75 doesn’t have to be a death knell for contributions
Turning 75 can be complicated when it comes to super contributions and it’s important to plan carefully to take full advantage of tax concessions, says one of Australia’s most respected advisers.
Meg Heffron, director of Heffron, said 75 is a big deal when it comes to super contributions, but the critical date is not the member’s birthday – it’s the 28th of the next month.
“There comes a point shortly after a member turns 75 when it’s pretty much impossible to make contributions other than ‘mandated’ (Super Guarantee) or downsizer contributions,” she said.
“But there are nuances.”
Ms Heffron said it’s important to remember that contributions to a super fund can still be made up until the 28th day of the month after the birthday celebration.
“That means someone who turns 75 in August 2023 is eligible to keep making contributions up until 28 September 2023,” she said.
“This could be contributions they make themselves or from their employer, including salary sacrifice contributions.”
Ms Heffron warned there are some traps of which to be wary.
Although there is no longer a work test that members have to meet, if members want to claim a personal tax deduction for their contributions, they would need to meet a work test.
“That means a hypothetical member, Dave, turning 75 in August 2023 can make contributions up until 28 September 2023 without worrying about a work test,” Ms Heffron said.
“His friend, Steve, who turns 75 in June 2024, gets to contribute up until 28 July 2024 without worrying about work tests.
“But if either of them wants to claim a personal tax deduction for their contributions, they do need to meet a work test.”
However, there is no immediate pressure for that to happen, as long as it is some time before the end of the financial year in which the contribution is made, she continued.
“So, for Dave’s contributions in September 2023, that’s any time up until 30 June 2024. For Steve’s contributions in July 2024, it’s any time up until 30 June 2025,” she said.
Additionally, if either of them has less than $300,000 in super, they might be able to use the special “work test exempt” rules if they met the work test in the previous year and haven’t used these rules before.
Ms Heffron said there is also a “trick” when it comes to the operation of the bring forward rules for non-concessional contributions.
“To start a bring forward period, the member has to be under 75 at the start of the year,” she said.
In the example, Dave could make a contribution of up to $330,000 in the 2023–24 financial year as he was only 74 as of 30 June 2023.
Ms Heffron said it is contingent on the basis that he has not made any non-concessional contributions for the past few years, and has a low enough balance to commence a three-year bring forward period with a total super balance less than $1.68m at 30 June 2023.
“And as long as he contributes before 28 September 2023, he’s fine. And of course, there’s no work test required,” she said.
However, it’s not the same case for Steve as he will already be 75 as of 30 June 2024.
“That means even though he’s eligible to make contributions up until 28 July 2024, he can’t initiate the three-year bring forward rules in 2024–25,” Ms Heffron said.
“In Steve’s case, the situation would be slightly different if he made a contribution in 2023–24 and initiated the rules then.”
She said that if Steve contributed $150,000 in June 2024 it would be enough to lock in a three-year period (2023–24, 2024–25 and 2025–26) where he can contribute up to $330,000 in total, assuming there are no changes in caps or thresholds.
“Since he can’t make any personal contributions at all beyond 28 July 2024, in practical terms he’d have to finish by then,” she added.
“So he could, for example, contribute $180,000 ($330,000 less the $150,000 contributed in 2023–24) in early July 2024.”
She said because Steve had already triggered the bring-forward period in the year he turned 75, there was no problem in going over the $110,000 mark which is generally a rule of thumb in the bring-forward guidelines.
“Of course, he’d have to do the same checks as everyone else when it comes to his July 2024 contributions,” she said.
“For example, even though he’s midway through a bring-forward period, he would still get his cap re-set to nil rather than $330,000 less $150,000 being $180,000, if his total super balance was $1.9 million or more at 30 June 2024.
“This is one of the reasons people using the bring-forward rules often try to use the full amount in one year rather than splitting it over two – they don’t want to get caught out halfway through and find they can’t ‘finish off’ their three-year entitlement.”
