Put money into a low-income or non-working partner's super and claim up to $540 back at tax time. Here is how it works.
If your partner earns a low income or is out of the workforce, perhaps caring for children or studying, their super can quietly fall behind. The spouse super contribution tax offset is the tax system's nudge to help close that gap. When you put your own after-tax money into your spouse's super, you can claim a tax offset of up to $540 in your own return. This piece explains who qualifies, the income thresholds that matter, and how the $540 figure is actually calculated.
According to the ATO, the offset is 18% of the contributions you make for your spouse, with the contributions capped at $3,000 for offset purposes. That is where the headline $540 comes from: 18% of $3,000 is $540. Contribute $3,000 and your spouse qualifies on income, and you get the full $540. Contribute less, say $1,500, and the offset is 18% of $1,500, which is $270. Contributing more than $3,000 will not increase the offset, though the extra money still lands in your spouse's super.
It is an offset rather than a deduction, so it reduces the actual tax you owe rather than your taxable income. Because it is non-refundable, it can reduce your tax bill to zero but will not pay you anything beyond the tax you would otherwise owe.
The full offset is available when your spouse's income is $37,000 or less for the year. Above that, the maximum contribution eligible for the offset reduces by $1 for every $1 your spouse's income exceeds $37,000, and the offset cuts out completely once their income reaches $40,000. For this test, your spouse's income means their assessable income plus reportable fringe benefits plus reportable employer super contributions, excluding any assessable first home super saver released amount.
| Spouse's income | You contribute | Contribution counted | Offset (18%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| $35,000 | $3,000 | $3,000 | $540 |
| $35,000 | $1,500 | $1,500 | $270 |
| $38,500 | $3,000 | $1,500 | $270 |
| $40,000 or more | $3,000 | $0 | $0 |
The third row shows the phase-out in action. With spouse income of $38,500, the eligible contribution drops by the $1,500 of income above $37,000, leaving $1,500 that counts, so the offset is 18% of $1,500.
To claim the offset, a few conditions all need to be met. The contributions must go to a complying super fund or retirement savings account and must not be deductible to you. The person must have been your spouse when you made the contribution, which includes a de facto partner and same-sex partners, and you must not have been living separately and apart on a permanent basis at the time. Both of you must have been Australian residents when the contributions were made. Finally, your spouse must not have had a total super balance of $1.9 million or more at 30 June of the previous year, and must not have already exceeded their non-concessional contributions cap for the year. You also cannot claim it for contributions made to satisfy a family law super split.
You claim the offset in your own tax return. In myTax it sits in the Offsets section under super contributions on behalf of your spouse; on the paper supplementary return it is item T3. You enter your spouse's income details and the amount you contributed, and the offset is applied against the tax you owe. Keep a record of the contribution and confirm with the fund that it was received as a spouse contribution rather than one of your own.
Disclaimer: This article explains the spouse super contribution tax offset in general terms and is not financial or tax advice. Thresholds and rules can change between income years. Check the current rules on the ATO spouse super contributions page and consider speaking to a qualified adviser about your situation.