The superannuation concessional contributions cap is $30,000 for 2025-26 — the maximum you can contribute to super from before-tax money each financial year while still getting the concessional (lower) tax treatment. This cap affects almost everyone: your employer’s compulsory super guarantee (SG) payments count towards it, and every extra before-tax dollar you add — via salary sacrifice or a personal contribution you claim as a tax deduction — eats into the same $30,000 allowance. Go over it and the ATO pulls the excess back into your taxable income, adds interest, and the tax concession is lost. Use it deliberately, though, and concessional contributions are one of the most effective legal ways to cut your tax bill while building your retirement balance.
What the concessional cap is and what counts towards it
A concessional contribution is any contribution made from before-tax money. The “concession” is the tax rate: instead of paying your marginal income tax rate, these contributions are taxed at a flat 15% inside your super fund. The limit on that concession is $30,000 per person per financial year in 2025-26.
The cap is per person, not per fund. If you hold three super accounts, the ATO adds every concessional contribution together and compares the total against your single $30,000 limit. It runs on the financial year (1 July to 30 June), and contributions count by the date your fund receives them — a June payment that arrives in July belongs to the next year’s cap.
| Contribution type | Counts towards the $30,000 cap? | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Employer SG contributions | Yes | 12% of ordinary-time earnings paid by your employer |
| Salary-sacrifice contributions | Yes | Redirecting $200/month of before-tax salary to super |
| Personal contributions claimed as a tax deduction | Yes | Transferring $5,000 to super and claiming it at tax time |
| Personal after-tax contributions (no deduction claimed) | No | These are non-concessional, under the separate $120,000 cap |
| Spouse contributions | No | Count towards the receiving spouse’s non-concessional cap |
| Government co-contributions and the low-income super tax offset | No | Government payments outside both caps |
The cap rose from $27,500 to $30,000 on 1 July 2024 and remains $30,000 for 2025-26. The rise matters because the SG rate also climbed — it is now 12% from 1 July 2025 — so compulsory employer contributions now consume more of your cap. On a $100,000 salary, SG is $12,000, leaving $18,000 of cap space you can choose to fill. On a $150,000 salary, SG is $18,000, leaving only $12,000. The higher your pay, the tighter the cap gets.
Also new: Payday Super started on 1 July 2026, so employers must pay SG on every payday rather than quarterly. The cap itself is unchanged, but contributions now land in your fund earlier and more evenly, making it easier to track your running cap total through the year.
How the 15% contributions tax works
When a concessional contribution reaches your fund, the fund deducts 15% contributions tax and credits the remaining 85% to your balance — automatically, with nothing for you to declare. A $10,000 salary-sacrifice contribution becomes $8,500 in your super.
The concession exists because 15% is below the marginal rate almost everyone pays. Your saving is simply the gap between your marginal rate and 15%, on every concessional dollar:
| Extra $10,000 concessional contribution | Outcome |
|---|---|
| 30% marginal rate earner | $1,500 contributions tax vs $3,000 income tax as salary — saves $1,500 |
| 37% marginal rate earner | $1,500 contributions tax vs $3,700 income tax — saves $2,200 |
| 45% marginal rate earner (Division 293 applies) | Effective 30% on the contribution vs 45% as salary — saves $1,500 |
A worked example: you earn $100,000, so SG at 12% is $12,000, leaving $18,000 of cap space. You salary-sacrifice the full $18,000. At a 30% marginal rate, that salary would have cost $5,400 in income tax (simplified, before the Medicare levy); salary sacrificing avoids it. Your fund deducts 15% of the $18,000 — $2,700 — leaving a net tax benefit of $2,700, and your super grows by $15,300 instead of you pocketing $12,600.
To model different sacrifice amounts against your own pay, use the salary sacrifice calculator, and to see what the extra contributions could become over time, try the super calculator. The $100,000 salary breakdown shows how the example above translates to take-home pay.
Division 293 — the extra 15% for high earners
Division 293 claws back part of the concession from high-income earners. It applies when your income plus concessional contributions exceed $250,000 in a financial year (the income test is broadly defined — taxable income plus items like reportable fringe benefits and net investment losses, plus the contributions themselves).
Cross the threshold and an extra 15% tax applies to your concessional contributions (or to the portion above $250,000, whichever is smaller), bringing the total to 30%. The ATO assesses this after you lodge your return and sends a notice — you can pay it personally or have it released from your fund.
Even at 30%, the concession still beats the 45% top marginal rate, so there is still a saving of roughly 15–17 cents in the dollar. But for anyone on a 30% or 32.5% marginal rate, Division 293 narrows the benefit to almost nothing — check your position with the income tax calculator before sacrificing extra. One timing trick: because the $250,000 test includes the contributions themselves, they can push you over the line. Making a large personal deductible contribution in a lower-income year (a career break or study leave, say) can keep you under the threshold.
What happens if you exceed the $30,000 cap
Exceeding the cap triggers no fine — but an ATO adjustment that wipes out the concession on the excess:
- The excess is added to your taxable income. Contribute $35,000 against a $30,000 cap and the $5,000 excess is taxed at your marginal rate.
- You get a 15% tax offset. Since your fund already paid 15% contributions tax on the excess, a non-refundable offset prevents double taxation — you effectively pay your marginal rate minus 15%.
- You pay the excess concessional contributions (ECC) charge. An interest charge from 1 July of the contribution year until assessment, reflecting the early tax benefit.
- The excess stays in super (unless you elect to have it released), where it counts towards your non-concessional cap instead.
The ATO handles this automatically after you lodge your return via an excess concessional contributions determination. The net effect: going over the cap gives you no tax advantage — the excess is taxed as if it were salary, plus interest. There is no way to restore the concession after the fact; prevention is the only strategy.
Most accidental breaches are timing errors: a salary-sacrifice arrangement plus a personal contribution that together overshoot, or an employer payment arriving in July instead of June and landing in the wrong year. With Payday Super now in force, SG arrives steadily through the year — check your fund’s transaction history before making any top-up contribution.
Strategies to make the most of your $30,000 cap
Your SG is automatic and outside your control, so the practical game is deciding how to use the remaining space — and not overshooting it.
Sacrifice through the year, not in a lump sum
Spreading extra contributions across pay cycles lets you see your remaining cap space at any point. A mid-year pay rise increases your SG and shrinks that space, so revisit any fixed-dollar sacrifice arrangement whenever your pay changes.
Top up with a personal deductible contribution
With no salary-sacrifice arrangement (or if you are self-employed), contribute from your bank account and claim the deduction at tax time. This works well late in the year: in June, check your fund’s records, calculate the exact space left, and make a precise top-up — allowing several business days for it to be received before 30 June.
Lodge your notice of intent on time
To claim a deduction for a personal contribution, you must give your fund a notice of intent to claim a tax deduction (section 290-170) before lodging your tax return for that year — or by the end of the following financial year, whichever comes first. Miss it and the deduction is gone; the contribution stays in super but is treated as non-concessional. Most funds accept the notice online in minutes, so do it as soon as you contribute.
Carry forward unused cap if you qualify
If your total super balance was under $500,000 at 30 June of the previous year, you can carry forward unused concessional cap for up to five years — e.g. use only $20,000 of your cap in one year and contribute up to $40,000 concessionally later. Powerful in high-income years or after a bonus; a separate guide covers the carry-forward rules in depth.
Coordinate multiple jobs and funds
The cap is per person: two jobs mean both employers’ SG counts towards the same $30,000. Add them together before planning extras, and keep one running tally across all funds. Your myGov ATO portal shows your year-to-date concessional contributions — a handy cross-check before any top-up.
Frequently asked questions
Does the $30,000 cap include my employer’s SG?
Yes. SG counts dollar-for-dollar towards the cap. At 12%, SG alone uses $12,000 of the cap on a $100,000 salary — always subtract your expected SG before planning salary sacrifice or personal contributions.
Is the cap per fund or per person?
Per person. The ATO totals all concessional contributions across every fund and employer for the year against your single $30,000 limit. Splitting contributions across funds creates no extra space.
What if I have two jobs?
Both employers’ SG payments count towards the same cap. If combined SG is already near $30,000, there may be little room left for extras. You can ask an employer to stop SG once you expect to hit the cap — but get the timing right, as an overshooting employer contribution still triggers the excess process.
Can I fix it if I go over?
You cannot undo the contribution, but you can elect to have up to 85% of the excess released from your fund when the ATO issues its determination. The tax outcome is broadly the same either way — the concession on the excess is lost regardless.
Does the cap apply to the self-employed?
Yes. With no automatic SG, the self-employed have the full $30,000 available for personal deductible contributions (plus any carried-forward amounts). The notice-of-intent deadline still applies.
Should I fill the whole $30,000 every year?
Not necessarily. The 15% tax rate is a genuine saving, but super is preserved until retirement, so balance it against other goals — an emergency buffer, non-deductible debt, or a deposit. Once higher-interest debts are under control and cash reserves are in place, filling the cap is usually worthwhile. The super calculator shows what a decade of full-cap contributions could be worth at retirement.
Conclusion
The $30,000 concessional contributions cap for 2025-26 is the key number in Australian super tax planning. It covers your employer’s 12% SG, salary-sacrifice amounts, and personal contributions you claim a deduction for — all taxed at 15% inside super instead of your marginal rate. Above $250,000 of income plus contributions, Division 293 adds another 15%; above the cap itself, the concession on the excess is lost plus an interest charge. The winning approach: know your expected SG for the year, fill the remaining space deliberately with salary sacrifice or a well-timed personal contribution (notice of intent lodged), and consider carried-forward cap if your balance is under $500,000. Model your sacrifice with the salary sacrifice calculator, project the payoff with the super calculator, and confirm your take-home position with the income tax calculator before 30 June.