Auditor takes to TikTok to warn younger generation of super tax impacts

“I felt I didn’t have a choice. I wanted to break down the legislation on the $3 million super cap to show people how bad these measures are,” she said.

“TikTok is a good medium on which to communicate. Lots of people watch TikTok, not just the younger generation. I want to explain these proposed measures to them and help them understand how detrimental they will be. I want 20-year-olds to know that it is not just the rich who will be affected in the future.”

Ms Randeria said the true burden of the new tax is likely to be on the younger generation, who may not even yet understand the implications.

“For those just starting their working careers, they’re at risk of breaching the threshold in years to come, particularly if they make extra contributions throughout their working life,” she said.

“Examples using simple investment calculators highlight that a 20-year-old today who earns a modest six per cent on contributions over the next 45 years of their working life will easily breach the threshold by retirement.”

With the next round of submissions on the legislation closing this month, Ms Randeria said she is hoping her social media presence will help keep the issue at the forefront of people’s minds.

Her posts explain various potential scenarios that may happen if the legislation is passed in its current form.

“There is, for example, the potential for someone to pay 60 per cent in tax on their superannuation,” she said

“High-income earners who breach the Division 293 adjusted income threshold already pay 30 per cent tax on their concessional contributions. There is currently no family means testing on Div 293 for single-income earner families, which already makes this tax inequitable and does not allow for this group to save significant amounts for retirement.”

She continued that should the main income earner pass away, and the taxable benefits be passed onto non-dependants, it would add a further 15 per cent tax on the taxable component.

Should the superannuant's balance then breach the unindexed $3 million cap in future, there will be a further 15 per cent tax levied on the excess, including unrealised gains, meaning the potential tax paid by the superannuant would be between 45 to 60 per cent on taxable and excess components.

“This measure would act as a disincentive for high-income earners to salary sacrifice, invest, and save for their retirement,” she said.

Highly volatile assets are also a concern, she said, especially for younger investors who are often attracted to assets such as cryptocurrency.

“Investors are lured by the huge uplift in values of these types of assets. Generally, there is no income generated from holding such investments. The superannuant holds such assets exclusively for capital growth,” she said.

“It is not an uncommon feature that the year-end valuation of crypto assets could be astronomically high, but the asset may cease to exist or become unrealisable at the time of lodgement of return or payment of tax, as we have recently seen with the various collapses of FTX, Celsius and Luna. This could result in extremely unfavourable and unpredictable future investment outcomes for investors.”

Another potential scenario involved managed investment schemes which have periods where assets are locked out.

“I have so many scenarios and examples of how this tax is going to affect a lot more people than the wealthy. People think these scenarios will be few and far between, but as an auditor, I can see what people hold in their superannuation and am constantly now thinking ‘I wouldn’t want to be in this position’,” she said.

“I don’t provide financial advice, but what I am seeing is scary. I hope my foresight is wrong, but I don’t want to be here in a couple of years saying ‘I told you so’.”