Superannuation Contribution and Payment Limits 2010/2011
Superannuation and Payment Limits 2010/2011
These are the key rates and threshholds that apply in relation to contributions and benefit payments for the 2010/2011 financial year.
Contribution Limits
The following table provides a summary of the relevant superannuation contribution threshholds based on age at the end of the financial year:
| Year |
Concessional Cap Age Below 50 |
Concessional Cap Aged 50 or More |
Non Concessional Cap |
CGT Cap |
| 2010-2011 | $25,000 | $50,000 | $150,000 | $1,155,000 |
| 2009-2010 | $25,000 | $50,000 | $150,000 | $1,100,000 |
Concessional Contributions
Concessional contributions include the following:
- employer contributions (including contributions made by way of a salary sacrifice arrangement)
- personal contributions claimed as a tax deduction by a self-employed person
The concessional contributions cap is indexed in line with average weekly time earnings annually in increments of $5,000 (rounded down). The new indexed amount is generally available in February each year.
The increased concessional cap for those people aged 50 or over will continue to apply until 30 June 2012. The government has announced changes that, if passed, will permanently increase the concessional contributions cap to $50,000 for individuals that are aged 50 or over who have total superannuation balances of less than $500,000.
Non Concessional Contributions
Non concessional contributions are those for which you do not claim an income tax deduction. The non-concessional cap for each year is a multiple of the concessional cap.
People under 65 years old may be able to 'bring forward' up to three years of non-concessional contributions, thereby enabling them to make a contribution of up to $450,000 in a single year based on the current caps. If you bring forward the entire $450,000 in 2011, you will not be able to make further non-concessional contributions until the 2013-2014 financial year.
Please note that any excess concessional contributions will also be counted towards the non-concessional cap.
CGT Cap Amount
Under the CGT Cap, you can during your lifetime exclude certain non-concessional superannuation contributions from the non-concessional contributions cap up to the CGT Cap Amount.
The contributions that can count towards the CGT Cap (referred to as 'excluded CGT Contributions') include the following:
- up to $500,000 of capital gains that have been 'disregarded' under the small business retirement exemption;
- the capital proceeds from the disposal of assets that qualify for the small business 15 year exemption;
- the capital proceeds from the disposal of assets that would qualify for the small business 15 year exemption, but did not because:
- the asset was a pre-CGT asset;
- there was no capital gain; or
- the 15 year holding period was not met because of the permanent incapacity of the person (or a controlling individual of a company or trust).
Excess Contributions
Please note that all contributions to superannuation on your behalf will count toward the relevant caps. This is particularly important where you have more than one fund or where contributions are being made on your behalf from more than one source. Contributions in excess of the relevant tax will be subject to additional tax.
Where the concessional cap is breached, an additional tax of 31.5% will be imposed on the excess and the excess contributions will be included in the fund as non-concessional contributions.
Where the non-concessional cap is breached an additional tax of 46.5% will be imposed on the excess.
If you breach both caps, an effective rate of tax of 93% will be applied to the excess contributions.
Eligibility to Contribute
The following table provides a summary of the conditions required to ensure you are eligible to contribute to superannuation in the 2010/2011 financial year:
| Age | Can I Contribute to Super? |
| <65 |
Anyone under the age of 65 can contribute to superannuation. Note that the contributor is either your employer or yourself if you are self employed. To be classed as self employed, less than 10% of the total of your assessable income, reportable fringe benefits and reportable employer superannuation contributions can come from employment related activities. |
| 65 - 74 | The 'work test' must be satisfied before you can contribute. In order to pass the work test you need to have worked 40 hours within a consecutive 30 day period during the financial year. |
| 75 + | Cannot contribute other than mandated employer contributions. |
If you would like to discuss your personal situation in respect of your eligibility to contribute to superannuation, please contact us.
Minimum Annual Payments for Super Income Streams
Once you have commenced a pension or annuity (if started on or after 1 July 2007), a minimum amount is required to be paid each year. The minimum payment amounts were halved for all account based, allocated and market linked annuities and pensions for the 2009 and 2010 years. The government has announced that they will extend the reductions for the 2010-2011 financial year. The following table shows the minimum percentage factor:
| Age (at beginning of year) | Minimum % withdrawal after reduction | Standard Minimum Withdrawal % |
| Under 65 | 2% | 4% |
| 65 - 74 | 2.5% | 5% |
| 75 - 79 | 3% | 6% |
| 80 - 84 | 3.5% | 7% |
| 85 - 89 | 4.5% | 9% |
| 90 - 94 | 5.5% | 11% |
| 95 or more | 7% | 14% |
There is no maximum amount other than the balance of your superannuation account, unless you are on a transition to retirement pension, in which case a maximum of 10% applies.
If you are unsure of your minimum or maximum benefit payment requirements, please contact us to discuss your position.