Up to $32,500 a year of pre-tax contributions, your employer’s included, is taxed at 15% in super instead of your marginal rate of up to 45%.
ATO 2026–27 SGC rates, $32,500 concessional cap, salary sacrifice tax savings — instant, private, free.
Find your current balance in myGov or your annual super statement. Leave blank if starting from $0.
Salary sacrifice and personal contributions can significantly boost your retirement balance.
Enter your super balance, age, and income, then click Calculate to see your projected retirement balance, contribution room, and salary sacrifice savings.
All contributions to super are subject to ATO rules. Understanding the caps and tax rates helps you maximise your super balance without triggering excess contributions tax.
| Contribution Type | Rate / Cap | Tax Inside Super | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employer SGC | 12.0% of income | 15% | Final legislated rate since 1 Jul 2025 |
| Salary sacrifice | Up to concessional cap | 15% | Reduces taxable income; counted within $32,500 cap |
| Personal deductible | Up to concessional cap | 15% | Requires a notice of intent to your fund |
| Concessional cap | $32,500/yr | — | Includes employer + sacrifice + personal deductible. Rose from $30,000 on 1 Jul 2026 |
| After-tax (non-concessional) | $130,000/yr | Nil | No deduction; four times the concessional cap, so it rose with it on 1 Jul 2026. Can use the bring-forward rule (3 years) |
| Division 293 tax | Extra 15% | 30% total | Applied to concessional contributions when income + contributions > $250,000 |
Most super calculators show you a 30-year projection. The real question for most Australians is simpler: how many cents do I save on every dollar I sacrifice into super, right now? The answer is your 2026–27 marginal tax rate plus the 2% Medicare levy, minus the flat 15% contributions tax inside super. Between $37,500 and $66,667 you also get back part of the low income tax offset (“offset” in the table), which shrinks by 5c per $1 of income to $45,000 and 1.5c per $1 after that.
Salary sacrifice redirects pre-tax income into super. You avoid paying your marginal income tax rate on the sacrificed amount, but you do pay 15% contributions tax inside super. The net saving is the difference — and for most middle-income earners it works out to between 17c and 32c on the dollar.
| Your taxable income | Marginal rate | Saved per $1 sacrificed | Saving per $1,000 sacrificed |
|---|---|---|---|
| $37,501 – $45,000 | 15% + 5% offset + 2% Medicare | 7c | $70 |
| $45,001 – $66,667 | 30% + 1.5% offset + 2% Medicare | 18.5c | $185 |
| $66,668 – $135,000 | 30% + 2% Medicare | 17c | $170 |
| $135,001 – $190,000 | 37% + 2% Medicare | 24c | $240 |
| $190,001 – $250,000 | 45% + 2% Medicare | 32c | $320 |
| $250,001+ (Division 293) | 45% + 2% + extra 15% | 17c | $170 |
The annual concessional cap of $32,500 (2026–27, up from $30,000 in 2025–26) includes three contribution types stacked together:
If your gross salary is $100,000, your employer already puts $12,000 into super as SGC. That leaves $20,500 of cap room for salary sacrifice or personal deductible contributions. Anything over the cap is added to your taxable income and taxed at your marginal rate, less a 15% offset for the tax your fund already paid, so the saving on that amount is lost.
The end tax result is identical: both reduce your taxable income dollar-for-dollar and both are taxed at 15% inside super. The choice usually comes down to cash-flow timing:
Watch-out for HECS/HELP and the Medicare levy surcharge: salary sacrifice and personal deductible contributions are both added back as reportable super contributions when your HELP repayment income and your surcharge income are worked out. Neither lowers your HELP repayment or moves you under the surcharge threshold. In 2026–27, HELP repayments start once repayment income reaches $69,528.
The calculator above projects your total super balance to retirement, factoring salary sacrifice into the long-run model. If your only question is "what will I save in tax this year from sacrificing $X?" — try the dedicated single-purpose tool. It shows the cents-per-$1 verdict at your exact marginal rate, the concessional cap progress bar, Division 293 flag for $250k+ earners, and a 30-year compound projection of the tax saved. And to see the growth mechanics behind any of these projections — how each extra dollar compounds year by year, in both nominal and inflation-adjusted terms — run the numbers through the compound interest calculator.
Open the salary sacrifice calculator →
If your total super balance was below $500,000 at 30 June of the prior financial year, you can use unused concessional cap from up to 5 prior years. This is the only legal way to contribute well above $32,500 in a single year and still get the full tax deduction — useful when receiving a bonus, capital gain, or career-change payout. Check your unused cap balance in myGov > Super > Information > Carry forward concessional contributions before 30 June each year. The unused 2021–22 cap expires on 30 June 2027.
12% of your ordinary time earnings. Your employer pays it into your super fund. The rate reached 12% on 1 July 2025 and no further rises are legislated. Since 1 July 2026, under Payday Super, employers must pay it within 7 business days of each payday.
$32,500, up from $30,000 in 2025–26. It covers all pre-tax contributions: your employer's super guarantee, salary sacrifice, and personal contributions you claim as a tax deduction. Your fund taxes these at 15%. If you go over the cap, the excess is added to your taxable income and taxed at your marginal rate, less a 15% offset for the tax your fund already paid.
Salary sacrifice moves pre-tax pay into super, so your taxable income falls by the amount you sacrifice. On $100,000, sacrificing $10,000 brings taxable income down to $90,000. You save the 30% income tax and the 2% Medicare levy on that $10,000, which is $3,200. Your fund takes 15% contributions tax, which is $1,500. The net saving is $1,700, or 17c for each $1 sacrificed. It is 24c at $135,001 to $190,000 and 32c above $190,000, until Division 293 tax applies above $250,000.
Your preservation age is 60 if you were born after 30 June 1964. You can access your super once you reach 60 and retire, or at 65 even if you are still working. Between 60 and 65 you can start a transition to retirement income stream while still working and draw up to 10% of the balance each year. Before 60, access is only allowed in limited cases, such as severe financial hardship, a terminal medical condition or permanent incapacity.
LISTO refunds the 15% contributions tax on your concessional contributions, up to $500 a year, if your income is $37,000 or less. The ATO works it out and pays it into your super fund; you don't need to apply. From 1 July 2027 the maximum rises to $810 and the income limit to $45,000.