How to power up your super with extra contributions
09 January 2025
5
min read
As many as 55% of Australians aren’t sure they’ll have enough money set aside for their retirement.1 But there are tax effective ways to power up your super.
Making extra contributions can be a great way to grow your super to help you to retire well with confidence.
How to contribute to your super
Your employer pays a compulsory amount to your super, known as Superannuation Guarantee (SG) contributions. For 2024-25, your employer is required by law to pay 11.5% of your ordinary time earnings (OTE) salary2 into your super fund. If you work for the Queensland Government, you may receive a higher super contribution rate than the SG contribution.
As well as the employer SG contributions, you can choose to make extra contributions to help grow your super. Making these contributions may even help you pay less tax. Learn more about tax deductions for super.
What are the types of super contributions?
There are two types of super contributions:
Concessional contributions
You can make before-tax contributions, where contributions come out of your pay before income tax, such as salary sacrifice. You pay 15% tax on this money when it goes into your super (the Australian Taxation Office may apply an extra 15% if your income plus super contributions is more than $250,000 per year.) This compares to normal tax rates, which can be up to 45% + 2% Medicare Levy.
Non-concessional contributions
You can make voluntary after-tax contributions, where you put money in that you’ve already paid tax on such as money from your bank account. As you’ve already paid tax on this money, no more tax is deducted when it goes into your super.
Contribution caps
Super is designed to be a tax-effective way to save for your retirement. But there are limits, or contribution caps, on how much extra you can put into your super. Keep in mind you generally can’t access your super until you reach age 60 and retire.
Other ways to contribute to your super
- Top up your spouse's super
Contributing to a spouse’s super could attract a tax offset of up to $540. (Eligibility and conditions apply.)
- Super co-contributions
If you earn less than $60,400 a year and make an after-tax contribution to your super in 2024-25, the Government may add up to $500 extra to your super, if you’re eligible. This is called the government's super co-contribution.
- Carry-forward and bring-forward rules
You might also be able to use the ‘carry forward’ or the ‘bring forward’ rules to make extra contributions to your super.
Make a voluntary contribution today
You can add money to your super as a once-off deposit or as regular payments. Here’s how:
- Online: Find your BPAY® details in our app, in Member Online, or in your annual statement.
- Payroll: Contact your employer’s payroll office to see if they offer this service.
- Form: For a once-off contribution, send us a Deposit form (pdf) with a cheque or money order. To set up ongoing contributions as a Queensland Government employee, use this form (pdf).
- In person: Our Member Centres accept EFTPOS.
1. Australian Retirement Trust Financial Wellbeing Index 2023: survey of 1000 Australians. Survey carried out by Ipsos on behalf of ART, September-November 2023.
2. A person's OTE is generally what an employer pays them for their ordinary hours of work, including commissions, shift loadings, and allowances, but not overtime payments. If you're not sure whether a payment type is OTE, you can ask your employer.