A non-concessional contribution is an after-tax superannuation contribution. That means you’re using money you’ve already paid tax on – like savings in your bank account – and contributing it to your super fund.
Unlike concessional contributions, you can’t claim a tax deduction when making a non-concessional contribution, but your super fund also doesn’t pay any tax on the way in. In effect, you’re simply transferring ownership of your own savings into the superannuation system.
Why make a non-concessional contribution?
There are many reasons why you might want to make a non-concessional contribution into your super fund. This can include the following:
- Access to the super co-contribution. If eligible, the government may match your contribution with up to 50 cents per $1 contributed, to a maximum of $500;
- Access to the eligible spouse contribution. If you contribute $3,000 or more to your spouse’s super account (and they meet income and eligibility tests), you may be eligible for a $540 tax offset;
- Transition wealth into a tax-free environment. Many pre-retirees and retirees use non-concessional contributions to build their pension phase balance, where earnings are tax-free;
- Age Pension strategy. Where one member of a couple is under Age Pension age, assets held in their accumulation account may be excluded from the means test – potentially increasing the other partner’s Age Pension entitlement.t; and
- Re-contribution strategy. Withdrawing super and re-contributing it as a non-concessional contribution can reduce the taxable component of your super balance, improving estate planning outcomes (especially when super is left to adult children). To learn more about tax payable on death benefits see Payment of death benefits from superannuation.
How Much Can You Contribute?
The non-concessional contribution cap is set at four times the concessional cap. For the 2025/26 financial year, the concessional cap is $30,000, which means the annual non-concessional cap is $120,000.
Using the bring-forward rule, you can contribute up to $360,000 in a single financial year by bringing forward the next two years’ cap space. For example, in the current financial year, you could contribute $360,000 by bringing forward the 2026/27 and 2027/28 years cap limits (subject to eligibility criteria discussed below). This would mean you can’t make any additional non-concessional contributions until the 2028/29 financial year.
The bring-forward rule is automatically triggered when a non-concessional contribution exceeds the annual cap of $120,000. Once triggered, you have until the end of the third year to utilise the remaining contribution cap space. You can check if you have an existing bring-forward arrnagement in-place through the ATO portal linked to your MyGov.
It’s important to note that when the bring-forward rule is activated, the contribution cap amount is fixed and will not increase with indexation in the following two years.
Eligibility requirements for a non-concessional contribution
In order to make a non-concessional contribution, there are eligibility requirements which you need to meet.
You need to be under the age of 75 and your Total Superannuation Balance (TSB) needs to be less than the general Transfer Balance Cap (TBC) on 30 June of the previous financial year. The TBC is currently $2 million in the 2025/26 financial year.
Where you are close to the TBC, you need to be cautious when using the bring-forward rule. The following table outlines the maximum contribution you can make using the bring-forward arrangement:
| Total Superannuation Balance at 30 June of the prior financial year | Maximum contribution you can make | Accounts for contribution caps in |
| $0 to less than $1.76 million | $360,000 | Current year + following 2 years |
| $1.76 to less than $1.88 million | $240,000 | Current year + following year |
| $1.88 million to less than $2 million | $120,000 | Current year |
| $2 million and over | Nil | Current year |
Considerations before making a non-concessional contribution
Before making a non-concessional contribution, there are a number of things you need to consider first, including the following:
- Contributions are preserved in your superannuation until you meet a condition of release. The most common condition of release is reaching preservation age and retiring from the workforce or attaining age 65. You need to familiarise yourself with the conditions of release before making a contribution.
- Superannuation is subject to legislative changes. Rules around superannuation may change which could result in adverse outcomes for you. The further you are away from preservation age, the higher the potential risk of legislative changes.
- If you exceed your non-concessional contribution cap, including any bring-forward amounts, the excess contributions are subject to a significant tax penalty of 47%. This penalty tax applies to the excess contribution amount unless you choose to withdraw the excess contributions from your superannuation fund. In addition to the penalty tax on the excess contributions, any associated earnings on those excess amounts are also subject to penalty tax.
- Before putting any additional money into superannuation, you want to ensure you understand (and are comfortable with) the investment strategy and fee structure within your super fund.
How to make a non-concessional contribution
Making a non-concessional contribution is easy. Most super funds allow you to make contributions using payment systems like BPAY or electronic funds transfer (EFT). You can contribute a lump sum or make smaller payments throughout the year.
You don’t need to notify the ATO you are making a non-concessional contribution. Most super funds assume voluntary member contributions are non-concessional unless you inform them otherwise.
The Guided Investor approach
Non-concessional contributions come into play predominantly in Phases 3 and 4 of the Wealth Creation process, when you are approaching (or have met) preservation age. They can be a great tool to help maximise Age Pension, boost assets held in a tax-free pension account, or minimise tax on a death benefit payment to a non financial dependent.
We typically don’t recommend a non-concessional contribution to an accumulator in Phase 2 of Wealth Creation unless eligible for the government co-contribution, eligible spouse contribution or some other benefit that may be unique to their situation.
