Q: I am about to make a capital gain of about $200,000. My marginal tax rate is 30% and I am an employee and 43 years old. I want to contribute the equivalent of the capital gain to my super, which is not self managed, so I save some money for the long run? Is this a non-concessional super contribution and thus I can claim it all as a tax deduction or do I need to contribute an amount that when 15% is taxed and charges taken out it is the same as the Capital Gain Tax due to contribution tax?
Trish’s response: My first general comment is: anyone considering ways to minimise tax via pro-active strategies, such as the strategy you are suggesting, should chat to a registered tax agent, usually an accountant. An accountant can also assist you in determining if you have access to any other tax minimisation strategies.
Secondly, the type of super contributions that can help an individual reduce income tax payable on personal income are concessional (before-tax) contributions, rather than non-concessional (after-tax) contributions.
Concessional contributions are subject to 15% tax upon entry into a super fund. Non-concessional contributions are not subject to tax upon entry into a super fund, because they are sourced from an individual’s after-tax personal income.
Anyone under the age of 50 has an annual concessional contributions cap of $25,000 (for the 2010/2011 year) and anyone aged 50 or over has a concessional cap of $50,000.
Note: The tax payable on super contributions by a super fund is not linked to the tax that an individual pays on personal income. The full concessional contribution, if claimed as a tax deduction, would appear in an individual’s income tax return. A self-employed or non-employed individual can only claim deductions for super contributions against assessable income, such as salary, investment income and capital gains.
The following comments regarding tax on capital gains are of a general nature only: Individuals who sell assets that they have owned for more than 12 months generally are eligible for the capital gains tax (CGT) discount which means only half of the capital gain is included in an individual’s assessable income. For example, only $100,000 of a $200,000 capital gain would then be included in a person’s assessable income.
Making concessional contributions can reduce an individual’s taxable income, which then, in effect, reduces the impact of the capital gain on any tax payable.
An individual under the age of 50 can make no more than $25,000 (for the 2010/11 year) in concessional contributions, which means totally eliminating the effect of a discounted capital gain of say, $100,000, is not possible using a super contribution strategy only.
Note: Making concessional super contributions can be tax-effective if you pay more than 15 cents in the dollar tax on your personal income.
Capital gains: Reducing tax via super contributions
Non-cash contributions, CGT and contributions caps
Who can make tax-deductible contributions?
Tax-deductible contributions: Meeting the 10% income test
Know your super limits: Reducing CGT via concessional contributions
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