What Happens to Your Super When You Change Jobs in Australia?

Changing jobs is stressful enough without worrying about your superannuation. Between resigning, negotiating a start date and learning a new role, your retirement savings are often the last thing on your mind. But what happens to your super when you change jobs in Australia matters more than most people realise — a few smart moves in your first week can save you thousands in duplicate fees and insurance premiums over your working life.

The good news is that Australia’s super system is now designed to follow you. Since 1 November 2021, your existing super fund is “stapled” to you — no more new accounts, new fees and new insurance premiums every time you start a new job, unless you actively choose a different fund. In this guide, we explain exactly what happens to your super when you change jobs, how stapling works in practice, when to consolidate old accounts, and how to keep your insurance cover intact.

Your super is stapled to you — how stapling works

Before November 2021, changing jobs often meant accidentally changing super funds. If you didn’t nominate a fund when starting a new job, your employer paid your compulsory super into their nominated default fund, opening a brand-new account for you. Across several jobs that could mean three or four accounts — each charging administration fees and, worse, each deducting insurance premiums for death, disability and income protection cover you may never have asked for.

The Your Future, Your Super reforms (from 1 November 2021) fixed this with super stapling. The rules are simple:

• When you start a new job and don’t choose a super fund, your employer must ask the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) for your stapled fund — the fund you already have (the ATO identifies it from its records, generally your most recently active fund).
• Your employer pays your compulsory super into that stapled fund, so your balance keeps growing in one place instead of scattering across multiple accounts.
• Stapling only applies when you don’t make a choice. It never overrides a fund you actively nominate.

If you genuinely have no existing fund — for example, you’re entering the workforce for the first time — your employer’s nominated default fund is used.

Why does this matter? Treasury estimated stapling would save Australians about $2.8 billion over 10 years by cutting unintended multiple accounts, duplicate fees and duplicate insurance. The biggest hidden cost was insurance: two or three sets of death and disability premiums across multiple funds can quietly cost tens of thousands of dollars over a working life — and every premium dollar is a dollar not compounding in your balance.

You still have choice of fund — stapling is only the default

Stapling doesn’t remove your right to choose. Under Australian law, you always have choice of fund. To send your new employer’s contributions to a different complying fund — lower fees, better long-term performance, insurance that suits you — nominate it on the ATO’s standard choice form and hand it to your employer.

Some practical points about choice:

• Your employer must accept your choice if you nominate a complying fund that can receive contributions.
• You can only change your choice once every 12 months with the same employer.
• Changing jobs is the natural moment to review your fund — compare fees and performance while you’re already doing paperwork, rather than drifting into an account you never examine.

The key takeaway: stapling protects people who don’t make an active choice. But an informed, deliberate choice can still beat the default.

What happens to your super contributions in the new job

Your new employer must pay the Superannuation Guarantee (SG) on your ordinary time earnings. The SG rate is 12% — it reached 12% on 1 July 2025 and stays at 12% permanently. Here’s what that looks like across a range of salaries:

So on a $90,000 salary, your employer must contribute $10,800 a year on top of your pay — money you earn but never see in your bank account, which is exactly why it’s worth checking it lands in your fund.

A major change is also coming to when those contributions arrive. From 1 July 2026, payday super begins: employers must pay SG with each pay cycle instead of quarterly. Contributions start compounding sooner, and unpaid super becomes visible far earlier. When you change jobs after 1 July 2026, your super should appear in your account with every payslip.

Two more things to know about contributions when you change jobs:

• SG applies from day one. Your employer must pay SG for employees 18 and over from your very first shift — probation included.
• Casuals and under-18s are covered too. Since 1 July 2022 the $450/month earnings threshold is gone, so SG is paid regardless of hours worked. Under-18s receive SG when working more than 30 hours a week.

Don’t accidentally lose (or overpay for) your insurance

Most super funds automatically provide insurance — typically death cover, total and permanent disability (TPD) cover, and often income protection. Premiums come out of your balance, and for many Australians super is the only life or disability insurance they hold. A job change is when this cover is most at risk.

If you move from lower-risk work to a higher-risk role — say, office to construction — your cover may carry an occupation exclusion: the insurer may refuse work-injury claims, or your cover could be reduced or cancelled. Many people discover this only when they try to claim. On the flip side, moving to a lower-risk role may mean paying premiums priced for danger you no longer face.

What to do before or just after you start:

• Read your fund’s insurance guide and check how your new occupation is classified.
• Confirm your cover continues — after a break between jobs, make sure a period without contributions hasn’t triggered automatic cancellation (some policies lapse after 16 months of inactivity).
• Review your cover amounts. A pay rise might mean you need more cover; a smaller mortgage might mean you need less.
• Compare premiums. Insurance costs differ enormously between funds — and duplicate cover across two funds is one of the most expensive mistakes in super.

Should you consolidate your old super accounts?

If you hold more than one super account — common for anyone who changed jobs before November 2021 — consolidating into one is usually worth doing. Multiple accounts mean multiple sets of administration fees and often multiple insurance premiums, all eating into your balance year after year.

Consolidation is straightforward and free through the ATO:

1. Log in to myGov and link to ATO online services.
2. Go to the Super section, where you’ll see all your accounts — including any lost or unclaimed super the ATO holds for you.
3. Select the accounts to combine and transfer the balances into your chosen fund — usually processed within a few business days.

Before you consolidate, check two things. First, insurance: consolidating usually cancels the cover attached to the accounts you close. If you have a health condition or work in a risky occupation, make sure the cover in your remaining fund is at least as good first — you may not get equivalent cover again. Second, account type: a small number of older accounts are defined benefit funds or carry special features you’d lose on transfer. For the vast majority of accumulation accounts, though, consolidation is a clear win.

Changing jobs is the ideal trigger for this tidy-up: you’re already thinking about super, your TFN and fund details are at hand, and every month you delay is another month of duplicate fees.

Your first-week checklist at the new job

Super admin when starting a new job takes about 15 minutes if you do it promptly. Here’s the checklist:

1. Give your employer your fund details. Your fund’s name, your member number and its USI (Unique Superannuation Identifier) — or a completed standard choice form if you’ve chosen a different fund.
2. Make sure your Tax File Number is on file — with both your fund and your new employer. Without your TFN, contributions may be rejected or taxed at the highest marginal rate.
3. Check your first payslip. Confirm SG is 12% of your ordinary time earnings and, from 1 July 2026, that it was paid on payday — not just accrued.
4. Don’t pause super during probation. SG applies from day one for employees 18 and over.
5. Review salary sacrifice. A new salary is the perfect moment to salary sacrifice extra into super — one of the most tax-effective uses of a pay rise. Try our salary sacrifice calculator to see what extra contributions could be worth.
6. Review your insurance against your new occupation, as described above.

Frequently asked questions

Does my super automatically move to my new employer’s fund when I change jobs?

Not anymore. Since 1 November 2021, stapling means your existing fund follows you: if you don’t choose a fund, your new employer must ask the ATO for your stapled fund and pay SG there. You’re only defaulted into the employer’s fund if you have no existing super fund.

Can my new employer force me to use their super fund?

No. You always have choice of fund in Australia. Your employer must pay your SG into any complying fund you nominate via the standard choice form. Stapling only determines where contributions go when you don’t make a choice.

What happens to my super if I have a gap between jobs?

Your super stays exactly where it is — it doesn’t disappear or get forfeited. It remains invested and keeps earning returns, though fees and insurance premiums keep being deducted. The main risk during a long gap is insurance: some policies automatically cancel cover after 16 months without contributions, so check your fund’s rules if your break is lengthy.

Will I lose my insurance cover when I change jobs?

Not automatically, but review it. Cover continues in your stapled fund, but occupation exclusions can bite if your new role is higher-risk — moving from office work to construction may not be covered for work injuries. And if you consolidate old accounts, the insurance attached to closed accounts is cancelled, so check your remaining cover is adequate first.

How do I combine multiple super accounts into one?

In myGov, link to ATO online services and use the Super section to transfer balances into your chosen fund — free, usually a few business days. First check you won’t lose valuable insurance or special benefits on the accounts you’re closing.

Do casuals and part-timers get super when they change jobs?

Yes. Since 1 July 2022 the $450-per-month earnings threshold has been removed, so your employer must pay 12% SG regardless of how few hours you work. For under-18s, SG applies when you work more than 30 hours in a week. It starts from your first shift, including probation.

The bottom line: take 15 minutes to protect your super

Changing jobs is one of the few moments your super needs your attention — and a little goes a long way. Thanks to stapling, your fund now follows you automatically, but the system still rewards people who check the details: confirm your 12% SG is being paid (on payday from 1 July 2026), check your insurance still matches your occupation, consolidate old duplicate accounts via myGov, and consider salary sacrifice on the new salary.

Want to see what your new salary means for your super? Our super calculator projects how your balance grows with 12% SG, extra contributions and investment returns — so you can start your new job knowing exactly where your retirement savings are headed.

General information only. This article is general information about the Australian superannuation system and is not financial advice. Consider speaking with a licensed financial adviser before making decisions about your super.