Last year, the government proposed a series of wide ranging reforms to Australia’s superannuation system, representing the most significant changes to super in a decade. Although not all the proposals have been legislated, some significant ones have already.
We recognise that keeping up with the superannuation rules and regulations can be a minefield. It’s important to understand the changes and how they may affect your financial strategy. That’s where Bentleys and the Superannuation team can support you.
2. Accountants AdvisorsAuditors
Disclaimer
This document contains general advice. It does not take account of your objectives, financial situation or
needs.You should consider talking to a FinancialAdviser before making a financial decision.
This document has been prepared by Count Financial LimitedABN 19 001 974 625,AFSL 227232, (Count) a
wholly-owned, non-guaranteed subsidiary of Commonwealth Bank of Australia
ABN 48 123 123 124. ‘Count’ andCountWealth Accountants® are trading names of Count.
Count FinancialAdvisers are authorised representatives of Count. Information in this document is based on
current regulatory requirements and laws, as at 1 March 2017, which may be subject to change.
While care has been taken in the preparation of this document, no liability is accepted by Count, its related
entities, agents and employees for any loss arising from reliance on this document.
3. Accountants AdvisorsAuditors
The super changes at a glance
Lower caps on
non-concessional contributions
Lower caps on concessional
contributions
Reduced threshold for higher
contributions tax
New $1.6m transfer
balance cap
Removal of tax-exempt
status for TTR pensions
Tax offset for low
income earners
Deduction for personal
contributions extended
Key changes
4. Accountants AdvisorsAuditors
Lower caps on non-concessional
contributions
Remaining cap also reduced if
have not fully utilised
$540,000 by 1 July 2017
1 JULY
2017
Current Caps
$180,000
Annual Cap
$540,000
3-year ‘bring forward’ cap
New Caps
$100,000
Annual Cap
$300,000
3-year ‘bring forward’ cap
5. Accountants AdvisorsAuditors
Lower caps on non-concessional
contributions
TOTAL SUPER
BALANCE
Non-concessional cap
$100,000
Annual Cap
$300,000
3-year ‘bring forward’ cap
$1.6M+
NIL
6. Accountants AdvisorsAuditors
Lower caps on non-concessional
contributions
Can’t make
non-concessional
once saved more
than $1.6M
Current cap
continues
to apply to
30 June 2017
Maximum
contributions
reduced from
1 July 2017
Transitional rules
for people still in
‘bring forward’
period
11. Accountants AdvisorsAuditors
CGT relief for assets moved to
accumulation phase
Gains accrued in pension phase
Transitional
CGT relief
Reset cost base of certain assets
moved back to accumulation
Only funds impacted by transfer
balance cap or TTR reforms
SMSF and super wrap clients
Different eligibility
requirements
Rules extremely complex
12. Accountants AdvisorsAuditors
Income stream – key points
Cannot commence new
pensions for more than
$1.6M from 1 July 2017
Transitional CGT relief
available for SMSFs and
super wraps
Existing pensions must be reduced to
$1.6M by 30 June 2017
Need to take action before 1
July 2017
14. Accountants AdvisorsAuditors
No TTR
$355,000
TTR current
rules
$381,000
(extra
$26,000)
TTR new rules
$374,000
(extra
$19,000)
Transition to retirement pension
changes
Transition to
retirement (TTR)
Strategy example
Emily
Age 61
(retiring in 4 years)
Earns $60,000, has
$250,000 in super
After four yearsLet’s compare TTR
strategies
15. Accountants AdvisorsAuditors
Income stream – key points
Earnings on TTR
pensions taxable
from 1 July 2017
Transitional CGT
relief available for
impacted funds
Existing pensions
must be reviewed
Potentially still
very useful
16. Accountants AdvisorsAuditors
Other changes
Spouse contribution tax
offset ($540)
Not eligible once spouse
income exceeds $13,800
Upper threshold to be
increased to $40,000
from 1 July 2017
Low income super
tax offset ($500)
Government contribution
to refund impact of
contributions tax where
income less than $37,000 pa
Essentially a continuation
of current low income
super contribution
Deduction for personal
contributions extended
Deductions currently restricted to self
employed and other ‘eligible’
taxpayers
Eligibility criteria removed from
1 July 2017
Allow people to claim tax deduction
for contributions they make to super
End of year bonus
Proceeds from asset sale
Must submit deduction notice
Strict timeframes
18. Accountants AdvisorsAuditors
Special Offer:
Trust Deed Update
Remember that even though the superannuation laws have changed, your trust deed does not. This means that
the trustee and members may be unable to make use of the changes because their trust deed does not
empower them appropriately.
Future proof your SMSF and take full advantage of new opportunities.
A comprehensive & modernised trust deed update, incorporating all the
amendments for July 2017 and onwards
$500 (plus GST)
Contact Brad or Nick for more details on updating your trust deed.
brad@aussiesuper.com.au
ngahan@perth.Bentleys.com.au
In last year’s Federal Budget, the government proposed a wide range of reforms to Australia’s superannuation system.
Since then, there’s been a lot of discussion and debate around these proposals, which are the most significant reforms to super that have happened in the last 10 years.
As a result, many people have been left feeling a bit confused about what’s actually changing.
Although not all the proposals have been legislated, some significant ones were passed by parliament late last year. That means some important changes will take effect on 1 July this year.
So I wanted to go through these changes today with you in detail, so you can see exactly what they involve and whether they’ll affect you.
Here are the main areas we’ll be looking at today:
The lower caps for non-concessional and concessional super contributions. I’ll be explaining the difference between these if you’re not sure.
The reduced threshold for people who have to pay additional tax on their contributions.
The introduction of a new $1.6 million transfer balance cap on assets in your super’s tax-free pension phase.
Changes to how transition-to-retirement – or TTR – pensions are treated.
A low income superannuation tax offset which replaces the current low income superannuation contribution
And finally, extending the availability of tax deductions when making personal contributions to your super.
Once I’ve been through the changes, feel free to ask any questions or let me know if you need me to explain something again in more detail.
First up, we’ll look at non-concessional or ‘after-tax’ super contributions.
FIRST TRANSITION
These include things like contributions you make out of your after-tax salary, or maybe a lump sum you put into super after selling a property or getting an inheritance. Non-concessional contributions also include any contributions you make to your spouse’s super.
There’s a limit to how much you can put into your super through non-concessional contributions each financial year. At the moment, non-concessional contributions are capped at $180,000 per year, and you can only make them up to the age of 65 – or 75 if you’re still working.
But if you’re under 65, there’s also something called the ‘bring-forward’ rule. This means you can make up to three years’ worth of non-concessional contributions at any time during a three-year period, as long as you don’t go over 3 x $180,000 (which is $540,000) during that period.
The current caps of $180,000 a year and $540,000 for three years will stay in place until 30 June.
SECOND TRANSTION
On 1 July, these caps are going to be reduced. From that date onwards, you’ll only be allowed to make $100,000 per year in non-concessional (or after-tax) contributions.
The three-year cap will also go down to 3 x $100,000 – or $300,000 – instead of $540,000. So that’s the maximum you’ll be able to contribute within a three-year period if you apply the bring-forward rule.
If you’ve triggered the bring-forward rule before 1 July, but you haven’t used up all of your $540,000 cap yet, then the remainder of your cap will be reassessed. This is to take into account the reduction of the annual cap to $100,000.
In this case, your remaining cap will be reduced to the difference between what you’ve already contributed under the bring-forward rule and $380,000 or $460,000 depending on whether you triggered the bring-forward this year or last year.
For instance, let’s say you triggered the bring-forward rule this year and you’ve contributed $240,000 so far. You thought you still had $300,000 left on your cap that you could use over the next two years.
But on 1 July your three-year cap will be reassessed to $380,000, which means you’ll only be able to contribute $140,000 instead of $300,000.
So what does this all mean? Basically, if you’re planning to make a non-concessional contributions anytime soon, you might want to look at making the most of your three-year cap before it gets reduced on 1 July.
Here’s the other thing you need to know about non-concessional contributions.
At the moment you can contribute up to your cap, regardless of how much money you have in super.
SECOND TRANSITION
But from 1 July onwards, if you have more than $1.6 million in super, you won’t be able to make any further non-concessional contributions. So effectively your annual cap and your bring-forward cap will both be reduced to zero.
If your super balance goes back below $1.6 million, you might be able to start making non-concessional contributions again – but only until your balance gets back to $1.6 million.
For those with super balances exceeding $1.4 million, there are some restrictions on being able to use the bring-forward rule that also need to be taken into consideration.
It’s also worth noting that the super balance limit refers to your total super balance as at 30 June in the previous financial year. Therefore, it will be important to check this before making any non-concessional contributions going forward.
So to recap all the upcoming changes to non-concessional contributions:
The current caps will still apply until 30 June – that is $180,000 a year, or $540,000 over three years if you’re under 65 and you trigger the bring-forward rule.
But from 1 July this year, these caps will be reduced. Under the new rules, the most you’ll be able to contribute is $100,000 a year, or $300,000 during a three-year period if you trigger the bring-forward rule while you’re under 65.
At the moment, you might be planning to make large contributions as a key part of your retirement strategy. In this case, you should come and talk to me about your options before the new caps come into effect.
If you’re in what’s called the ‘transitional bring-forward period’ – where you’ve triggered the bring-forward rule in the last three years but you haven’t used up all of your cap yet – then the remaining amount you can contribute will be reassessed downwards.
Again, come and talk to me if your retirement strategy needs to be adjusted because of these changes.
Finally once your balance hits $1.6 million, you won’t be able to make any non-concessional contributions at all.
Now let’s take a look at concessional contributions. These are the contributions you put into super before tax has been taken out.
They include things like the compulsory Super Guarantee payments your employer makes plus any extra you put into super through salary sacrificing. They also include contributions where you’re eligible for a tax deduction – for example, if you make a contribution from self-employed income or from your returns on an investment.
Generally speaking, these types of contributions are taxed at 15% when they go into your super account.
At the moment, there are two different caps for concessional contributions, depending on your age. So if you’re under 50 you can make up to $30,000 worth of concessional contributions a year. And if you’re 50 or over, you can put in up to $35,000 a year.
It’s worth noting that if you’re between 65 and 74 you will need to satisfy a work test before you can make any concessional contributions for yourself, and once you’re 75 you generally won’t be able to make any contributions for yourself at all.
SECOND TRANSITION
So here’s what’s about to change. On 1 July, your concessional cap will go down, regardless of whether you’re under 50 or over 50. From that date there will be a $25,000 cap on concessional contributions across the board for everyone.
So, for instance, if you’re 55 and you’re currently putting $35,000 a year into super through a combination of salary sacrificing and employer contributions, then from 1 July you’ll have to make sure this total doesn’t exceed $25,000. This might mean you have to reduce the amount you’re salary sacrificing each year by $10,000.
It’s also good to know that from 1 July 2018 onwards, if you don’t use the whole cap in one financial year, the unused amount will be carried forward to the next year if your total super balance is less than $500,000. So, for example, if you only make concessional contributions of $20,000 in 2018/2019, then the remaining $5,000 will be added to the next year’s cap – so for the 2019/2020 financial year your total cap will be $30,000. You can keep bringing forward your unused caps each year for up to five years.
Remember, this rule won’t kick in for over a year. But it’s still worth keeping in mind as part of your long-term contribution strategy.
There’s something else you should know about concessional contributions. As I mentioned on the last slide, concessional contributions are generally taxed at 15%. This applies to everyone whose income – including their concessional contributions and certain other amounts, such as reportable fringe benefits – come to less than $300,000 a year.
So, for every $100 you contribute, your super fund pays $15 to the Tax Office.
But if your income adds up to more than $300,000 in a year, your contributions are taxed at double the usual rate.
So, on top of the 15% tax paid through your super fund, you have to pay an additional contributions tax of 15% – which means all up you’re paying 30% in tax on your concessional contributions.
SECOND TRANSITION
But from 1 July, this $300,000 threshold is going down to $250,000. So from that date onwards, if your combined income (including concessional contributions) is more than $250,000 a year, you’ll have to pay an additional 15% tax on your concessional contributions such as the super guarantee and salary sacrifice contributions your employer pays on your behalf.
If you’ll be impacted by this rule, you can elect to either pay the additional tax yourself or have the tax paid from your super fund.
If you think this lower threshold of $250,000 will affect you, it could have a significant impact on your retirement strategy. In that case, come and have a chat with me so we can find the most tax-effective way for you to keep building your nest egg.
OK, let’s recap the upcoming changes to concessional contributions.
The current caps will still apply until 30 June. That means you can make up to $30,000 worth of pre-tax contributions a year if you’re under 50, or $35,000 a year if you’re 50 or older (up to the age of 75).
But from 1 July this year, these contribution caps will be reduced. The most you’ll be able to contribute is $25,000 a year, no matter what age you are. This concessional contributions cap will be the same whether you’re under or over 50.
Also on 1 July, the threshold for the additional contributions tax is going down from $300,000 to $250,000.
From that date, if your combined income adds up to more than $250,000, you’ll need to pay an additional 15% tax on your pre-tax concessional contributions.
Concessional contributions may be an important part of your retirement strategy.
So if you’re currently contributing up to the cap of $30,000 or $35,000 – it’s a good idea to come and see me so we can discuss your options for boosting your super once your cap goes down.
Earlier I mentioned that you can’t make any more non-concessional contributions once your total super balance hits $1.6 million. This figure of $1.6 million also plays a part in one of the other upcoming super changes.
From 1 July, a new ‘transfer balance cap’ will be introduced. This will limit the amount you can have in the tax-free pension phase of your super to $1.6 million.
So if you’re planning to set up a pension from your super so you can draw an income stream, you can only use a maximum of $1.6 million to set up the pension.
It’s important to note that this cap won’t affect how your pension is taxed. The income you receive will still be tax-free if you’re over 60. The tax treatment of income streams can be more complex if you’re under 60, but as I said, it shouldn’t be affected by this change.
But the transfer balance cap doesn’t just apply to new pensions. Even if you’re already drawing a pension as an income stream, from 1 July you’ll need to make sure your total balance in the tax-free pension phase isn’t higher than $1.6 million.
If it is, you’ll have to move any excess amount back into the accumulation phase of your super or withdraw the funds from the superannuation system. If you choose to move the excess back to accumulation phase the earnings will be taxed at 15% rather being tax free in pension phase.
If you don’t move the excess out of the pension phase before 1 July when the new transfer balance cap takes effect, tax penalties may apply. Plus, the Tax Office will require you to remove the money anyway. So it’s really important to take action before 30 June if you think you might be impacted by this rule.
If you have an SMSF or a wrap account, you’ll also need to decide which investment assets to keep in the pension phase and which ones to transfer back into the accumulation phase. There are different tax implications, which I’ll talk about in a minute.
If you’re nowhere near having $1.6 million in your super – then don’t worry, this won’t affect you. But if you’re over or near this cap, then come and talk to me.
Also, if you and your spouse together are over the $1.6 million mark, or you have a large insurance policy held in super, you might also need to come and see me to review your super estate planning. This is to make sure your estate plan takes into account the new $1.6 million cap.
It’s also worth noting that if you have a defined benefit pension or term-allocated pension, different rules will apply. You generally won’t be required to remove any amounts over the $1.6 million limit, but you might have to pay higher tax on the pension payments instead. If you fall into this category, I can talk you through your options.
OK, now we’re going to talk about some of the tax implications around transferring assets between the pension phase and the accumulation phase of your super.
When you sell an asset for more than what you bought it for, you make what is called a capital gain. You then have to pay capital gains tax on the amount of profit you make from the sale.
For self-managed super funds, wrap accounts and some other types of super funds, the capital gain also refers to part of the return you get on an investment.
So let’s say you have an SMSF or wrap account. You’re currently drawing a pension from your super and you have more than $1.6 million in the pension phase.
That means you have to move some of your pension assets back to the accumulation phase by 30 June. Then, down the track if you decide to sell one of those assets, you’ll have to pay capital gains tax on the profit you make.
Normally in this situation, you’d have to pay tax on any gains the asset made during the whole time you owned it – both in the pension phase and the accumulation phase.
The good news is, the government will provide capital gains tax relief for any assets you transfer out of the pension phase before 1 July.
This means that if you sell the asset down the track, you won’t get taxed on any gains the asset earned while it was in the pension phase. You’ll only be taxed on gains made once you transferred it back to the accumulation phase.
In other words, you’ll basically be able to ‘reset’ the cost of the asset – so it’s the same as if you sold the asset and then bought it again for its current market value.
That way, when you sell the asset in the future, you’ll only pay capital gains tax on whatever value it gains in the accumulation phase, not the pension phase.
For example, imagine your SMSF owns a parcel of shares in a company, which you bought two years ago for $100,000. This asset is currently sitting in the pension phase of your super, as it underlies your pension income stream.
You then decide to move those shares back to the accumulation phase to get below the $1.6 million transfer balance cap.
Today, the parcel of shares is worth $150,000 – that’s its market value. You can now reset the value of the asset to $150,000, not the $100,000 you paid for it.
Let’s say that in a few years from now, you sell the asset for $200,000. So instead of your capital gain being $100,000, it’s only considered to be $50,000 – because you reset the value to $150,000 when you transferred the asset. So you only pay capital gains tax on the $50,000 it gained in value during the time it was in the accumulation phase, not the value it gained while in the pension phase.
And, if you have a transition-to-retirement income stream, you may also be able to get capital gains tax relief as well. I’ll talk about this in a minute.
Before you make any decisions around capital gain, bear in mind that not all assets are eligible and the rules are quite complex. So if the transfer balance cap rule is likely to affect you, I can talk you through your options.
Let’s do a quick recap of the changes to retirement income streams that we’ve looked at so far.
The new transfer balance cap puts a limit on how much you can have in the tax-free pension phase of your super. From 1 July, this will be capped at $1.6 million.
This rule also applies to existing pensions. So if you currently have more than $1.6 million in the pension phase of your super, you’ll need to move the excess amount back into the accumulation phase by 30 June.
If the balance in your pension phase is still above $1.6 million at 1 July, the amount will be required to be removed from the pension and you’ll be liable to pay a tax penalty.
If you have an SMSF or a wrap account and you move your assets from the pension phase back into the accumulation phase, you may be able to get capital gains tax relief from the government.
This means you can reset the cost of your asset to its market value at the time when you transfer the asset. Then, if you sell the asset in the future, you’ll only have to pay capital gains tax on the profit the asset makes after you transfer it.
If this applies to you, I can help you tailor the right strategy to take advantage of this tax relief.
Now that we’re on the home stretch, I wanted to talk about the upcoming changes to TTR pensions.
At the moment, it’s possible to start drawing a pension from your super while you’re still working.
As long as you’ve reached your ‘preservation age’ – which is the age you can access your super – but you’re under 65, you can set up a tax-free income stream from your super. This is known as a transition-to-retirement or TTR strategy.
While you’re transitioning to retirement, you could cut down your working hours and use a TTR pension to supplement your income.
Or else, you can keep working full-time while growing your super through salary sacrificing. In this case, a TTR strategy is a tax-effective way to boost your super in your final years of work.
SECOND TRANSITION
But from 1 July, any earnings on the assets that support a transition-to-retirement pension will no longer be tax-free. In other words, those earnings will be taxed at the same rate as the earnings on assets in the accumulation phase.
For that reason, these pensions won’t count towards the $1.6 million transfer balance cap we talked about before.
If you’re currently using or thinking about using a TTR income stream as part of your retirement plan, this strategy might not be as beneficial after 1 July as it is currently.
Instead, we might need to review your overall retirement plan. That way, we can see if a TTR strategy is still the best way to build up your nest egg as you’re winding down towards retirement.
As the assets used to pay a transition to retirement pension are becoming taxable from 1 July, capital gains tax may also apply to gains on these assets that accrued while in the tax-free pension phase. In this case, the government is also providing capital gains tax relief to these assets, similar to what I discussed around the transfer balance cap.
Let’s have a look at someone who will be impacted by this change.
So, here’s any example that illustrates how a TTR strategy might be impacted by the new rules.
Emily is 61 years old and she plans to retire at the age of 65. She earns $60,000 a year and has $250,000 in super.
SECOND TRANSITION
First up: if Emily doesn’t take out a TTR pension but she keeps salary sacrificing into her super for the next four years up to the concessional cap of $25,000, then her super will have grown to approximately $355,000 by the time she retires.
Now, let’s look at what happens if she uses a TTR strategy. If we optimise both the pension balance and payments to get the best outcome, we can boost Emily’s retirement balance by almost $26,000 by salary sacrificing up to her cap and then starting a transition-to-retirement pension to replace her lost income.
But after 1 July, two things happen. The investment earnings on Emily’s TTR pension start being taxed - and she won’t be able to salary sacrifice as mush due to the lower cap on concessional contributions.
As a result, the benefit of the strategy reduces by about $7,000. However, Emily is still $19,000 better off than if she hadn’t implemented the TTR strategy.
So is a TTR strategy still the best option for you after 1 July? It really does depend on your circumstances. While the benefits may be reduced, you still could end up with more in your super than if you didn’t take a TTR pension.
That’s why it’s so important to talk to me about your overall strategy and we can really consider all the factors to decide what’s right for you. There are other ways you might use a TTR income as well, like topping up your spouse’s super – which I’m going to talk about in a minute.
Let’s recap what we’ve discussed about transition-to-retirement pensions.
At the moment, any earnings you make on your investments supporting a TTR pension are tax-free. But this will change on 1 July – after that date, these investment returns will be taxed at the same rate as assets in the accumulation phase.
If you’ve already started a TTR income stream, you’ll definitely want to come and speak to me as soon as possible. We can discuss whether it’s worth continuing with your TTR strategy and how it will affect your overall retirement plan once the changes kick in on 1 July.
And remember, these changes don’t necessarily mean a TTR strategy no longer has any value. It really depends on your circumstances.
It might mean you won’t get quite as much in your super, but you could potentially still be better off than you would be if you didn’t touch your super until retirement – as we saw in the example with Emily.
If you have a superannuation wrap or an SMSF, transitional capital gains tax relief may also be available to allow you to reset the cost base. But the question of whether or not you should claim the tax relief will depend on your circumstances.
So if you’re currently drawing a TTR pension or considering using this strategy in the future, ask me to go through your options.
Lastly, here are a few other changes to super rules that might impact you.
One is around tax deductions for personal contributions. At the moment, there are strict criteria for who is eligible to claim a tax deduction – but these restrictions will be removed on 1 July.
So from that date onwards, if you’re eligible to contribute, you’ll be able to claim an income tax deduction for any personal contribution you make to your super, up to the concessional cap.
This makes it even more tax effective to invest in your super. For instance, if you get an unexpected bonus or you sell an investment asset, then you can contribute the proceeds to your super and claim a tax deduction for that amount at the end of the financial year.
Remember, these contributions will still be taxed at 15% and they’ll also count towards your $25,000 concessional cap. You’ll also need to lodge a deduction notice with your super fund before you do your tax return.
Some other conditions apply as well, so you should speak to me first if you’re planning to make a personal contribution.
Next up is the spouse contribution tax offset. Under the current rules, when you make contributions into your husband’s or wife’s super you get an 18% tax offset – up to a maximum value of $540.
This offset starts to be reduced if your spouse’s income is $10,800 a year or more – bit by bit until it cuts off altogether if your spouse earns above $13,800.
But the good news is that this threshold will go up from 1 July. That means you’ll still be able to get the 18% tax offset for spouse contributions if your partner earns up to $40,000.
You’ll be eligible for the full $540 if your partner earns under $37,000. It will start reducing if they earn more than that, up until it reduces to nil if they earn over $40,000.
Finally, from 1 July the current Low Income Super Contribution (or LISC) will be replaced by the low income super tax offset (or LISTO). This helps provide a super boost for low income earners.
If you earn less than $37,000, the government will pay a rebate to your super fund to match the 15% tax on your concessional contributions, up to a maximum of $500.
So, for example, if you are earning $25,000 a year and you contribute $1,000 to your super, this contribution would be taxed at 15% – or $150. But with the rebate, you’ll get a government contribution of $150 to your super, so that effectively you don’t have to pay any tax on your contribution
As I said, these reforms represent the biggest changes to super in the last decade. They’re likely to impact lots of Australians in many different ways.
Super rules are very complex, so it’s OK if you still have more questions – that’s what I’m here for.
The bottom line is that everyone’s situation is completely unique and some strategies might be better for you than others. So we might need to look at different aspects of your financial plan to see if you need to make any changes so you can get the most out of the new rules and achieve the retirement lifestyle you’re aiming for.
You shouldn’t be worried about the changes – but you do need to plan carefully for them. So in these last few months leading up to the 1 July deadline, make sure you book an appointment to come and see me. That way, when the time comes, you can be confident that your retirement plan is still track.
Does anyone have any questions?