As we approach the end of the financial year, now is a good time to revisit your superannuation contributions before the window closes in the weeks prior to 30 June. Super is a long game, but most of the levers you can pull are pulled inside a tight 12-month window, and several of them are use-it-or-lose-it.
Below is a checklist of 10 strategies worth considering – there’s likely to be a couple that are relevant to your situation.
A quick reminder before we dive in: contributions need to be received by your fund and allocated to your account before 30 June, not just sent. I usually recommend making them by 20 June at the latest, to allow for processing time. And if you intend to claim a personal contribution as a tax deduction, you must lodge a Notice of Intent to Claim form with your fund and receive an acknowledgement before you lodge your tax return (or roll over your benefits, whichever comes first).
1. Concessional (pre-tax) contributions
Concessional contributions are made from pre-tax dollars and are taxed at 15% inside super (or 30% if you are caught by Division 293). For most Australians earning more than $45,000, this is materially lower than your marginal tax rate, so concessional contributions remain the most tax-effective way to grow super.
The annual cap is $30,000, which includes your employer’s compulsory 12% Superannuation Guarantee. The cap is shared, so if your employer is contributing $14,000 of SG, you only have $16,000 of headroom to top up via salary sacrifice or a personal deductible contribution. Don’t guess – check your last payslip or ask your payroll team to estimate what your contributions will total this financial year. The cap is assessed on a cash basis – i.e. when the fund actually receives the contribution and allocates it to your account. This can result in timing differences between financial years, so it’s also good practice to cross check these against your actual super fund transactions.
The benefit gets sharper as your income increases. Between roughly $135,000 and $190,000 of taxable income, the tax saving on every dollar contributed is 24%. Above $190,000 (but below $250,000 of adjusted taxable income), the saving is around 32% – the peak tax benefit. Even with Division 293 applying, you still save 17%.
I have written before that making additional concessional contributions is usually worthwhile, but the size of the benefit depends a lot on your stage of life and competing priorities.
The concessional contribution cap increases to $32,500 after 1 July 2026.
2. Catch-up (carry-forward) concessional contributions
This is the strategy most worth checking before 30 June. If your total super balance was below $500,000 on 30 June 2025, you can use any unused concessional cap from the previous five financial years on top of this year’s cap.
This check is worthwhile for two reasons:
- 2025/26 is the final year in which you can use any unused concessional cap from 2020/21, when the annual cap was $25,000. Importantly, the oldest unused cap is applied first. Therefore, if you do not use any remaining 2020/21 cap this financial year, you will lose the opportunity to use it in future years.
- If your balance is heading toward $500,000 in the next year or two, this could be your last realistic chance to bank that catch-up amount.
In theory, someone who has not contributed at all over the last five years could make a single concessional contribution of up to $167,500 in 2025/26 ($25,000 + $27,500 + $27,500 + $27,500 + $30,000 + $30,000). That is rare in practice, but it does happen – an example is a retiree under 67 who returned to part-time work and is selling an investment property and wants to reduce their CGT liability. The tax savings on a $167,500 deduction at the top marginal rate, less the 15% in the fund, is meaningful. This could also apply to self-employed taxpayers who have not contributed for several years.
You can check your available balance via myGov → ATO → Super → Carry forward concessional contributions.
3. Contribution splitting with your spouse
Contribution splitting is different to a spousal contribution (covered separately below). It involves transferring up to 85% of your concessional contributions from the previous financial year into your spouse’s super account.
You generally apply to your fund after 30 June to split last year’s contributions, but the strategic decision is best made now while you are reviewing the year’s contributions in any case.
The reasons to split are mostly long dated:
- To equalise balances between you and your spouse, which becomes more important under Division 296. Two balances of $2 million each are taxed very differently to one balance of $4 million and one of nil.
- To get more of your combined super into the tax-free retirement phase. Each person has their own transfer balance cap (currently $2 million), so equal balances mean a couple can ultimately move up to $4 million into pension phase between them.
- If your spouse is older, splitting can give the household earlier access to tax-free benefits.
- If you are at or over Age Pension age and your spouse is younger, money in your spouse’s accumulation account is not counted for Centrelink means testing.
4. Non-concessional (after-tax) contributions
Non-concessional contributions are after-tax dollars, so they don’t reduce your tax bill on the way in, but they also don’t attract the 15% contributions tax. Once inside super, earnings are taxed at 15% in accumulation and zero in pension, which is almost always lower than your marginal rate.
The annual cap is $120,000, available to anyone under 75 with a total super balance below $2 million on 30 June 2025.
If you haven’t triggered the bring-forward rule in the previous two years, and your total super balance was below $1.76 million on 30 June 2025, you can bring forward three years of caps and contribute up to $360,000 in one go. If your balance was between $1.76 million and $1.88 million, you can bring forward two years for $240,000.
You can also straddle two financial years by making contributions either side of 30 June. For example, an individual could make a non-concessional contribution of $120,000 in June 2026, using the 2025/26 annual cap. Then, in July 2026, they could trigger the bring-forward rule and contribute three years’ worth of non-concessional contributions in one amount. As the annual non-concessional cap increases to $130,000 from 1 July 2026, this would allow a further contribution of $390,000. In total, this strategy could allow an individual to move up to $510,000 into super across the two financial years.
One important trap to be aware of, is an excess concessional contribution that is later reclassified as a non-concessional contribution. This can inadvertently trigger the bring-forward rule. Therefore, if you think you may have exceeded your concessional contribution cap in the past couple of years, it is important to check this carefully with the ATO, your super fund and your accountant before making any large non-concessional contributions.
5. Government co-contribution
If your assessable income (broadly) will be below $47,488 this year and at least 10% comes from employment or business, the government will tip in 50 cents for every dollar of non-concessional contribution you make, up to a maximum of $500. Therefore, a $1,000 contribution gets a $500 co-contribution. The co-contribution phases out at an income of $62,488. You must be under 71.
This is the single best return on investment available in the super system. If a low-income earner in your household qualifies, do not miss it.
6. Downsizer contributions
If you are 55 or older and you (or your spouse) have owned your home for at least 10 years, you can contribute up to $300,000 ($600,000 for couples) to super from the sale proceeds, within 90 days of settlement.
The downsizer contribution sits outside the non-concessional cap, has no work test, and can be made even if your total super balance exceeds $2 million. You do not need to actually downsize; you simply need to sell a qualifying home.
For someone planning to downsize in the next few years, it may be worth considering whether to borrow funds to make non-concessional contributions now and then use the future sale proceeds to repay the loan and make downsizer contributions at that time.
For example, a couple could each borrow $120,000 and make non-concessional contributions before 30 June 2026. Then, after selling their home in the following financial year, they could each make a downsizer contribution, and potentially also use the three-year bring-forward rule for non-concessional contributions. Depending on their circumstances and contribution eligibility, this strategy could allow a couple to move over $1.6 million into super across the two financial years.
Another important consideration is whether you expect to make a downsizer contribution in the future, and whether that contribution is likely to push your total super balance above $2 million. If so, this financial year may be your last opportunity to make a non-concessional contribution.
7. Spousal contributions
If your spouse earns less than $37,000 and you contribute up to $3,000 of after-tax money into their super account, you receive an 18% tax offset – worth up to $540. The offset phases out as your spouse’s income rises to $40,000.
This is one of the easiest wins in the super system, particularly where one spouse has taken time out of paid work. Don’t confuse it with contribution splitting (Strategy 3); a spousal contribution is new money going in, splitting is moving existing concessional contributions across.
A few things to keep in mind. The contribution counts towards your spouse’s non-concessional cap, so make sure they have headroom. And if your spouse also has income below $47,488 and meets the 10% work-related income test, consider whether a separate $1,000 non-concessional contribution from them would also pull in the $500 government co-contribution. The two strategies can be used together – check with your super fund how to correctly classify these contributions.
8. Small business CGT cap contributions
If you are an eligible small business owner selling your business or an active business asset (such as a commercial property), you may be able to make a CGT cap contribution of up to $1.865 million (for 2025/26) into super, separate from the standard concessional and non-concessional caps. This is one of the most generous concessions in the tax system, but the eligibility criteria are complex and require careful tax advice well before any sale.
If you are heading toward a business sale, this should be on your radar 12 to 24 months out.
9. First Home Super Saver Scheme
If you are saving for your first home, the FHSS lets you make voluntary contributions of up to $15,000 per year and release up to $50,000 (plus deemed earnings) towards a deposit. The contributions are typically made as concessional (i.e. via salary sacrifice or a personal deductible contribution), so you get the same tax benefit as a regular concessional contribution.
The structural advantage is fairly obvious: you save the deposit at 15% tax instead of your marginal rate, which can lift your effective savings rate. The drawback is the slow build – the $15,000 annual cap means it takes years to fully use the scheme. If you are seriously planning a purchase in the next few years, getting started this financial year is probably worthwhile.
10. Commencing a pension and reviewing your transfer balance cap
If you are looking to start your first retirement-phase pension, the transfer balance cap currently sits at $2 million. From 1 July 2026, it will increase to $2.1 million. This is an important cap because it is a lifetime limit that is effectively set when you first start a retirement-phase pension.
Once you start a pension, you must withdraw a minimum amount each year. The minimum starts at 4% per annum for people aged 60 to 64, increases to 5% per annum from age 65 to 74, and continues to rise with age. However, there is no maximum – you can withdraw additional amounts, including lump sums.
If you do want to take a lump sum, it may be better to commute part of your pension balance back to accumulation phase and then withdraw the lump sum from your accumulation account, rather than withdrawing it directly from your pension account. The reason is that a commutation creates a debit against your lifetime transfer balance cap. In simple terms, it restores some of your available transfer balance cap space. That headroom matters in two scenarios:
- You receive future contributions you want to move to pension phase, for example a downsizer contribution, sale of an investment property or receiving an inheritance.
- Your spouse passes and you inherit their super. In that case, you may want to preserve as much flexibility as possible to either retain those funds in super, recontribute them into super, or commence a death benefit pension. However, your ability to do this will be subject to your own transfer balance cap. Therefore, preserving cap space can be valuable.
Campbell has written separately on the death benefit tax and the recontribution strategy, both of which interact with these rules. If you are over 60 and have a meaningful super balance, this is a planning area that is worth more looking into.
A note on contribution reserving (SMSF members)
If you have an SMSF and you are claiming a large concessional deduction this year (perhaps using catch-up contributions), there is a strategy called contribution reserving that allows you to effectively double up. Two $30,000 contributions are made in June, but only one is allocated to your member account this financial year, and the second is deferred and allocated by 28 July. Both deductions are claimed in the current year’s tax return.
The mechanics matter: the trustee must resolve to defer allocation, and a Request to Adjust Concessional Contributions form must be lodged with the ATO. Done incorrectly, the second contribution gets treated as an excess. It is technical and SMSF-specific, but if you are in an SMSF and the numbers warrant it, raise it with your accountant well before 30 June.
A note on Division 296
The additional 15% tax on earnings attributable to super balances above $3 million (and an additional 10% above $10 million) is now law and applies from 1 July 2026 (so for 2026/27 onwards). It is worth keeping in mind when planning contributions over the next few years, particularly if you and your spouse have unequal balances. I covered the legislated version of Division 296 in a separate blog earlier this year.
Putting it all together
Most of the strategies above are not new. What changes each year is the size of the caps, the thresholds, your tax position and where you sit relative to them. The mistake I see most often is not the wrong choice of strategy, it is missing the deadline or making a mistake with the administration.
A few practical points as we approach 30 June:
- Confirm your year-to-date concessional contributions before adding any more.
- Check your total super balance at 30 June 2025 against the relevant thresholds ($500,000 for catch-up, $1.76m / $1.88m / $2m for non-concessional).
- Make contributions by 20 June to allow processing time.
- Lodge your Notice of Intent to Claim a Tax Deduction immediately after making any personal deductible contribution – don’t leave it until tax time.
- If you are using contribution reserving in an SMSF, lodge the form with the ATO.
As always, this is general information only, and your circumstances will determine which strategies are appropriate for you. If you are unsure, this is exactly the time of year to have the conversation with your adviser – not in late June.
