EOFY SMSF contribution strategies for Division 296

From 1 July 2026, the Division 296 rules will pare back the tax advantages for super fund members who have large balances, with the new tax laws applying to members with a total super balance above the $3 million threshold.

This has turned this year’s end-of-financial-year planning season into more than the usual exercise of topping up your retirement savings.

For some self-managed super fund (SMSF) members, the question is no longer, ‘How much can I get into super?’ but whether making further contributions will improve their long-term position in both the short and long term.

It also raises the need to compare the outcomes from moving assets into super by way of an SMSF asset purchase rather than as a super contribution.

This is especially relevant in the final weeks before 30 June, when traditionally we see a spike in discussions around in-specie super contributions to help boost retirement savings and, in some cases, reduce taxable income.

Personal contribution, asset purchase or both?

It’s not uncommon to see SMSF members making in-specie contributions into their SMSF in the lead up to 30 June.

Moving assets you personally own into the superannuation environment can provide long-term tax benefits because of the tax concessions available to super funds compared with owning those assets personally.

In most cases, these asset transfers are accounted for as a non-concessional (or after-tax) contribution. The market value of the asset being transferred into the SMSF is then used as the value of the contribution.