How can I contribute to Super?

Published: 8-Apr-2024

Author: Ben Payne

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There are several ways to contribute to your superannuation fund in Australia and build a nest egg for retirement.

Superannuation Guarantee: This is the foundation of most people's super savings given employers must contribute a minimum percentage (11%) of employee salaries into their chosen super fund.
Salary sacrifice: You can arrange with your employer to divert some of your pre-tax salary into super (in addition to super guarantee) which reduces taxable income and boosts your super balance.
Personal contributions: You can also contribute your own money into super as follows:

Personal concessional contributions: These are made from pre-tax income and can therefore reduce your taxable income and attract personal tax benefits.
Non-concessional (after-tax) contributions: These contributions are made from your after-tax savings once income tax is deducted. This can be a good option if you have maximised concessional contributions and want to save more for retirement.

Things to consider:

There is a $27,500 annual limit of for concessional contributions which includes employer contributions, salary sacrifice and personal concessional contributions
There is a $110,000 annual limit for non-concessional contributions (or up to $330,000 if using bring forward provisions)
You must be under 75 and have a total super balance below $1.9 million to make non-concessional contributions
You must meet a work test (employed 40 hours in any 30 day period) before making salary sacrifice or personal concessional contributions if over age 67
You will not have access to funds contributed to super before meeting a condition of release such as reaching age 65 or retirement after age 60.