Most Australians don’t max out their concessional super cap every year — and thanks to the carry-forward rule, those unused amounts don’t have to go to waste. Since 1 July 2018, you can sweep up unused concessional cap amounts from the previous five financial years and use them in a later year, claiming the same tax deduction as an ordinary concessional contribution. If you took a career break, had low-income years, or are getting serious about super later in life, this is one of the most powerful — and most underused — strategies in the Australian super system.
How the 5-year carry-forward rule works
Each year the government sets a concessional contributions cap — the maximum you can contribute to super at the concessional 15% tax rate. Concessional contributions include employer super guarantee (SG) payments, salary sacrifice amounts, and personal contributions you claim as a tax deduction. When your total for a year falls below the cap, the shortfall becomes an unused cap amount you can carry forward.
- You can carry forward unused amounts for up to five financial years. After five years, each unused amount expires permanently.
- Unused amounts are used oldest first — a carry-forward contribution in 2025-26 consumes the 2020-21 amount before touching 2021-22.
- Carried-forward amounts stack on top of the current year’s cap, so your total concessional contributions can equal this year’s cap plus all unused amounts.
- The tax treatment matches an ordinary concessional contribution: 15% tax inside the fund, personal deduction at your marginal rate.
The annual caps have changed over time, which matters when totalling your unused amounts:
| Financial year | Annual concessional cap |
|---|---|
| 2018-19 to 2020-21 | $25,000 |
| 2021-22 to 2023-24 | $27,500 |
| 2024-25 and 2025-26 | $30,000 |
The window is rolling, so the years covered shift each July. In 2025-26 it covers unused amounts from 2020-21 through 2024-25. Unused amounts from 2019-20 expired on 30 June 2025 — use them by then or lose them. Your unused cap for any year is the annual cap minus concessional contributions actually made that year (SG + salary sacrifice + deductible personal contributions). The ATO tracks these for you automatically.
The $500,000 balance test
The rule isn’t available to everyone. You qualify only if your total super balance (TSB) was under $500,000 at 30 June of the previous financial year — so for 2025-26 contributions, your TSB at 30 June 2025 must have been below $500,000.
TSB includes the balances of all your super accounts (accumulation and retirement phase), rollovers in transit at that date, and certain limited recourse borrowing arrangement amounts. A few practical points:
- It’s a once-a-year snapshot — only the 30 June figure counts. Below $500,000 during the year doesn’t help if you were above it at 30 June.
- The test applies to the year you make the contribution, not the years the unused amounts come from.
- It’s all-or-nothing: $499,999 passes, $500,001 fails.
If you’re near the threshold, June market movements can disqualify you without warning. Check your balance before 30 June if you’re planning a large carry-forward contribution.
Worked example: how Sarah unlocked $113,500 of concessional contributions
Sarah, 42, worked part-time for several years and recently returned to full-time work. Her TSB at 30 June 2025 was $320,000 — under the $500,000 test — so she’s eligible in 2025-26. Her unused caps:
| Financial year | Annual cap | Contributions made | Unused amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020-21 | $25,000 | $8,000 | $17,000 |
| 2021-22 | $27,500 | $10,000 | $17,500 |
| 2022-23 | $27,500 | $11,000 | $16,500 |
| 2023-24 | $27,500 | $12,000 | $15,500 |
| 2024-25 | $30,000 | $13,000 | $17,000 |
| Total unused | $83,500 |
$17,000 + $17,500 + $16,500 + $15,500 + $17,000 = $83,500 in unused cap. With the 2025-26 cap at $30,000, Sarah can contribute up to $30,000 + $83,500 = $113,500 concessionally this year.
In practice: if her employer contributes $18,000 in SG in 2025-26 (SG is 12% from 1 July 2025), she can make a personal deductible contribution of up to $95,500. On a 32% marginal rate (including Medicare levy), a $50,000 contribution saves roughly $16,000 in personal tax while being taxed at just 15% inside the fund. Model the long-term payoff of a lump sum like this in a super calculator — and compare a personal contribution against salary sacrifice through your employer, which is simpler but offers less control over timing and amount.
How to actually do it: step by step
- Check your unused caps and eligibility. In myGov → ATO online services → Super → Carry-forward concessional contributions, you’ll see your unused amounts for each of the last five years and whether you pass the $500,000 test. Check before contributing — don’t guess.
- Decide the amount. Your maximum is the current year’s cap ($30,000 in 2025-26) plus total unused carried-forward amounts, minus concessional contributions already made or expected this year (including SG). Leave a buffer — payroll SG estimates can vary, and even $1 over the cap triggers excess contributions tax.
- Make a personal contribution. Transfer the money to your fund as a personal (after-tax) contribution. Contributions count in the financial year the fund receives them, so don’t leave it to the last days of June.
- Lodge a notice of intent to claim. Complete the section 290-170 notice of intent and send it to your fund; the fund must acknowledge it in writing. This must happen BEFORE you lodge your tax return — and no later than the earlier of your return lodgment date and the end of the next financial year. Lodge the notice as soon as the contribution lands, not at tax time.
- Claim the deduction. Enter the acknowledged amount as a deduction for personal super contributions in your tax return.
Two timing traps: if you start a pension, roll over, or withdraw before lodging the notice of intent, you may lose the deduction on some or all of the contribution — notice first, then any pension or rollover. And the notice must relate to money still in the fund.
Traps to avoid
Exceeding the cap
Carried-forward amounts are part of your concessional cap, not a separate limit. Exceeding your available cap means the excess is taxed at your marginal rate with a 15% offset, plus an excess concessional contributions charge. Track employer SG carefully — it counts toward the same cap.
Division 293 tax still applies
If your income (plus certain super contributions) exceeds the $250,000 Division 293 threshold, an extra 15% tax applies to your concessional contributions — including carried-forward amounts. The rule doesn’t shelter high earners from Division 293; factor the extra 15% into your benefit calculation.
The notice-of-intent deadline
The most common way people blow this strategy: lodging their tax return before the fund acknowledges the section 290-170 notice. Once the return is lodged, the deduction is gone — there is no fix.
Unused amounts expire
Each year’s unused amount has a strict five-year life. In 2025-26, your 2020-21 amount is in its final year — use it by 30 June 2026 or lose it. Diarise the expiry of your oldest amounts each year rather than assuming you can keep deferring.
Frequently asked questions
Where do I see my unused concessional cap amounts?
Log in to myGov → ATO online services → Super → Carry-forward concessional contributions. The ATO shows your unused cap for each of the past five financial years and confirms whether you meet the $500,000 balance test. That’s the authoritative record.
Can I use carry-forward if I salary sacrifice?
Yes. Salary sacrificed amounts are concessional contributions that count toward the annual cap, but they don’t block carried-forward amounts. A common combo: salary sacrifice up to (part of) the $30,000 current-year cap, then add a personal deductible contribution using carried-forward amounts — keeping the combined total within your available cap.
Does it work if I’m self-employed?
Yes — the rule covers employees, the self-employed, and anyone eligible to contribute. For the self-employed it’s especially valuable: with no employer SG eating the cap, unused amounts are often larger, and a big deductible personal contribution in a high-income year can materially cut your tax bill. Same steps apply: personal contribution, section 290-170 notice, claim in your return.
What if my balance is over $500,000?
You’re ineligible for that financial year. The test uses your TSB at 30 June of the previous year, so a balance of $500,000 or more at that date rules out the whole year — even if it later falls. Your unused amounts keep ageing, and if a future 30 June balance drops below $500,000 you can use whatever hasn’t expired.
Can I use all five years’ worth at once?
Yes — there’s no limit on how many years of unused amounts you use in one year, as Sarah’s $83,500 shows. The oldest amounts are consumed first, so a large contribution naturally uses up the amounts closest to expiry.
Is a carried-forward contribution taxed differently?
No. It’s taxed at 15% inside the fund exactly like an ordinary concessional contribution, and you claim the deduction at your marginal rate. The only differences are the eligibility test, the five-year expiry, and the notice-of-intent paperwork.
The bottom line
The carry-forward rule turns five years of missed contributions into a second chance: a larger deductible contribution in the year you can afford it, taxed at just 15% inside the fund. The conditions are strict but manageable — stay under the $500,000 test, use each year’s amount within five years, and lodge your notice of intent before your tax return. Check your unused caps in myGov today: if a 2020-21 amount is sitting there, 2025-26 is its last chance. Then run the numbers through a super calculator and an income tax calculator to see exactly what the strategy is worth to you before 30 June.