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Managing capital gains tax in your SMSF
It’s possible to reduce or even eliminate the amount of tax your fund pays on asset sales with these simple strategies.
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Division 296 tax and reversionary pensions
SMSF members who are considering a reversionary pension nomination, or already have one, now need to consider the impact of Division 296 on their death benefits.
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EOFY SMSF contribution strategies for Division 296
If you’re looking to make last minute, year-end super contributions into your SMSF, then don’t forget to consider Division 296!
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SMSF retirement income strategies: Managing risk, income and longevity
Planning a reliable retirement income is one of the biggest challenges for SMSF trustees. Actuary Melanie Dunn walks through the key risks – longevity, market volatility and spending uncertainty — and how to build a strategy that lasts.
Upcoming webinar
SuperGuide members Q&A: June 2026
Wednesday 17 June 2026 at 11:00 am AEST
In this webinar super expert Garth McNally answers recent questions from SuperGuide members.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Watch our previous webinar, 2026 year-end superannuation tips and traps
Q&A of the month
Q: My wife (aged 61) has been a stay-at-home mum for the last 20+ years. Now the kids are grown up and at Uni. We operate a SMSF. She has not resigned from employment, but she is effectively retired and does not intend to start gainful employment.
Has a condition of release been satisfied, i.e can my wife access her Super? How do we do that – does she need to provide the SMSF trustee a formal letter confirming her “retirement”?
A: To satisfy the retirement condition of release there are two options:
- Leave a job after turning 60 (even if planning to return to work)
- Be permanently retired from work and aged 60 or more
In both cases, the person must have been in a gainful employment arrangement (10 hours a week or more) that has ceased.
For the second option, this employment does not need to be recent. For example, a person could work between ages 18–40, retire at 40, and then access super at 60.
A person who has never worked in paid employment can’t meet the retirement condition of release because they have not left a gainful employment arrangement. They can access super at age 65, using the ‘age 65’ condition of release.
Any person aged at least 60 but not yet 65 may also use the transition to retirement condition of release to start a transition to retirement pension, permitting access to up to 10% of their balance each year in the form of an income stream.
If a member meets the retirement condition of release and wants to receive unrestricted access to their super, they need to make a declaration to their super fund’s trustee confirming their eligibility. For example ‘I have left a gainful employment arrangement and permanently retired’ or ‘I left employment with XYZ on <date> which was after my 60th birthday’
You can learn more about conditions of release with our article and webinar.
Calendar reminders of the month
June 1
Div 296 tax review: This new tax on earnings for member balances above $3 million starts on 1 July 2026, so it would be a good time to check that all your pre-commencement plans have been implemented.
Read more about strategies ahead of the new Division 296 rules.
Pension reviews: Is your SMSF paying a pension? Has it paid the minimum pension amount yet? If not, you have only a few weeks to make sure payments are up to date. Keep in mind that it is always best practice to have these amounts cleared from the SMSF bank account before 30 June.
Learn more about how the minimum pension payment rules work.
June 15
Super contributions: Time for a contributions check.
Do you have any unused concessional (tax-deductible) contributions from the previous year? If you do, and your total super balance is less than $500,000, you could be eligible to make additional concessional contributions, which may allow a higher personal tax deduction.
If you couldn’t make concessional contributions in any of the five prior financial years or did not make use of the full amount, you can now carry forward those unused concessional contributions and contribute these amounts in the current financial year, where eligible.
Read more about concessional contributions and learn about unused concessional contributions and how carry-forward (catch-up) contributions work.
You can check your eligible carry-forward amount on your myGov account.
Learn how myGov can help you keep track of your super.
And don’t forget your non-concessional contributions cap. If you have used up your concessional contributions limit but haven’t yet reached your non-concessional limit and have some after-tax dollars to contribute, consider doing this now too.
Learn more about non-concessional contributions.
June 20
Total super balance review: Around this date, it may be worth checking your Total Super Balance (TSB).
If it looks like you will be just over one of the non-concessional contributions (NCC) thresholds for the 2026–27 financial year, you might want to consider drawing an additional amount of pension or accessing a lump sum benefit where allowed.
View the interaction between your total super balance and the non-concessional contribution thresholds here.
You may then be eligible to make a larger NCC in the next financial year. You need to do this prior to the end of June.
This same issue could be considered for those whose TSB may be approaching the threshold to gain access to the carry-forward (unused) concessional contribution rules.
June 30
You will need to value your fund’s assets at this date for your annual tax return.
Listed assets are valued at their closing price on 30 June. If you have real property in your SMSF, you may need an independent valuation if you feel the value has materially changed.
The ATO also says that “it may be wise” for SMSF trustees to seek an independent valuation for some other assets, such as unlisted securities and unit trusts, or where the valuation of the investment is likely to be complex.
Read more about asset valuation guidelines for SMSFs.
