With 30 June approaching, it’s time to start thinking about your super. Here are five ideas for making the most of tax concessions before the end of the financial year.

1. Make tax deductible contributions

Tax deductible contributions can benefit you in two ways.  You can boost your super account which provides more spending confidence in retirement. But it may also benefit you today by providing a tax deduction, which may reduce the tax you pay for this financial year.

It’s particularly useful for middle to high income earners or those who have sold an investment and have an assessable capital gain.  And the benefits can be substantial, especially if you satisfy the conditions to use up previous years’ unused caps.

For example, a person earning $80,000 a year can save tax of $195 for every $1,000 contributed to super plus the investment returns. For a person earning over $120,000 a year  the tax savings can be up to $320 per $1,000.

2. Consider after-tax contributions

Super is a tax effective environment. For most retirees, investment earnings in a retirement income stream aren’t taxed and the income you draw is tax free as well.

So, it can make sense to structure your investments within super. An efficient way to do this is to make after-tax contributions, especially since you can ‘bring forward’ future years’ contributions.

From 1 July 2022, people under 75 can contribute up to $330,000 to super from savings even if they’re not working.

3. A potential tax offset

If you are earning less than $37,000 a year, then your spouse may be eligible to receive a $540 tax offset if they make a super contribution of $3,000 for you.  It’s called an Eligible Spouse Contribution. 

4. Free money from the government

If your assessable income is less than about $55,000 a year, you may also be eligible to receive the government co-contribution.  If you make an after-tax contribution of up to $1,000 into your own super account, the government will contribute 50% of the contribution up to a maximum of $500.

5. Equalise your super with your spouse

There are lots of reasons why it’s smart to equalise your super balance with your partner’s.  

You can split up to 85% of your pre-tax contributions made during the previous financial year, provided your spouse is not over 65 or retired.  But if you miss the 30 June deadline, the opportunity closes.

Timing matters

There’s an old investment adage that timing doesn’t matter, but we don’t agree.  Our life experience is that timing is everything. And that especially applies to super contributions.  

There are opportunities to save tax while boosting your super that may be lost forever if you miss the 30 June deadline.  And keep in mind there are some traps that need to be avoided so it takes time to plan and implement super strategies.  

If you are having any trouble meeting with an adviser or super fund representative in the next few weeks, you are at risk of missing out.

But we can help. We will make the time to meet with you and explore your options. Because when you deal with When Financial Solutions, it’s not a matter of ‘if’ you will make the most of your circumstances, but ‘when’.

This article is general and does not consider your personal circumstances so it may not be appropriate to you.  If you would like advice specific to you, please give us a call.