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Don’t be another victim – be on the lookout for scammers who call you about your superannuation! 

ASIC on the lookout 

The number of cold callers is on the rise. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) are urging people to hang up on cold callers and scroll past social media click bait that may be offering to help you compare and switch superannuation funds. 

How cold callers operate 

In many cases, cold callers will convince you to buy a product or sign up to a service. This could relate to any financial investment, product or service, but there has been a focus on scammers approaching people about their superannuation. A typical superannuation cold calling experience includes: 

• A call from someone you don’t know to see if you “qualify” for a free review of your superannuation. 
• Contact from a cold caller who convinces you that your existing superannuation fund is not performing. 
• A statement of advice (SOA) prepared by a financial advice firm the cold caller has an existing arrangement with. 
• ‘Cookie cutter’ advice that is expensive, often unnecessary, doesn’t consider your individual needs, and may leave you in a worse position. 

The cold caller may benefit by getting a cut of the financial advice fees, which are deducted from your superannuation balance. In the end, you could end up paying for advice that may not even be right for you. 

What to do 

If you receive a call from a number you don’t know, ignore it. Otherwise, if you are contacted by a cold caller and answer the call, just hang up. Similarly if you receive a SMS message from a number you don’t know, ignore it and do not click on any links.

If you have given personal information about your superannuation or banking details to a cold caller, contact your existing superannuation fund or bank immediately and ask them to not allow any withdrawals. 

You can also block a cold caller’s number and limit the calls you receive by joining the Do Not Call register. 

Avoid social media click bait 

You may have also come across some posts on your social media feed which question whether your superannuation is performing or encouraging you to compare your superannuation fund. If so, take care as some businesses try to grab your attention on social media before they try to sell you their services. 

Beware of other sophisticated scammers 

There are also reports that many Australians have fallen victim to sophisticated scammers who use technologies that use your bank’s legitimate phone number and texts on the same thread as genuine messages. Often, people are losing their money through no fault of their own as scammers either hack or manipulate a bank or other institution’s systems which will often see victims inadvertently providing information, such as a passcode, to the scammer. Be vigilant and never provide personal information, passwords or pass codes to anyone over the phone. 

Beware of scammers 

As the saying goes, if it sounds too good to be true it probably is. Avoid pushy sales tactics such as cold calling or social media click bait that rushes your decision-making. If you’re thinking about making changes to your superannuation, you can always start by doing your own research, contact your existing superannuation fund, and consider using a licenced financial adviser to obtain quality financial advice about your superannuation.

It is possible to receive amounts that are not expected by the ATO to be included as income in your tax return. However some of these amounts may be used in other calculations and may therefore need to be included elsewhere in your tax return.

The ATO classifies the amounts that it doesn’t count as assessable into three different categories: exempt income; non-assessable non-exempt income; and other amounts that are not taxable. 

Exempt income 

As the name may suggest, exempt income doesn’t have tax levied on it. The thing to remember here however is that certain exempt income may be taken into account for other adjustments or calculations — for example, when calculating the tax losses of earlier income years that you can deduct, and perhaps “adjusted taxable income” of your dependants. 

Exempt income includes: 

• certain government pensions, including the disability support pension paid by Centrelink to a person who is younger than age-pension age 
• certain government allowances and payments, including the carer allowance and the child care subsidy 
• certain overseas pay and allowances for Australian Defence Force and Federal Police personnel 
• government education payments, such as allowances for students under 16 years old 
• some scholarships, bursaries, grants and awards 
• a lump sum payment you received on surrender of an insurance policy where you are the original beneficial owner of the policy – generally these payments are not earned, expected, relied upon or occur regularly (examples include payments for mortgage protection, terminal illness, and permanent injury occurring at work). 

Non-assessable, non-exempt income 

Non-assessable, non-exempt income is income you don’t pay tax on and that also does not count towards other tax adjustments or calculations such as tax losses. 

Non-assessable, non-exempt income includes: 

• the tax-free component of an employment termination payment (ETP) 
• genuine redundancy payments and early retirement scheme payments 
• super co-contributions 
• various disaster recovery assistance packages (although these need to assessed on a case-by-case basis). 

Other amounts that are not taxable 

Generally, you don’t have to declare: 

• rewards or gifts received on special occasions, such as cash birthday presents and gifts from relatives given out of love (however, gifts may be taxable if you receive them as part of a businesslike activity or in relation to your income-earning activities as an employee or contractor) 
• prizes you won in ordinary lotteries, such as lotto draws and raffles 
• prizes you won in game shows, unless you regularly receive appearance fees or game-show winnings 
• child support and spouse maintenance payments you receive.

Contact us if you’d like more information on this topic.

The personal services income (PSI) rules apply to income that is earned mainly from the personal efforts or skills of a person. 

It does not matter whether the income is earned by the individual in their own name or through an entity such as a business. The rules do not apply to income earned from being an employee. 

A business structure 

This can be a confusing concept. It does not mean that you conduct a business through an entity such as a company or a trust. 

The term “business structure” is used to define a business (operated through any structure) that is large enough for it to be concluded that the income of the business is not being earned from the individuals in the business. Rather, the income is being earned by the “business structure”. This can still apply to quite small businesses. 

The tests

The results test

This is an important test. If you pass the test, the PSI rules do not apply to you. An individual passes the results test if in relation to at least 75% of the individual’s PSI:

1. it is for producing a result, and
2. the individual is required to supply the equipment or tools of trade needed to perform the work, and
3. the individual is liable for rectifying any defect in the work.

Unrelated clients test

This test is passed if:

1. the PSI is gained from providing services to two or more entities that are not associates, and
2. the work has been gained by making invitations to the public or a section of the public. 

Employment test 

Broadly, this test is passed if: 

1. one or more entities (other than associates) are engaged to perform work, and 
2. those entities perform at least 20% by market value of the principal work. The test is also passed if an apprentice is engaged for at least half the income year.

Business premises test 

Broadly, this test is passed if business premises are maintained: 

1. at which the PSI is mainly gained, and 
2. of which there is exclusive use, and 
3. that are physically separate from premises the individual or associate uses for private purposes, and 
4. are physically separate from premises of customers or associates of customers. 

Personal services determination 

The ATO can give you a ruling that the PSI rules don’t apply to you in certain circumstances. For example, there could be “one-off” changes in your circumstances that cause you to fail the PSI tests. You can apply to the ATO to have the PSI rules ignored by the ATO. If the ATO rules in your favour, this is called a “personal services determination”.

Superannuation is often a key source of income when you retire so it’s important to ensure your investment strategy makes your retirement savings last for as long as possible.

Shifting investment strategy objectives 

As you approach retirement, your investment strategy objectives may start to shift. In your younger years, the main aim of superannuation is generally accumulation-focussed, which is all about growing as big a balance as possible, making regular contributions and investing for growth over the longterm. 

If you’re approaching retirement and need help with your retirement investment strategy, it may be worthwhile obtaining advice from a financial adviser.

As you enter retirement, investing for growth is still important however you will likely need to start drawing a pension or taking regular benefit payments to meet your living expenses. As you will have cashflows coming out of your fund and you will be drawing down on your assets, you’ll need to ensure you have enough liquidity in your fund to make those payments. 

You also need to ensure you’re protected against drawing down on your assets at times of poor investment markets where you could end up locking in those losses. This timing impact is also known as ‘sequencing risk’. As such, the liquidity and sequencing risk impact on your fund’s investment strategy must be considered. 

What investment strategy should I consider? 

It is important that your superannuation portfolio has adequate exposure to growth assets. By the time most individuals reach 65 years of age, they are now expected to live for another two decades. This means a person retiring at say age 60 must stretch their finances for, on average, another 30+ years. It’s important to note this is merely an average; many will live far longer than two decades from their 65th birthday. 

But assuming you aren’t drawing down excessive amounts and you will retain your funds in superannuation throughout your retirement, then taking a slightly more aggressive approach should result in you obtaining higher long-term returns and an increase in your portfolio value overtime. 

That said, it does come down to your risk profile. The key message here is leaving all your retirement savings in a 100% conservative strategy (ie, cash and term deposits only) may mean that your nes egg may not last you very long. 

How long will my super last? 

Although investment market returns and inflation are uncertain and we don’t know how long we are going to live, retirement modelling can factor in these future uncertainties to help you determine the likelihood of achieving your objectives, which will also test whether your investment strategy is likely to be successful. 

A financial adviser has access to such sophisticated financial modelling systems, however other simpler retirement calculators which can be found online (such as from the Moneysmart.gov.au website) can also give you an idea of how long your savings may last and how investment returns may affect your superannuation and/or pension balance. 

The last word 

There will be periods where the markets will be volatile which will see your retirement savings increase and decrease in value. During these times if you panic and switch back to a more conservative option, such as cash, you may do more harm to your superannuation balance. So if you’re approaching retirement and need help with your retirement investment strategy, it may be worthwhile obtaining advice from a financial adviser who can help you stress test your risk profile and help choose appropriate investments for your superannuation to make your savings last in retirement. 

Keeping track of your superannuation balance is key as it impacts how much you can contribute to superannuation and whether you are entitled to other superannuation concessions and measures.

Your total superannuation balance (TSB) is an important concept as it impacts your eligibility for up to six favourable superannuation-related measures, including the:

• Bring forward non-concessional contribution (NCC) cap
• Carry forward concessional contributions
• Superannuation spouse tax offset
• Government co-contribution, and more.

In a nutshell, your TSB includes:

• Your superannuation accumulation account balance(s)
• Your superannuation pension account(s), and
• The outstanding limited recourse borrowing arrangement amount in your SMSF that you entered into from 1 July 2018 (in certain circumstances).

Your TSB for the current year is measured on 30 June of the previous financial year (ie, 30 June 2023) when determining your eligibility to make or receive certain types of superannuation contributions.

HOW TO CHECK YOUR TSB

There are two main ways you can track your TSB.

Firstly, you can either contact your superannuation fund or refer to your fund’s statements and records for your TSB. When reviewing your annual statement, the TSB figure your fund reports to the ATO is generally referred to as ‘exit value’ or ‘withdrawal benefit’. This may be different to the 30 June ‘closing balance’.

The second way to check your TSB is by logging into your myGov account which will show your TSB for the previous 30 June as well as other helpful information, such as your:

• • Eligibility to use the NCC (after-tax contribution) bring forward arrangement
  • Concessional contribution cap
  • Unused carry forward concessional contribution cap amounts that have accrued since 1 July 2018
  • Employer contributions, and more.

Checking this information can be beneficial before you make any further contributions prior to 30 June 2024 as it can help you avoid exceeding your contribution caps.

The following steps should be taken to track your TSB (and other related superannuation information):

1. Log into your myGov account by visiting my.gov.au. If you don’t have a myGov account you can create an account.
   Alternatively, if you have a myGov account but have not linked the ATO service to it, you can also link it here too.
2. Select the super tab, then click on the information option and then click on ‘total superannuation balance’ (as shown in the image below). Here you will be able to see your current TSB as recorded by the ATO.
3. You will be able to see your current TSB for each superannuation interest you hold, including your prior year’s 30 June TSB under the ‘History’ button.

CHECK THE INFORMATION PROVIDED

You should take care when checking your TSB and other amounts displayed in myGov, as depending on the type of superannuation fund you have, your 30 June balance and contribution details may not have been reported to the ATO yet. For example, SMSFs are not required to report their superannuation information to the ATO as regularly as large APRA regulated funds so your contributions and your account balance may not be up to date in myGov. This is because the ATO obtains information about SMSFs from the annual return each year. This means any SMSF members will need to check their SMSF records to track their TSB and contribution caps if this information is not up to date in their myGov account.

NEED HELP?

Please contact us if you need more information on how to check your TSB or if you require further information about your superannuation account.

For most family businesses as well as private groups, succession planning (sometimes known as transition planning) involves considerations around the eventual sale of your business, or the passing of control of it to other family members when you retire. Depending on your circumstances, this may include realising assets and making other changes to ownership, but is certainly tied up with retirement planning and estate planning.

Adopting a sound tax governance framework can help you manage tax issues around succession planning before they present a problem. Though succession planning may not have an immediate tax impact, it’s important to include tax considerations in your plan. This will avoid unexpected tax issues arising down the track when you implement your plan.

Transferring control of your business to family members may involve restructuring your business operations – changes to share structure, changes to the trustee and appointor of a trust, changes to partnership structures – or transferring assets to family members via the creation of trusts or other entities. Remember that these sorts of events can have legal and tax implications that need to be carefully considered.

A common assumption with business owners is that the transaction being considered is a single “sale” — that of the business — whereas it is actually many sales of individual assets that need to be accounted for, possibly with different tax outcomes.

For example, when you dispose of or transfer your business assets there will likely be capital gains tax (CGT) consequences. The sale of a business can also trigger liabilities in relation to GST and, where applicable, wine equalisation tax, fuel tax credits and excise duty.

Where pre-CGT assets are involved, you should also understand and document the tax consequences for you and your beneficiaries. Issues for consideration include whether changes in the business operations may affect the pre-CGT status of the assets or shares and the availability of carried-forward losses.

Any significant changes to your business structures or operations (including any asset disposals) should be fully documented, along with their tax impact. Ensure information on your assets (such as acquisition dates and cost base) is properly documented. This will also ensure that any subsequent disposals of the assets can be treated correctly for tax purposes. Different strategies will have different tax consequences for the owner and beneficiaries.

Consider each strategy and identify (and keep records of) significant transactions.

For example, say, as the owner of a successful family business, you prepared a basic succession plan many years ago, but since then your business has expanded and your children have grown up. One of them may work with you in the business and you would like to see them take over when you retire.

The discussion you could have with this office would be how best to transfer the business and make the transition to retirement.

One option could be to restructure your business as a family trust, so you can still have some control of the business while reducing your involvement in the day-to-day operations. We can explain the tax consequences of this strategy, while also alerting you to other options and tax considerations. Once you decide on your strategy, you update your succession plan, which now includes a section detailing the tax treatment and tax payable on transfer.

Whatever strategies you use to transfer your business onto the next generation, make sure your plans are documented and you seek advice from professional advisers where needed. This will reduce the risk of incorrect tax treatment and outcomes, and possibly consequent penalties. 

Following the ATO’s claims that nine out of ten residential rental property investors who have been audited have been getting their returns wrong, it might be worth touching on some of the tax traps and pitfalls to be wary of. In no particular order, these include:

Apportionment of rental income and deductions

Where a rental property is jointly owned by two or more people, the income and deductions are split according to the owners’ respective shares of the legal ownership of the property. Joint tenancy between spouses is the most common situation, meaning a 50:50 split. In those situations there is no legal basis for the spouse with the higher marginal tax rate claiming a disproportionate share of the deductions for mortgage interest, rates, land tax, insurances, repairs and maintenance in their own return – even where they fund the payments from their own bank account.

Private use

Interest and other outgoings are not deductible to the extent the property was used for private purposes – eg, while you or a relative or friend lived in it for no or nominal consideration.

Interest deductions

Where the acquisition of a rental property has been funded by way of debt, the associated interest costs will be deductible. However, where a loan (or part of a loan) that is secured over a rental property is used for private purposes, such as buying a car or renovating the house you live in, interest can only be claimed on a pro rata basis.

Care needs to be taken when refinancing debt to ensure the tax deductibility of interest attributable to the rental property is not jeopardised.

Repairs vs improvements

The cost of genuine repairs to fix something that is broken or worn down due to wear and tear that happened while the property was tenanted is immediately deductible. Work that involves replacing the entirety of an asset would be a capital improvement and is deductible at 2½%

For example, your rental property might have an original 1960s bathroom, with leaky pipes and tiles that are broken or coming away. Fixing the leaks and replacing the tiles (even with something a little more modern) would fall on the repairs side of the line and be deductible outright. On the other hand, gutting the whole bathroom and replacing all the fittings with something out of Home Beautiful would be a capital upgrade and deductible at 2½ % per annum.

Initial repairs

Any deductions for repairs to your rental property have to be attributable to the time you were earning rental income from the property. If you buy a property that requires initial repairs before you can put tenants in, the cost of those repairs will not be deductible. You should still keep track of the amount you’ve spent on initial repairs as it will trigger off a capital loss when you sell the property down the track.

Certain initial repair works may be unavoidable, but defer non-urgent work if possible. So if your newly acquired rental property is in need of a coat of paint, maybe wait two or three years before contacting a painter.

Travel costs

The cost of traveling to visit your rental property to attend to things is no longer deductible. This matters especially to investors who have bought property interstate. There is an exception where an investor is in the business of letting rental properties – but very few are.

Depreciation

Second-hand depreciating assets acquired as part of the rental property can’t be written off against rental income, again unless you are in the business of letting rental properties. But the unclaimed depreciation can trigger off a capital loss on the eventual sale of the property. It’s important to keep track of these amounts in the meantime.

Cash jobs

It’s not unheard of for the tradesperson offering the best quote for a repair or maintenance job on your rental property to ask for payment in cash.

Before rushing in to accept such a quote, just make sure they’re not keeping the job completely off the books and that you’ll still be getting an invoice that satisfies the substantiation rules. Otherwise you could end up blowing your cost savings (and maybe more) because you won’t be entitled to a tax deduction for the cash you’ve handed over.

What your tradie does in relation to his tax affairs is a matter between them and the Commissioner, but it shouldn’t cost you a tax deduction. Always insist on getting an invoice.

Holiday homes

Own a holiday home? Great for family holidays, but if the property is also offered for short-term rentals there are a few wrinkles you need to be aware of.

The main one is that the property needs to be genuinely available for rent, and not just at times when demand is seasonally low. So if you book the place out for yourself or family and friends for all or most of the school holidays and other peak times, the ATO will take the view that you’re not seriously trying to make a profit from any rental income you receive and will limit your deductions for mortgage interest, rates and land taxes, repairs and maintenance, insurance etc to the amount of your rental income. Likewise if you only charge mates’ rates when family and friends come to stay.

Some holiday house owners have even pretended to market their property by demanding excessive rents or imposing unrealistic conditions for shortterm stays (eg, references, no pets, no kids). That is not likely to pass muster either.

Some limited personal use of the property is acceptable to the ATO, as long as you’re genuinely trying to turn a profit. Where this is the case, the deductions claimed need to be pro-rated to reflect the time the property was let or was genuinely available for rent.

Any disallowed deductions won’t be wasted entirely as they will create a capital loss on the sale of the property.

Please contact us if any of these issues raise concerns for you.

Are you are planning to maximise your superannuation contribution caps this financial year? If so, it’s crucial to get the timing right so your contribution is received by your superannuation fund in the current financial year.

Lessons from a recent court case 

A recent court case1 has confirmed that contributions are made on the date they are received by a member’s superannuation fund, not when they are made. The member in this case had intended that his contributions be attributed in the year the payments were made (ie, in late June) rather than on the dates they were received (ie, in early July). 

However the ATO and the Administrative Appeals Tribunal ruled that the contributions were made on the dates the funds were received by his superannuation fund, rather than the date of payment initiation. This meant that the member’s contributions were deemed to be made in the next financial year which placed the transactions into the next financial year with other contributions the member made that year, causing the member to exceed his contribution caps.

ATO view on when a contribution is made

The timing of when a contribution is made is important for a number of reasons, particularly when this occurs close to 30 June. For example, the timing can impact when the contribution will count towards your contribution caps, whether your fund is able to accept your contribution(s) or whether a tax deduction may be claimed for your contribution(s). 

The ATO’s Taxation Ruling2 on superannuation contributions confirms that a contribution is made when the capital of the fund is increased. This occurs when an amount is received, or ownership of an asset is obtained, or a fund otherwise obtains the benefit of an amount.

For example, a contribution of money via an electronic transfer is made when the amount is credited to your superannuation fund’s bank account, not when you press the button to effect the payment. 

The table summarises some of the common ways in which funds are transferred and when the contribution is deemed to be made. Please note this list is not exhaustive:

Timing is key 

This year 30 June falls on a Sunday (a non-business day), so leaving it to the last minute and making a contribution over the weekend may not provide enough time for your contribution to reach your superannuation fund as transfers typically happen on business days.

If you are a member of a large APRA-regulated superannuation fund, make sure you know when the cut-off day is as this is the date your fund will accept contributions so that they will be allocated in that same financial year. Otherwise, there is no guarantee that contributions received after this date will be allocated before the end of the financial year. In the end, a contribution received by your fund on 1 July 2024 is a contribution that will be treated as belonging to the 2024-25 financial year. 

On the other hand, if you have an SMSF, electronic transfers between accounts with the same bank generally happen immediately which means contributions will be made instantaneously and therefore count towards your contribution caps this financial year. This can be helpful if you end up making contributions last minute. However, a transfer between different banks is likely to take longer to clear which could see your SMSF receiving the transfer of funds after it was initiated by you as the contributor.

Superannuation clearing house delays 

You should also take extra care if your employer makes contributions to your fund by using a superannuation clearing house as there can be a time delay from when your employer’s payment is made to the clearing house and when your superannuation fund receives the contribution. This is because contributions made by employers to a clearing house generally do not constitute the receipt of a contribution by a superannuation fund as a contribution cannot be recorded by the superannuation fund until it is received. This could see last minute 2023-24 superannuation contributions by employers not reach their employee’s fund in time to be recorded as a contribution in 2023-24 and may end up being recorded in the 2024-25 financial year. This could cause you to exceed your concessional contribution cap if you are also planning on making a personal superannuation contribution and claiming the amount as a tax deduction. 

Key takeaway 

The bottom line is to allow plenty of time to make your superannuation contributions well before 30 June in order for your contribution to be received by your superannuation fund this financial year because in the end, a contribution is deemed to be made at the time it is received by your superannuation fund, not when you process the transaction.

With the temptation for homeowners to cash in on spiralling house prices around  Australia, it is important to turn your mind  to whether you may only have a partial  capital gains tax (CGT) main residence  exemption available to you, and not a full  CGT exemption (because of the way you  have used your home).

And while it seems that the ATO doesn’t actively chase up partial CGT main residence exemptions that may have been overlooked by homeowners themselves, there may come a time when the revenue lost from this source may pique the ATO’s interest.

But from the homeowner’s point of view, they may not even realise that they have a possible partial CGT liability in respect of their home.

So, what are some common ways that such a partial CGT liability may arise?

DIDN’T MOVE IN “AS SOON AS PRACTICABLE”?

Firstly, when you bought your house you may not have been able to move into as “soon as practicable” (as required by the CGT main residence rules). And while in some cases this can be ignored, such as because of serious illness, in other cases it won’t be.

For example, if you bought your home subject to an existing lease that still has to run its course, then you will be subject to a partial exemption because of the failure of your home to be your main residence throughout the entire period you owned it.

Likewise, the same rule will apply if for example you can’t move into your new home as “soon as practicable” because of commitment to, say, an interstate job.

In these types of cases the partial exemption will apply on a pro-rata basis to reflect the period of time during which you owned the home that you did not live in initially as your home (or were not able to treat it as your home under a relevant concession).

And this pro-rata rate will be calculated by reference to the amount you bought your home for – and not any larger subsequent market value.

ABSENT FROM HOME AND RENTED IT

Another way that you can lose your full CGT exemption on your home is if you are absent from it for a period (such as if you rent it while you live or work overseas or interstate) and you cannot use (or fully use) the “absence concession” to continue to treat it as your home.

This may happen, for example, if you rent it for more than six years or if you use the full main residence exemption in respect of another home you own while you are absent from your current home.

In such a case, the pro-rata calculation will usually be calculated by reference to your home’s market value when you first rent it – and thereby result in a lesser partial CGT liability.

However, the interaction of the “absence concession” rules and any rental use of your home can be complex (especially if you own another home at the time). 

It therefore definitely requires good professional advice (if only to use the absence concession rules to the maximum effect, depending on your exact circumstances).

A partial exemption will also apply if you use part of your home to carry on a business (eg, consulting rooms or a shed for repair and maintenance works).

TWO HOMES OF SPOUSES AT SAME TIME

Finally, something that is often forgotten is the rule that prevents spouses (including de-facto and same sex spouses) from each being able to claim a separate main residence exemption on different homes they own and live in during a period when they are considered to be “spouses”.

In this case, the couple will have to either nominate one of the homes as their CGT-free main residence for that period or, in effect, claim a half exemption on each home for that period. This rule can apply in a variety of situations such as where two young people become de-facto partners but each retain their own home and either each continue to live in their own home – or they live together while retaining a prior home (which they continue to treat as their main residence).

Suffice to say the CGT rules in this area are quite complex in their own right – but even more complex depending on the circumstances to which they are applied (especially given the “choices” that can be made as to how to apply them in the particular circumstances).

Again, while this area may not be one that the ATO looks at closely (and probably for good reason), it is still one that you should at least always raise with your adviser.

CONCLUSION

So, all in all, if you are thinking of selling your home to cash in on spiralling house prices, it is important to get advice about whether you may have a partial CGT exemption floating around – because, if nothing else, maybe one day the taxman may look more closely at such issues. p

Many of us wonder about the best vehicle to use for our extra savings. Is it better to direct extra savings to your mortgage or superannuation? As with most financial decisions, there is no one-size-fits-all approach as it depends on a number of factors for each individual.

Paying extra off the mortgage

The priority for most people is to pay extra off their mortgage. This is because extra repayments can reduce the amount of interest payable and will help you pay off your loan sooner, freeing you up from mortgage repayment commitments.

Furthermore, if your home loan has a redraw or offset facility, you can still access your money if your circumstances change. However paying extra off your mortgage involves using after-tax money which is less advantageous than using pre-tax income to invest into superannuation which will eventually be used to pay off your mortgage.

Paying extra into superannuation

Paying extra to superannuation will usually involve pre-tax money by making salary sacrifice contributions.

An effective salary sacrifice agreement involves an employee agreeing in writing to forgo part of their future entitlement to salary or wages in return for the employer providing them with benefits of a similar value, such as increased employer superannuation contributions.

As salary sacrifice contributions are made with pretax dollars and do not form part of your assessable income, this means these contributions are not taxed at your marginal tax rate and will instead be taxed at a maximum of 15% when received by your superannuation fund.

It is also worth noting that making pre-tax contributions such as salary sacrifice contributions count towards the concessional contribution (CC) cap which is currently $27,500 pa in 2023/24 (or $30,000 in 2024/25). As your employer superannuation guarantee (SG) contributions also count towards this cap, you will need to determine how much room you have left within your cap before you start salary sacrificing to superannuation. As discussed in Six super strategies to consider before 30 June on page 1, there is the ability to make larger CCs by utilising the carry forward concessional contribution rules if you meet certain eligibility criteria.

In a nutshell, once the money is in superannuation it is invested and will grow. The power of compounding returns along with the concessional tax nature of superannuation means that even small contributions can boost your retirement savings in the future. When the time is right and you are ready to retire, you can either withdraw a tax-free lump sum to clear your remaining mortgage or commence a superannuation pension and draw tax-free pension payments to meet your mortgage repayments from the age of 60 onwards.

Example – pre vs post tax money

Bill earns $150,000 per year and has a savings capacity of around $1,000 – $1,500 per month. Bill can either:

• Direct this amount to his mortgage, or
• Salary sacrifice $1,587 into superannuation as this contribution occurs before tax (ie, the after-tax cost of $1,587 is $1,000).

Bill decides to salary sacrifice to superannuation. Bill’s contribution is taxed at 15% when it is received by his fund so his end contribution is $1,349. For the same out-of-pocket cost to Bill, his superannuation fund receives an extra $349 each month.

This example shows the difference between Bill’s marginal tax rate (37%) and the tax rate on contributions (15%) constitutes the benefit of salary sacrifice contributions. As mentioned above, Bill will need to ensure he does not exceed his CC cap by making extra salary sacrifice contributions to superannuation.

Final thoughts

So which option is better? Well it depends. The answer boils down to a number of factors that need to be considered, such as your mortgage interest rate, your income and marginal tax rate, your superannuation investment strategy, and your age to retirement. If you need extra information or advice on what you should do, make sure you speak to your financial adviser before you make any financial decisions regarding your mortgage or superannuation. n