Superannuation Benefits (Prescribed Requirements) Determination 2005

The Determination centres on a small set of statutory concepts and the interactions among them. These are defined in s 3 and used in Schedule 1.

• Relevant employee. The Determination defines "relevant employee" in s 3(1) by reference to categories of employment and timing. It is a person, other than an "excluded employee", who is employed under a relevant law or by a relevant body and for that employment: a) is employed for a fixed term which commenced on or after 1 July 2005; or b) is employed other than for a fixed term which commenced on or after 1 July 2005; or c) is appointed for a fixed term which commenced on or after 1 July 2005; or d) has ceased to be a member of the PSS under s 6B of the 1990 Act; or e) was employed before 1 July 2005, and for whom an employer was permitted to make contributions to a superannuation arrangement established under a Prior Determination. The definition therefore captures (i) new hires and new appointments from 1 July 2005, (ii) certain former PSS members, and (iii) a transitional set of employees who had Prior Determination permissions prior to 1 July 2005.

• Excluded employee. Defined in s 3(1) to mean a person who is: a) a member of the PSS; or b) an eligible employee under the Superannuation Act 1976; or c) a person for whom superannuation contributions are being made under the Superannuation (Productivity Benefit) Act 1988; or d) a person for whom an employer is making contributions to a complying superannuation fund or RSA who would otherwise be a person in (a), (b) or (c) where the employer is not an employer specified, or in a class of employers specified, in a Prior Determination as being allowed to establish a superannuation arrangement. The excluded employee categories therefore carve out PSS and certain historic schemes and some employees covered by Prior Determinations.

• Complying superannuation fund and RSA. The Determination adopts the SG Act meaning for "complying superannuation fund" and adopts the Retirement Savings Accounts Act 1997 meaning for "RSA" (s 3(1)). This ties eligibility of destination arrangements for contributions to existing Commonwealth statutorily defined standards.

• Prior Determination. The Determination recognises Prior Determinations made under s 6 of the supervisory Act (s 3(1)) and, by s 4(2), withdraws their continuing application for relevant employees from the Determination date.

• Interacting statutory instruments. The text explicitly brings in the 1995 Inclusion and Exclusion Declarations (defined in s 3(1)) as instruments that can affect whether a contribution is treated as to an "alternative superannuation scheme" for the purposes of Schedule 1(c)(i). It also anchors the concept of PSSAP member to the Trust Deed made under s 10 of the Superannuation Act 2005 (s 3(1)) and relies on s 13 of the 2005 Act (Schedule 1(c)(ii)) for the PSSAP eligibility test. The choice-of-fund test in Schedule 1(c)(iii) points to s 32C of the SG Act.

Conceptually, the Determination establishes a default regime of employer freedom to make contributions to any complying fund or RSA for relevant employees (Schedule 1, 1-(b)), while placing a threefold test that limits that freedom where the contribution would be treated as contributing to an alternative scheme under specified declarations, would remove eligibility to become a PSSAP member under the 2005 Act, and would fail to meet SG Act choice-of-fund requirements (Schedule 1, 1). The net effect is to coordinate Commonwealth arrangements (PSS/PSSAP) with the federal superannuation guarantee and the 1995 Declarations, using the Prior Determination regime as a transitional escape hatch.

The Determination directly affects four principal groups and secondarily affects fund trustees, payroll and HR operations and scheme administrators.

1. Employers who employ under a relevant law or who employ employees of relevant bodies. The Determination expressly governs what employers may do in respect of "contributions in respect of a relevant employee" (Schedule 1, heading and 1-(b)). Employers are the actors who decide whether to make contributions to a complying fund or RSA, and they must apply the carve outs in Schedule 1(c) when making those decisions. Employers who had permissions under Prior Determinations will face a change because s 4(2) declares that all Prior Determinations have no application to a relevant employee on and after the date of this Determination unless the Schedule 1(c) proviso applies.

2. Relevant employees. The Determination defines exactly who is a relevant employee (s 3(1)), and its permissions and restrictions operate in relation to them. The category includes employees whose employment or appointment commences on or after 1 July 2005, people who have ceased PSS membership under s 6B of the 1990 Act, and certain employees employed before 1 July 2005 for whom contributions were permitted under a Prior Determination. For those persons the Determination is the controlling instrument in respect of employer-directed contributions.

3. Excluded employees. Certain employees are expressly excluded from being "relevant employees" by the definition of "excluded employee" in s 3(1). These include current members of the PSS, eligible employees under the 1976 Act, or persons receiving contributions under the 1988 Act. The Determination’s permissions and restrictions are framed as applying only to relevant employees, so excluded employees remain governed by the substantive provisions of the other Acts and by any Prior Determination where applicable.

4. Superannuation trustees and RSA providers. Because the Determination prescribes that employer contributions may be made to any complying superannuation fund or RSA (Schedule 1, 1-(b)), trustees and RSA providers are prospective recipients of contributions. They must be "complying" under the SG Act or meet the RSA statutory standards (s 3(1)). Trustees and providers will need to ensure receiving contributions does not conflict with the 1995 Inclusion/Exclusion Declaration outcomes or the PSSAP eligibility mechanics.

Secondary or consequential impacts:

• Administrators of the PSSAP (the Public Sector Superannuation Scheme Administration under the 2005 Act) because Schedule 1(c) invokes s 13 of the 2005 Act to assess whether a contribution would make an employee ineligible to become a PSSAP member.
• Payroll, HR and legal/compliance teams in employing agencies, because the permitted destination of contributions and the exceptions affect payroll setup, contribution reporting, employee communications and choice-of-fund processes under the SG Act.

Who pays and who decides: employers pay the contributions. Employers decide where to direct contributions within the permissive rule (any complying fund or RSA), but they must check the three-part limitation in Schedule 1(c) and the status of any Prior Determination. The Determination does not create an employee-facing statutory right to direct contributions; it prescribes permissible employer conduct and links that conduct to choice-of-fund rules in the SG Act.

The Determination creates permissive duties for employers and identifies contingent restrictions. It does not itself create positive duties on trustees or employees, but it shapes choices and obligations by reference to other statutes.

Employers: primary operative provisions are in Schedule 1 1-(b). Employers may make contributions for the purposes of the SG Act to any complying superannuation fund or RSA in respect of a relevant employee (Schedule 1, 1). Employers may also make additional contributions in respect of a relevant employee to any complying fund or RSA (Schedule 1, 1). Those two paragraphs, read together, give employers latitude to direct SG contributions and to make supplementary contributions to external complying funds or RSAs on behalf of relevant employees.

Limitations on employer choice: Schedule 1 1 creates a conditional restriction that negates the permissions in 1-(b) when three conditions coincide:

• the contribution would, under the 1995 Inclusion or Exclusion Declarations, be deemed to be a contribution to an alternative superannuation scheme (Schedule 1, 1(i));
• the contribution would cause the relevant employee to cease to be eligible to become a PSSAP member under s 13 of the Superannuation Act 2005 (Schedule 1, 1(ii)); and
• the contribution would not be considered compliant with the SG Act choice-of-fund requirements under s 32C (Schedule 1, 1(iii)). If all three conditions apply, paragraphs (a) and (b) do not apply, meaning the employer is not permitted under this Determination to make the contribution, except in the narrowly saved case where the employer would have been permitted to make the contribution in accordance with a Prior Determination but for this Determination (final proviso to Schedule 1, 1).

Employees: the Determination does not create a standalone employee statutory right to choose the fund; rather, it allocates permissive authority to employers to make contributions to any complying fund or RSA, subject to the Schedule 1(c) restriction and to any separate requirements in the SG Act (notably s 32C on choice). Any employee rights to choose their fund will therefore arise under the SG Act or the employer’s policies, not under this Determination itself. The Determination’s invocation of s 32C of the SG Act signals that the SG Act’s choice rules remain relevant and may constrain employer conduct in practice.

Trustees and scheme administrators: the Determination imposes no express duties on trustees. Their practical duty is to receive contributions from employers who are permitted to direct them. Trustees must ensure they are "complying" funds for the purposes of the SG Act (s 3(1)), because only complying funds and RSAs are prescribed as permissible recipients in Schedule 1.

Prior Determinations: s 4(2) removes the continuing application of Prior Determinations in relation to relevant employees from the date of this Determination. The Determination, however, preserves certain actions that, but for this Determination, would have been permitted by a Prior Determination (Schedule 1, 1 proviso). That creates an important contingent right for some employers and employees who relied on a Prior Determination before 1 July 2005.

Interaction duties: the Determination repeatedly cross-references other statutes and instruments for determining applicability of the exceptions (1995 Declarations, SG Act s 32C, s 13 of the 2005 Act). The precise operational duties of employers and administrators therefore require checking those instruments and provisions in tandem with the Determination.

Record-keeping and compliance obligations: while the Determination itself does not impose explicit record-keeping requirements, the structure requires employers to identify whether an employee is a "relevant employee" or "excluded employee" (s 3(1)) and to determine whether the Schedule 1(c) triple test applies before directing contributions. That necessitates internal compliance processes, documentation of eligibility assessments and possibly communications to employees about where contributions will be paid.

The Determination contains no express penalty, sanction or enforcement mechanism within its text. It is an instrument made under section 6 of the Superannuation Benefits (Supervisory Mechanisms) Act 1990, and the Determination itself applies rules about what employers may do; any legal consequences for failing to comply with those rules must be found in the parent Act (the supervisory Act), the Superannuation Guarantee (Administration) Act 1992 (SG Act) or other relevant statutes referenced in the Determination.

What the Determination does in enforcement terms:

• It declares the scope of permissible employer contributions for relevant employees and removes the operation of Prior Determinations for relevant employees (s 4(1)-(2) and Schedule 1).
• It points administrators and employers to the choice-of-fund rules in the SG Act (Schedule 1, 1(iii) references s 32C), and to PSSAP eligibility under the Superannuation Act 2005 s 13 (Schedule 1, 1(ii)).
• Because the Determination is regulatory in nature, the likely operative enforcement mechanisms are those in the SG Act and in the supervisory Act. The Determination itself, however, does not set out offences, infringement notices, civil penalties or criminal penalties.

Practical consequences for non‑compliance:

• Non-compliance with the Determination (for example, making a contribution that the Determination disallows) may expose employers to remedies, directions or penalties available under the supervisory Act, the SG Act or the Superannuation Act 2005, depending on which regime has jurisdiction; the Determination makes no independent grant of enforcement powers.
• Employers relying on Prior Determinations must be aware that s 4(2) removes their continuing application to relevant employees; failing to recognise that change could lead to payment into an impermissible destination and invite enforcement action under other statutes.

Because the Determination does not itself articulate penalties, legal advice and compliance planning should include a review of:

• the supervisory Act under which the Determination is made, for any enforcement power relating to compliance with determinations made under s 6;
• the SG Act for compliance, reporting and penalty regimes relating to employer SG contributions and choice-of-fund obligations; and
• the Superannuation Act 2005 and the Trust Deed governing PSSAP for any statutory obligations flowing from PSSAP eligibility tests and scheme administration.

In short, enforcement and penalty exposure are not specified in this Determination; they arise through the web of statutes the instrument cross-references and sits beneath. The Determination signals the relevant statutory hooks; it does not itself provide the sanctions.

The Determination is expressly and repeatedly cross-referential. Its operative text and definitions tether it to multiple Acts and instruments, and it relies on those external texts to determine applicability and limitation.

Primary statutory references inside the Determination:

• Superannuation Benefits (Supervisory Mechanisms) Act 1990 (the Act). The Determination is made under s 6 of that Act and adopts the Act’s definitions where relevant by s 3(2). The supervisory Act therefore supplies the legislative authority for the Determination.
• Superannuation Guarantee (Administration) Act 1992 (SG Act). The Determination authorises employers to make contributions "for the purposes of the SG Act" (Schedule 1, 1) and invokes the choice-of-fund test in s 32C of the SG Act as part of the triple test that can negate the Determination’s permissions (Schedule 1, 1(iii)). The Determination depends on the SG Act’s concept of a "complying superannuation fund" (s 3(1) definition).
• Superannuation Act 2005 (2005 Act). The Determination uses s 13 of the 2005 Act to determine whether a contribution would make an employee ineligible to become a PSSAP member (Schedule 1, 1(ii)). It also defines "PSSAP member" in accordance with the Trust Deed made under s 10 of the 2005 Act (s 3(1)).
• Superannuation Act 1976, Superannuation (Productivity Benefit) Act 1988, Superannuation Act 1990. These Acts are invoked in the definitions of "1976 Act", "1988 Act", "1990 Act" and are used to define "excluded employee" and "PSS" (s 3(1)). The definition of "excluded employee" specifically refers to eligible employees under the 1976 Act and persons for whom contributions are being made under the 1988 Act.
• Retirement Savings Accounts Act 1997. RSA is defined with the same meaning as in that Act (s 3(1)).
• The 1995 Inclusion and Exclusion Declarations. The Determination treats those declarations as instruments that determine whether a contribution is "deemed to be a contribution to an alternative superannuation scheme" for the purposes of Schedule 1(c)(i) (s 3(1) definitions and Schedule 1, 1(i)).

Mechanics of interaction:

• The Determination permits employer contributions to any complying fund or RSA (Schedule 1, 1-(b)). Whether that permissiveness is available in a particular case depends on whether the contribution would be treated, under the 1995 Declarations, as to an alternative scheme and whether that treatment would affect PSSAP eligibility (Schedule 1, 1(i)-(ii)). The Determination therefore imports the legal characterisations made by the 1995 Declarations and the eligibility rules in the Superannuation Act 2005 into its gating test.
• The Determination also requires an assessment against the SG Act choice-of-fund provision s 32C (Schedule 1, 1(iii)). That means an employer cannot simply direct contributions contrary to the SG Act choice regime if the contribution would fail that test and would also trigger the other two legs of the Schedule 1(c) test.
• By s 4(2), Prior Determinations cease to apply to a relevant employee on and after the date of this Determination. That operation directly overrides earlier instruments made under s 6 of the supervisory Act, except where a saved case in Schedule 1(c) applies.

Implications for administrative coordination:

• Employers and administrators need to reconcile the Determination with the SG Act’s reporting and choice rules, the 1995 Declarations and the PSSAP eligibility test in the 2005 Act to determine lawful contribution destinations.
• Trustees and RSA providers must ensure they qualify as "complying" under the SG Act or as RSAs under the RSA Act. Otherwise, employers cannot use them as permitted recipients under Schedule 1 1-(b).
• The Determination functions as a coordination instrument among multiple statutory regimes that govern Commonwealth superannuation arrangements; its practical effect depends on decisions made under the 1995 Declarations and on statutory eligibility assessments under the 2005 Act.

Legal certainty and ambiguity:

• The Determination relies on external legal instruments to decide the key exception in Schedule 1(c). That concentrates legal work on interpreting the 1995 Declarations and on applying s 13 of the 2005 Act and s 32C of the SG Act. The Determination itself provides the framing rule and the outcome if the triad is satisfied, but it does not supply the substantive tests for those components.

The compilation supplied includes a short table of instruments and a table of amendments. Two chronological events are marked in the Notes.

1. Original Determination. The Superannuation Benefits (Prescribed Requirements) Determination 2005 was registered on 30 June 2005 and commenced 1 July 2005 (Notes, Table of Instruments). The Determination, as originally made, set out the definitions and Schedule 1 permissions and exceptions that govern contributions for relevant employees from that commencement date (s 2).

2. Amendment Determination 2008 (No. 1). The compilation records "Superannuation Benefits (Prescribed Requirements) Amendment Determination 2008 (No. 1)" with FRLI registration dated 29 June 2008 but showing a date of commencement of 1 July 2007 (Notes, Table of Instruments). The Table of Amendments records that provision s 3 was amended by 2008 No. 1 (Notes, Table of Amendments). The compilation itself is dated 10 July 2008 and states it takes into account amendments up to the 2008 No. 1 instrument.

Practical reading:

• The text provided in the compilation includes the s 3 definitions as currently in force "as amended". The table records only that s 3 was amended by the 2008 instrument; the compilation does not show the previous version of s 3 or the precise insertions or deletions effected by the 2008 amendment. It does not list any other sections being amended.
• The date-of-commencement information in the amendment table indicates that the amendment determination applies from 1 July 2007, which is earlier than its FRLI registration date of 29 June 2008. The compilation records the registration and commencement dates as provided in the notes; users should verify instrument metadata on the Federal Register of Legislation or the Attorney-General’s sources for authoritative dates and the amendment text.

Transitional effect vis-à-vis Prior Determinations:

• The Determination contains its own transitional rule: s 4(2) declares that all Prior Determinations have no application to a relevant employee on and after the date of this Determination. The Schedule 1 1 proviso preserves a narrow class of contributions where, but for this Determination, the employer would have been permitted to make the contribution under a Prior Determination. That clause operates as a saving for some engagements where historical permissions existed.

Recording amendments:

• Only s 3 is shown in the Table of Amendments as having been amended by 2008 No. 1. The compilation indicates it includes amendments up to that instrument. The compilation’s notes and tables are the only amendment-history material included in the text; no further amendment chronology is present.

Users should consult the Federal Register of Legislation for the full text of the 2008 amendment instrument and for any subsequent amendments postdating the compilation.

The Determination itself, as presented in the compilation, contains no reference to court decisions, tribunal determinations or litigation to date. The text does not cite any cases, and the Notes section does not record any litigation outcomes or references to judicial interpretation. The Determination is a delegated legislative instrument and the compilation provides only the instrument text and amendment table.

What the compilation shows:

• No cases are named, no judicial or tribunal decisions are attached, and no litigation results are recorded in the Notes.
• The Determination cross-references provisions and instruments that may be litigated in other contexts , for example, interpretations of the 1995 Inclusion and Exclusion Declarations, the SG Act’s choice-of-fund rules (s 32C), or eligibility questions under s 13 of the Superannuation Act 2005 , but the compilation does not record any such litigation.

Implication for practitioners:

• Absence of litigation references in the Determination does not mean that related disputes do not exist or will not arise. The Determination’s practical application depends on interpretive questions , for example, whether a particular employer contribution is "deemed to be a contribution to an alternative superannuation scheme" under the 1995 Declarations, or whether a contribution causes an employee to fail the s 13 PSSAP eligibility test. Those questions are susceptible to contest in administrative review or judicial proceedings.
• Because the Determination provides a rule that is applied in tandem with other statutory instruments, litigation about the Determination’s operation is more likely to appear in cases testing the external instruments (the 1995 Declarations, SG Act, or Superannuation Act 2005) than in cases addressing the Determination alone.

Recommended practitioner steps:

• Where an employer or employee faces dispute or uncertainty about whether a contribution is lawful under this Determination, check administrative decisions and tribunal records involving the 1995 Declarations, SG Act s 32C, and s 13 of the 2005 Act.
• If relying on a prior administrative view or a Trustee/agency practice to support a contribution contrary to the Schedule 1(c) triad, document the legal basis and consider seeking an administrative ruling or legal advice before proceeding.

In sum, there is no litigation history recorded in the instrument. Practitioners should search case law and tribunal records for disputes involving the interconnected statutory provisions the Determination imports.

Several points in the Determination are traps for the unwary. They arise from definitional detail and the three-part limiting test in Schedule 1(c) that reaches across multiple instruments.

1. "Relevant employee" is a technical, time-sensitive category. The Determination’s definition in s 3(1) captures persons by the dates their employment or appointment commenced. That yields potentially counterintuitive results:

   • Employees appointed or employed from 1 July 2005 are captured even if their roles are short term (s 3(1)(a)-(c)).
   • The definition includes persons who "were employed before 1 July 2005, and for whom an employer was permitted to make contributions to a superannuation arrangement established under a Prior Determination" (s 3(1)(e)). That clause imports a transitional cohort into the new regime, and employers need to check historical Prior Determination permissions carefully.
   • Persons who are "excluded employees" (for example, current PSS members or persons covered under 1976 or 1988 Acts) are not relevant employees (s 3(1) excluded employee). Misclassifying employees will lead to applying the wrong set of rules.

2. Triple conjunctive test in Schedule 1(c). The limitation on employer permissiveness applies only if all three elements are present:

   • (i) the contribution is "deemed to be" to an alternative scheme under the 1995 Inclusion or Exclusion Declarations;
   • (ii) it would make the relevant employee ineligible to become a PSSAP member under s 13 of the 2005 Act; and
   • (iii) the contribution would not be considered compliant with s 32C of the SG Act. Unless all three legs are proved, paragraphs (a) and (b) continue to permit employer action. Practically, proving the three legs requires (a) interpretation of the 1995 Declarations, (b) an eligibility assessment under s 13 of the 2005 Act, and (c) an SG Act choice-of-fund compliance assessment. Mistaking the conjunctive nature of the test can lead employers to wrongly refuse to permit contributions or, conversely, to direct contributions that are not permissible.

3. Reliance on Prior Determinations. s 4(2) annuls the operation of all Prior Determinations for relevant employees from the date of this Determination. However, Schedule 1(c) contains a narrow saving: if, but for this Determination, the employer would have been permitted to make the contribution under a Prior Determination, that permission survives. Employers often misunderstand the scope of that preservation:

   • The saving applies only where a contribution would have been permitted under a specific Prior Determination; it is not a general grandfathering for all historical practices.
   • Employers will need to check the exact wording and classes of employers in any Prior Determination to see if their situation is saved. Prior Determination permissions can be narrow and limited to named employers or classes of employers (s 3 definition of "excluded employee" references such classes).

4. Choice-of-fund interplay. The Determination defers to s 32C of the SG Act for the choice-of-fund test (Schedule 1, 1(iii)). That means that even if an employer wants to direct SG or supplementary contributions to a complying fund or RSA, they must check whether the SG Act’s choice-of-fund framework permits it. Misreading the Determination as an independent grant of choice rights for employees can be misleading: employee rights to choose are governed by the SG Act, not by this Determination.

5. Definition of "complying superannuation fund" and RSA. The Determination permits contributions only to "any complying superannuation fund or RSA" (Schedule 1, 1-(b)). The compliance status of funds and RSAs is governed by the SG Act and the Retirement Savings Accounts Act respectively (s 3(1)). Employers must confirm receiving entities are complying at the time of contribution; otherwise the contribution may not be authorised by the Determination.

6. Lack of internal enforcement language. The Determination does not specify penalties or enforcement detail. Employers who treat the Determination as a safe harbour without checking the supervisory Act or SG Act obligations risk exposure to enforcement action under other statutes.

7. Amendment timing and transitional dates. The Table of Instruments records an amendment (2008 No. 1) with commencement dating earlier than its registration date. That is confusing metadata; practitioners should verify authoritative commencement dates on the Federal Register of Legislation for amendment texts and plan compliance timelines accordingly.

8. Administrative burden and record evidence. Because the Determination’s operation turns on precise factual questions (dates of commencement of employment, whether a contribution is "deemed" by a 1995 Declaration to be to an alternative scheme, whether a contribution affects PSSAP eligibility), employers must maintain records that document their legal conclusions. Failure to keep contemporaneous evidence of the tests applied will complicate dispute resolution or enforcement defence.

In short, the biggest practical "gotchas" are misidentifying who is a relevant employee, misapplying the conjunctive exception in Schedule 1(c), misunderstanding the preserved scope of Prior Determinations, and failing to confirm fund compliance status or SG Act choice-of-fund consequences.

Compliance requires a coordinated, documented process that applies the Determination’s definitions and the Schedule 1(c) test in conjunction with the externally referenced instruments. The steps below translate the Determination’s mechanics into actionable tasks for employers, trustees and compliance officers.

1. Classify employees.

   • For each employee, determine whether they are an "excluded employee" under s 3(1) (member of PSS, eligible employee under the 1976 Act, person receiving contributions under the 1988 Act, or a person who would be so classified but whose employer is not specified in a Prior Determination).
   • If not excluded, determine whether they meet the "relevant employee" criteria in s 3(1): employment or appointment commencement date on or after 1 July 2005, ceased to be a PSS member under s 6B of the 1990 Act, or were employed before 1 July 2005 and had employer contributions permitted under a Prior Determination. Keep documentary evidence of commencement dates and any Prior Determination permissions relied upon.

2. Confirm fund/RSA compliance status.

   • Before directing contributions, verify that the chosen fund is a "complying superannuation fund" for the SG Act purposes or that the destination is a qualified RSA under the RSA Act (s 3(1)). Obtain written confirmation from the trustee or provider and record the fund’s ABN, RSE registration (if applicable), and compliance status.

3. Apply the Schedule 1(c) three-part test before making non-standard contributions.

   • Ask: Would this contribution be deemed to be a contribution to an "alternative superannuation scheme" under the 1995 Inclusion or Exclusion Declarations? Consult the text of those Declarations and any administrative rulings.
   • Ask: If so, would the contribution cause the employee to be ineligible to become a PSSAP member under s 13 of the Superannuation Act 2005? Seek a PSSAP eligibility assessment from scheme administrators if the legal effect is uncertain.
   • Ask: Would the contribution be compliant with the SG Act choice-of-fund requirements (s 32C)? Confirm that employee notifications and choices, where required under the SG Act, have been properly managed.
   • Only if all three legs are satisfied does the permission in Schedule 1(a)-(b) cease to apply (Schedule 1, 1), unless the specific contribution would have been permitted by a Prior Determination (final proviso). Document the reasoning and legal basis for each leg of the test.

4. Check Prior Determination permissions.

   • If your agency or employer historically relied on a Prior Determination to direct contributions for a given employee cohort, locate the specific Prior Determination(s), check their terms, and determine whether the particular contribution would have been permitted under that instrument. If it would have been, the Schedule 1(c) proviso may preserve the employer’s ability to make the contribution. Keep records of the Prior Determination relied on and the justification for application.

5. Implement payroll and HR processes.

   • Update payroll and superannuation contribution templates to record the destination fund/RSA for each relevant employee.
   • Ensure payroll systems are configured so that SG Act contributions and any additional employer contributions are directed only to compliant funds/RSA and in accordance with the Determination and SG Act.
   • Where employee choices are required under the SG Act, ensure the choice-of-fund process, election forms and timing meet s 32C requirements and are documented.

6. Communicate to employees.

   • Prepare clear communications to affected employees explaining how contributions will be paid, what choices (if any) they have under the SG Act, and any impact on PSSAP eligibility if that is relevant to them.
   • Where a contribution might affect PSSAP eligibility, give employees access to independent advice or links to the PSSAP administrators for clarification.

7. Maintain contemporaneous records.

   • Record classification decisions (relevant/excluded), copies of Prior Determinations used, correspondence with trustees, evidence of complying fund status, evidence that choice-of-fund procedures have been followed, and the legal reasoning applied to the Schedule 1(c) test.
   • Keep records for the statutory or administrative periods required by the SG Act and by employer record-keeping policies.

8. Coordinate with scheme administrators and legal advisers.

   • Where an ambiguity exists about whether a contribution is "deemed" under the 1995 Declarations or about PSSAP eligibility, obtain written confirmation or binding administrative advice from the relevant agency or legal advice from counsel. The Determination’s operation depends on these external determinations.

9. Review and update practices upon amendment.

   • Monitor the Federal Register of Legislation and agency guidance for changes to the Determination, the SG Act’s s 32C guidance, and any changes to the 1995 Declarations or to the Superannuation Act 2005 Trust Deed. The compilation records an amendment in 2008 that affected s 3; further changes may follow.

10. Seek advice before novel arrangements.

• For arrangements that involve alternative schemes, novel RSAs, or complex transitional employee statuses (for example, employees who ceased PSS membership under s 6B), obtain legal and actuarial input before implementing contribution arrangements.

Following these steps will operationalise the Determination’s permissions and limits. The central compliance tasks are accurate employee classification, verifying fund/RSA compliance status, applying the Schedule 1(c) triage test, documenting conclusions, and aligning payroll processes with the SG Act choice-of-fund mechanics.