Limits on total contributions
For each individual, there is an annual cap on the amount of concessional and non-concessional contributions or other payments that can be paid into the superannuation system during an income year. These caps are described below.
Contribution caps | |
Contribution types | Cap amount limit |
Concessional contributions | $25,000 annual limit in 2009/20101,2 . |
| Amounts that exceed this limit count towards the non-concessional cap. |
Non-concessional contributions | $150,000 annual limit in 2009/20103 |
Personal injury proceeds | No cap if specific conditions are met. |
CGT cap amount | $1.1 million lifetime limit in 2009/20101. This cap applies only if specific conditions are met. |
Amounts that exceed this limit count towards the non-concessional cap. | |
Directed termination payments | $1 million if specific conditions are met. |
This cap applies to the taxable component. Amounts of taxable component that exceed this cap count towards the concessional contributions cap. | |
Please note: amounts that exceed these limits may be subject to excess contributions tax. Refer to the Taxation section for details. | |
The caps apply to all relevant contributions paid into the superannuation system for you during the course of a financial year, whether those amounts are paid by you, or by someone else (e.g. your employer or spouse) on your behalf and whether they are made to one or more superannuation funds.
It is your responsibility to ensure you do not exceed these caps. If the total of all relevant contributions made for you to any superannuation fund exceeds the applicable cap for a financial year, you may have an excess contributions tax liability. Refer to the Taxation section for further details.
1Indexed to average weekly ordinary time earnings (AWOTE) each year and rounded down to the nearest $5,000.
2A higher annual transitional limit of $50,000 will apply from 1 July 2009 until the financial year ending 30 June 2012 if you are aged 50 or more on at any time in the financial year.
3The annual non-concessional contributions cap is indexed so that it is six times the concessional contributions cap.
