Splitting Contributions

Why contribution split?

Splitting contributions to your spouse’s super can have the following benefits:

1. It may help you stay underneath the Total Super Balance cap
2. It could increase the balance of your spouse’s super and take advantage of 2 lifetime balance caps
3. If your spouse is younger than you, it may help increase your eligibility for age pension
4. If your spouse is older than you, it may mean you can have access to your super earlier

Who can I split contributions with?

Contributions can only be split with an eligible spouse. They cannot have permanently retired or reached age 65.
A spouse includes a person you are legally married or a de facto partner where you live together on a genuine domestic basis as husband and wife, or a same sex spouse.

What is the maximum I can split?

The maximum amount of taxed contributions you can split in a financial year is 85% of your concessional contributions or the concessional contributions cap for that financial year, whichever is lesser. You need to leave at least $5,000 in your ElectricSuper account after you have split contributions to your spouse (unless you are closing your ElectricSuper account).

You can only split up to 85% because the government’s 15% contributions tax will need to be covered. When you request a split of a taxed contribution amount this will be a gross amount. Note that 15% will be automatically deducted from the amount that you nominate to split (see the Contributions Splitting Application form for more details).

You may be eligible for an increased splitting cap if you make concessional contributions above the current cap, had less than $500,000 in super at the end of the previous financial year and have unused concessional cap space from 2018-19 onwards (up to 5 years of cap space).

If you meet these conditions, your cap will equal the concessional cap plus the unused concessional contributions above the cap. Your new cap will be used to work out the maximum amount of taxed splittable contributions.

Call our Helpline on 1300 307 844 for more information about concessional contributions caps.

What can’t be split?

You cannot split the following:

• member contributions
• eligible spouse contributions
• government co-contributions
• untaxed contributions
• amounts rolled over or transferred into ElectricSuper
• lump sum payments from an overseas super fund
• employment termination payments
• notional contributions relating to a member’s defined benefits.

When and how can I request a contributions split?

The super contributions splitting rules work on a financial year basis (that is, 1 July to 30 June).

Splitting periods will comprise the twelve months from 1 July to 30 June each year.

Generally a member will be able to split once per financial year and will have 12 months to make a request to split all or part of a previous year’s contributions once that year is over.

If you are withdrawing your entire superannuation benefit from ElectricSuper you may elect to split contributions made to your super account during the current financial year. However, this can only take place if your request to split contributions is provided to the trustee on or before the time that your super is paid out, rolled over or transferred to another super fund.

An application to split your contributions can only be lodged once for each financial year and must be lodged before the following 30 June (or before requesting payment if leaving ElectricSuper).

Please note that the trustee has 90 days from the receipt of your application form to process your request.

To request a contribution split, you should complete the Contribution Splitting Application form.

If you are unsure if splitting is right for you, seek advice from a financial planner.

Your spouse can join ElectricSuper

If you’re thinking of taking advantage of super contributions splitting, it’s worth noting that your spouse may be able to open their own super account in ElectricSuper.