claiming a tax deduction on super contributions

Did you know you might be able to claim a tax deduction if you’ve made a personal after-tax (non-concessional) contribution to your super? This could mean you get something back when you complete your tax return.

Claim a deduction

how do tax deductions on after-tax contributions work?

When you make a personal after-tax (non-concessional) contribution to your super, you’ve already paid tax on it, usually at your marginal tax rate. But claiming a tax deduction on your contribution generally reduces the amount of tax you pay on that contribution to 15%. This is the amount of tax you’d usually pay on before-tax (concessional) contributions, like salary sacrifice.

Keep an eye on contributions caps

Claiming a tax deduction on your after-tax contribution essentially changes it to a before-tax contribution. This means it will count towards the annual concessional contributions cap of $30,000. Unused cap amounts are available for a maximum of 5 years. The concessional contributions cap includes employer contributions, as well as any salary sacrifice contributions you make.

It’s important to keep an eye on how you’re tracking against the concessional contributions cap. Going over the cap means any excess amount is included in your assessable income and taxed at your marginal rate.

Learn more about tax on contributions in How super is taxed (pdf).

when and how to claim a deduction on after-tax contributions

The fastest way to claim a tax deduction on your after-tax contributions is to complete the Notice of intent in your online account.

When to claim

You should submit your Notice of intent to claim a tax deduction:

before you submit your tax return for the income year in which the after-tax contribution was made, or
before the end of the following financial year in which the after-tax contributions were made, and
before you withdraw or transfer funds.

How to claim a tax deduction in your online account

To claim a tax deduction on your after-tax contributions, you’ll need to:

Log in to your online account and complete the Notice of intent (available on the Transactions page if you're eligible to claim).
Once you’ve submitted your Notice of intent, we’ll send you an email confirmation to let you know your it has been received.
We’ll check your Notice of intent and then let you know if it’s valid via email within 1-2 business days.
If we’ve let you know that your notice is valid, you can submit your tax return.

Work test

From 1 July 2022, you’ll need to meet the government’s work test to claim a deduction on your personal contributions if you’re between 67 and 75 years of age.

Find out more about changes to the work test on the ATO website.

Claim a tax deduction through the ATO instead

If you prefer, you can claim your tax deduction through the ATO. You’ll need to:

Complete the ATO notice of intent form. This tells us the amount you want to claim.
Post or email the completed notice of intent form to us. We need to check your notice when we receive it and then we’ll let you know it’s valid (when whichever of the below comes first):
- The date you lodge your tax return, OR
- The last day of the financial year after the contribution was made, OR
- You withdraw or transfer your super from HESTA, OR
- You commence an Income Stream.
If we’ve let you know that your notice is valid, you can submit your tax return.

Completing your notice of intent

To complete your notice of intent, you’ll need the following details:

Your HESTA member number
Fund name: HESTA
Business ABN: 64 971 749 321
USI (unique superannuation identifier): HST0100AU

Send your notice of intent back to us via:

Email: hesta@hesta.com.au OR
Post: HESTA, Locked Bag 5136, Parramatta NSW 2124.

Types of contributions

Work out which type of contributions will help give your super the biggest boost.

Try the MoneySmart Super Contributions Optimiser

Contribution caps

Different caps apply to different types of super contributions.

More on before-tax and after-tax contributions

Need some help with contributions?

Our super advisers can help work out a regular or lump sum contribution strategy that's right for you. You can see a super adviser at no extra cost: it’s all part of being with HESTA.

Get in touch