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Published 1 July 2021
Super remains one of the most tax-effective ways to save for your retirement, so it’s important to understand how you can best benefit from it, writes Gayle Bryant.
Superannuation provides an environment for you to accumulate your retirement savings and from a tax perspective it has few rivals.
It can help you tax-effectively save for your retirement in a number of ways, such as:
The trade-off for these benefits is that your money is preserved until retirement, so you can’t generally access it until you have reached your preservation age (55 to 60 years, depending on when you were born) and have retired or you reach age 65.
The difference in tax outcomes you can get from contributing extra to super depends on the marginal tax rate that applies to your taxable income. The table below shows you the difference between marginal tax rates (as an individual taxpayer) and the tax rate for a superannuation fund taxpayer.
Income ($) |
Marginal tax rate (%)* |
Super tax rate (%) |
Tax rate difference** (%) |
---|---|---|---|
0-18,200 |
0 |
15 |
higher by 15 |
18,201-45,000 |
21 |
15 |
lower by 6 |
45,001-120,000 |
34.5 |
15 |
lower by 19.5 |
120,001-180,000 |
39 |
15 |
lower by 24 |
180,001 and above |
47 |
15*** |
lower by 32 |
* The above rates assume Medicare Levy of 2 per cent.
** This is for illustration purposes only and does not take into account any tax offsets or credits you may be entitled to.
*** Up to an additional 15 per cent may apply to concessional contributions that exceed the $250,000 income threshold for higher income earners.
Here are some tax-effective strategies that can give your super a boost.
Making concessional contributions into super can be one of the most tax-effective strategies around. If you ask your employer to put some of your salary into super before it goes into your pay packet, this amount is generally taxed at 15 per cent instead of your marginal tax rate.
Be aware you can only contribute $27,500 per year to your superannuation at this concessional rate, including any employer contributions (for example, 10 per cent superannuation guarantee). (Refer to the need-to-know section below for details of the ‘carry-forward’ arrangement that began on 1 July, 2018).
There are some exceptions to the amount of tax on contributions you pay. For example, since 1 July 2017, if your income plus concessional contributions exceed $250,000, you pay up to an extra 15 per cent tax (up to a total of 30 per cent) on all or part of the concessional super contributions within your concessional cap.
If you have a large amount of cash or other investments outside super that you don’t need to access till retirement, you could consider moving them into super so that any investment earnings (including interest and capital gains) may be taxed at up to 15%. Just be aware of the personal tax implications if you’re selling any investments to do this and remember that there are limits on the amount you can contribute to super.
Life insurance that’s available through your super fund may be more affordable than if you pay for it outside of super, which means you can potentially save money on the premiums and/or pay for a higher level of life insurance cover.
This is because when you take out insurance within super, your insurance premium may be paid from your pre-tax income (for example, pre-tax salary sacrifice to super or personal deductible contributions), which leaves you with a lower gross income amount on which to pay tax. Your super fund may also claim a tax deduction for the premium and may pass on this benefit to you. Generally you cannot claim a tax deduction for life insurance premiums paid for life insurance held personally.
You may receive a tax offset of up to $540 by making a contribution to your spouse’s super account. To receive the maximum tax offset requires a spouse contribution of at least $3,000 into your spouse’s super account and your spouse’s income must be $37,000 or less. To be eligible for a part spouse contribution tax offset your spouse’s income must be less than $40,000. Additional criteria applies for a spouse to be eligible and it is important to note that contributions made to your own super fund then split to your spouse do not qualify for the spouse contribution tax offset.
If you earn $37,000 or less, you may also qualify for the low-income superannuation tax offset. This amount, up to $500 each year, is 15 per cent of the concessional contributions you or your employer makes to your super throughout the financial year.
Super remains one of the most tax-effective vehicles in which to save for your retirement. Below is a summary of some of the key legislated changes to super.
“ANZ Smart Choice Super” is a suite of products consisting of ANZ Smart Choice Super and Pension (PDF 416kB), ANZ Smart Choice Super for employers and their employees (PDF 594kb) and ANZ Smart Choice Super for QBE Management Services Pty Ltd and their employees (PDF 441kb). The ANZ Smart Choice Super and Pension product is distributed by Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited (ANZ) (ABN 11 005 357 522). We recommend that you read the ANZ Financial Services Guide (PDF 479kB), before deciding whether to acquire or continue to hold this product. View the ANZ Smart Choice Super and Pension Target Market Determination (PDF 252kB). ANZ Smart Choice Super for employers and their employees and ANZ Smart Choice Super for QBE Management Services Pty Ltd and their employees are MySuper compliant products issued pursuant to the latest PDS available at anz.com/smartchoicesuper. View the ANZ Smart Choice Super for employer and their employees Target Market Determination (PDF 464 kB). ANZ Smart Choice Super is part of the Retirement Portfolio Service (the Fund) (ABN 61 808 189 263) and is issued by OnePath Custodians Pty Limited (ABN 12 008 508 496, AFSL 238346, RSE L0000673) (OPC), the trustee of the Fund. OPC is a member of the Insignia Financial Group of companies, comprising Insignia Financial Ltd (formerly IOOF Holdings Ltd) ABN 49 100 103 722 and its related bodies corporate (Insignia Financial Group). The Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited (ANZ) (ABN 11 005 357 522) brand is a trademark of ANZ and is used by OPC under licence from ANZ. ANZ and the Insignia Financial Group of companies (including OPC) are not related bodies corporate. ANZ does not stand behind or guarantee these products.
Before re-directing your super or moving your money into ANZ Smart Choice Super, you will need to consider whether there are any adverse consequences for you, including loss of benefits (e.g. insurance cover), investment options and performance, functionality, increase in investment risks and where your future employer contributions will be paid.
The information provided is of a general nature and does not take into account your personal needs, financial circumstances or objectives. Before acting on this information, you should consider the appropriateness of the information, having regard to your needs, financial circumstances or objectives. The case studies used in this article are hypothetical and are not meant to illustrate the circumstances of any particular individual. Opinions expressed in this document are those of the authors only.
All fees are subject to change. Other key features are relevant when choosing a super fund, including performance.
Taxation law is complex and this information has been prepared as a guide only and does not represent taxation advice. Please see your tax adviser for independent taxation advice. The information on insurance cover is a summary only of the terms and conditions applying to the insurance cover. To the extent there is any inconsistency with the terms of the insurance cover provided by the insurer, the terms of the insurance policy will prevail.
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Fee Analysis: Research conducted by SuperRatings Pty Ltd, holder of Australian Financial Services Licence No. 311880 at the request of OPC. For a copy of the latest SuperRatings research, click here (PDF 146kB) or call 13 12 87.