Downsizer Super Contributions: Eligibility, Caps, and Deadlines

Downsizer super contributions let Australians aged 55 or older put up to $300,000 from the sale of their home into superannuation, outside the normal contribution caps and regardless of how much is already in their super account.¹ For a couple where both partners qualify, the combined figure rises to $600,000 from a single sale. It’s one of the most generous late-life super boosts available, but moving money out of an assets-test-exempt family home into an assessed super balance has real consequences for the Age Pension that need weighing before you commit.

Who Qualifies

Every one of the following conditions must be met, or the ATO will treat your payment as an ordinary non-concessional contribution instead.¹

You must be 55 or older when you make the contribution. The minimum age dropped to 55 on 1 January 2023, and there is no upper age limit.¹
You or your spouse must have owned the home for at least 10 years before the sale. The period usually runs from the settlement date of the original purchase to the settlement date of the sale.²
The property must have qualified for the Capital Gains Tax main residence exemption, fully or partially, for at least part of your ownership.²
The home must be in Australia and be a permanent structure. Houseboats, caravans, and other mobile dwellings are specifically excluded.²
You can only ever make a downsizer contribution from one home sale. Sell another qualifying home later, and the scheme is closed to you, even if you didn’t use the full $300,000 the first time.³

When Only One Spouse Is on the Title

Both partners can each contribute up to $300,000 even if only one name appears on the title, provided each individually meets the age requirement.⁴ The combined contribution across both partners still cannot exceed the actual sale price of the home.

No Work Test, No Balance Cap

Downsizer contributions sit outside the work test and the total superannuation balance restriction that normally blocks non-concessional contributions once a balance exceeds $2 million. Someone with $3 million already in super can still make a downsizer contribution.² That makes the scheme especially useful for retirees otherwise locked out of topping up their super.

How Much You Can Contribute

The individual cap is $300,000, or $600,000 for a qualifying couple from the same sale, and the total across both partners cannot exceed the actual sale price.¹ The $300,000 figure is not indexed to inflation.

These contributions do not count towards the standard concessional cap (currently $30,000) or the non-concessional cap (currently $120,000), so making one does not reduce your ordinary contribution room for the year.² You can contribute less than $300,000, but any unused portion is gone. It cannot be carried over to a later property sale.³

How the Money Is Taxed

No contributions tax applies when the money enters the fund.⁵ Concessional contributions normally attract 15% tax on the way in; downsizer contributions do not. You also cannot claim a tax deduction, since the payment is treated as non-concessional in nature even though it sits outside the usual cap.

Once inside super, the money is taxed like any other balance. Earnings in the accumulation phase are taxed at up to 15%. To move the money into a tax-free retirement-phase pension, it has to fit within your transfer balance cap. That cap is $2 million for 2025–26 and rises to $2.1 million from 1 July 2026.⁶ If your cap is already full, the downsizer contribution stays in accumulation.

The 90-Day Deadline

You have 90 days from settlement (the date ownership formally changes hands) to lodge the downsizer contribution form with your fund and transfer the money.¹ Miss the window and the fund cannot accept the money as a downsizer contribution.

Lodging the Form

The form is the “Downsizer contribution into superannuation” form (NAT 75073), available as a PDF from the ATO. Give it to your super fund, not the ATO. The form must reach the fund before or at the same time as the payment; if the money arrives first, the fund cannot classify it as a downsizer contribution. If you make more than one payment, each needs its own form.⁷

Once the form is with the fund, transfer the money using whatever method the fund accepts, typically BPAY or EFT. The fund reports the contribution to the ATO, which then confirms it stays outside your regular caps. Keep the completed form, the settlement statement, and the payment receipt in case the ATO queries the payment later.

Requesting More Time

If 90 days won’t be enough, apply to the ATO for an extension by calling 13 10 20, ideally within the initial window. If the deadline has already passed, wait for approval before paying the money in, otherwise the fund will be forced to treat it as a standard personal contribution.³ Extensions cover timing only; they cannot be granted to help you meet the age requirement.

What It Does to Your Age Pension

This is where a downsizer contribution can backfire. The family home is exempt from the Age Pension assets test, but money inside superannuation is not. The moment you sell and move proceeds into super, an exempt asset becomes an assessed one. For people receiving the Age Pension, or close to qualifying, that shift can cut payments sharply or wipe them out.⁸

The income test is affected too. Services Australia applies deeming rules to financial assets: it assumes your super earns a set rate whether it does or not. As of March 2026, the first $64,200 of financial assets for a single person, or $106,200 combined for a couple with at least one pensioner, is deemed to earn 1.25%. Anything above is deemed at 3.25%.⁹ A $300,000 contribution can push a large slice of your balance into the higher band.

One partial cushion exists if you plan to buy another home. The portion of sale proceeds you intend to use to buy, build, or renovate a new principal home is exempt from the assets test for up to 12 months, and deemed at the lower 1.25% during that period.⁹ The portion you tip into super does not get that treatment. It is assessed straight away.

Effect on Your Total Super Balance

A downsizer contribution is included in your total superannuation balance (TSB) at year-end.³ A high TSB doesn’t stop the downsizer contribution itself, but it can close off other options. Above $500,000, you lose the ability to carry forward unused concessional caps. Above $1.76 million, the bring-forward arrangement for non-concessional contributions is restricted. Above $2 million, non-concessional contributions are blocked entirely. Rarely a concern for someone already retired, but worth modelling if you’re 55 and still working.

If the Contribution Fails Eligibility

If the ATO decides your contribution doesn’t qualify, whether because the ownership fell short of 10 years, the form arrived late, or the property didn’t qualify, the money is reclassified as a regular non-concessional contribution.¹

The non-concessional cap for 2025–26 is $120,000. A reclassified $300,000 payment blows past that by $180,000. The ATO issues an excess non-concessional contributions determination, and if you choose not to release the excess from the fund, the penalty tax rate is 47% on the excess.² Even if the fund catches the problem and refunds the money, the 90-day window may have closed by the time you fix things.

The most common triggers are lodging the form after the payment lands rather than before, miscounting the 10-year ownership by using the contract date rather than the original settlement date, and failing to check that the property qualified for at least a partial main residence CGT exemption. Cross-check the settlement dates on the original purchase and the sale contracts before you lodge.

1
Australian Taxation Office. Downsizer Contributions
2
The Treasury. Explanatory Memorandum: Treasury Laws Amendment (Reducing Pressure on Housing Affordability) Bill 2017
3
Australian Taxation Office. Downsizer Super Contributions
4
The Treasury. Downsizer Superannuation Contributions
5
Moneysmart. Downsizer Super Contributions
6
Australian Taxation Office. General Transfer Balance Cap Indexation on 1 July 2026
7
Australian Taxation Office. Downsizer Contribution Into Super Form
8
Moneysmart. Downsizing in Retirement
9
Services Australia. Deeming