you issue. It is both a record-keeping requirement and useful evidence if a dispute arises later.
Access and privacy obligations
Employees have a right to request access to their own employment records, and you must provide them on request. A current employee or a union official (acting on a member's written authorisation) can inspect records under the Fair Work Act.
Alongside this, the Privacy Act 1988 applies to most employers with an annual turnover above $3 million, and to some smaller employers in specific circumstances. It governs how you collect, store, use and disclose personal information — including the information contained in employment records. Where both frameworks apply, you need to comply with both.
Store records securely, limit access to those who need it, and have a clear process for responding to access or correction requests. Electronic records are perfectly acceptable, provided they are legible, not able to be altered without detection, and accessible for the full retention period.
Annualised salary arrangements
If you employ someone under a modern award that allows annualised salary arrangements, there are additional record-keeping obligations worth noting. Many awards now require employers to record each employee's actual start and finish times and unpaid break periods — and to reconcile the annualised salary against what the employee would have received under the award at least once every 12 months. If there is a shortfall, it must be remedied.
This is one area where record-keeping and wage compliance are directly connected: without accurate time records, you cannot run the reconciliation, and without the reconciliation, you risk underpayment liability.
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