Amending or Declaring the Reportable Fringe Benefit Amount under STP
At the end of the FBT year or financial year, your accountant, bookkeeper, or salary packaging provider may give you a Reportable Fringe Benefits Amount, also known as RFBA, for one or more employees.
RFBA amounts are required to be reported through Single Touch Payroll as part of your STP finalisation.
This guide explains how to enter a RFBA amount in Microkeeper..
Before you begin this process, you will need to have the Grossed-up RFBA for the employee.
What is being entered?
A RFBA amount is a reporting amount. It is not ordinary wage payment to the employee.
To report the RFBA amount correctly, Microkeeper uses two payslip lines:
| Payslip Line | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Payment | Adds the RFBA amount onto the payslip temporarily |
| Expense | Removes the same amount and classifies it as a fringe benefit for STP reporting |
These two lines balance each out.
This means the employee's payslip can report the RFBA amount without changing their actual pay.
Expected result
After the RFBA amount is entered correctly:
| Item | Expected result |
|---|---|
| Total payments | Increased by RFBA offset payment |
| Total expenses | Increased by matching RFBA expense |
| STP Reporting RFBA amount | Updated |
| Gross Taxable | No change |
| Net Earnings | No change |
| Tax | No change |
| Employer super | No change |
| Leave accruals | No change |
Prerequisite - Obtaining the Current Reported RFBA
If RFBA has already been recorded during the financial year, check the current reported amount before adding an adjustment.
Use this calculation:
Grossed-up RFBA amount - Current reported RFBA amount = Adjustment needed
For example:
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Grossed-up RFBA provided by accountant | $5000 |
| Already reported through STP | $1200 |
| Adjustment needed | $3800 |
Prerequisite Step 1 - Review the current reported RFBA figures through STP data
To check the current RFBA amount reported STP, use the STP data export.
After you have finished your final Payrun of the Financial Year you will download the current list of RFBA declared via STP.
Payroll > Payruns > Payslip > STP Lodge > Final Payrun > CSV Export or Review Data to view on web browser
In the STP data, check the relevant RFBA and salary sacrifice amounts for the employee.
Microkeeper has four RFBA classes:
| Microkeeper Class | Reported as RFBA? | Fringe STP Type | Salary Sacrifice Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fringe Benefit - Exempt - Salary Sacrifice | Yes | Type X | Type O |
| Fringe Benefit - Taxable - Salary Sacrifice | Yes | Type T | Type O |
| Fringe Benefit - Exempt - Salary Sacrifice | Yes | Type X | None |
| Fringe Benefit - Taxable - Normal | Yes | Type T | None |
What the STP types mean
| STP Type | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Fringe Type X | Exempt reportable fringe benefits |
| Fringe Type T | Taxable reportable fringe benefits |
| Salary Sacrifice Type O | Salary sacrifice for other employee benefits |
Which amounts to check
If the RFBA was entered as Fringe Benefit - Exempt - Salary Sacrifice, check:
| STP Figure | What to check |
|---|---|
| Fringe Type X | Current exempt RFBA amount |
| Salary Sacrifice Type O | Current salary sacrificed other benefits amount |
If the RFBA was entered as Fringe Benefit - Taxable - Salary Sacrifice, check:
| STP Figure | What to check |
|---|---|
| Fringe Type T | Current taxable RFBA amount |
| Salary Sacrifice Type O | Current salary sacrificed other benefits amount |
If the RFBA was entered as Fringe Benefit - Exempt - Normal, check:
| STP Figure | What to check |
|---|---|
| Fringe Type X | Current exempt RFBA amount |
If the RFBA was entered as Fringe Benefit - Taxable - Normal, check:
| STP Figure | What to check |
|---|---|
| Fringe Type T | Current taxable RFBA amount |
Important note on RFBA salary sacrificed
If the RFBA is salary sacrificed, check both:
| Figure | Why |
|---|---|
| Fringe Type X or T | Reports the RFBA amount |
| Salary Sacrifice Type O | Reports the salary sacrificed other employee benefit amount |
If only the Fringe amount is checked, the RFBA may look correct while the salary sacrifice total is still incorrect.
See this ATO article on "Relationship between reporting RFBA and salary sacrifice type O"
Prerequisite Step 2 - Calculate the adjustments needed
Use the amount already reported to calculate the adjustment.
Required final amount - Current reported amount = Adjustment needed
For example, if the employee's required final taxable RFBA amount is $5000 and $1200 has already been reported as Fringe Type T:
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Required final taxable RFBA | $5000 |
| Already reported as Fringe Type T | $1200 |
| Adjustment needed | $3800 |
Only enter the adjustment needed.
Step 1 - View the payslip of the Employee
The Amended/Grossed-up RFBA needs to be entered into the last Payrun of the fiscal year. An Adhoc Payrun can be generated, but ensure it is the latest payrun of the fiscal year.
Step 2 - Add the Grossed-up RFBA amount to the payslip
Use the "Add RFBA" button to automatically add the payment and expensive RFBA items onto the employees payslip.
- Open the Actions menu on the payslip
- Click Add RFBA
- Select Taxable or Tax Exempt
- Select Salary Sacrifice or Normal
- Enter the Grossed-up RFBA amount
- Click Add RFBA
Two payslip items will be entered into the payslip:
| Payslip Line | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Payment | Adds the RFBA amount onto the payslip temporarily as "Extra" class |
| Expense | Removes the same amount and classifies it as a fringe benefit for STP reporting |
Breakdown of Fringe Benefit Classes
Microkeeper has four fringe benefit classes:
| Class | STP Fringe Type | Salary Sacrifice Type O | Use this when |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fringe Benefit - Exempt - Salary Sacrifice | Type X | Yes | The benefit is exempt and was provided through salary sacrifice |
| Fringe Benefit - Taxable - Salary Sacrifice | Type T | Yes | The benefit is taxable and was provided through salary sacrifice |
| Fringe Benefit - Exempt - Normal | Type X | No | The benefit is exempt and was not salary sacrificed |
| Fringe Benefit - Taxable - Normal | Type T | No | The benefit is taxable and was not salary sacrificed |
If you are unsure which class to select, confirm with your accountant, bookkeeper, or salary packaging provider.
See this ATO article on "Relationship between reporting RFBA and salary sacrifice type O"
Step 3 - Check and confirm the Payslip
The last step is to double-check the Payslip and STP data.
There should be no change to super or entitlements.
When you're ready, a Final STP submission can be made,
You will see that the Fringe Benefit Exempt (X) or Fringe Benefit Taxable (T) amount should have changed in the STP report.
In addition, if you reported Fringe Benefit - Salary Sacrifice you will see this in the Salary Sacrifice Type (O) Column.
The final Tax amounts should not have changed.
