Downsizer Contribution
A contribution of up to $300,000 per person from the sale of a family home, available to those aged 55+, not counted towards caps.
The downsizer contribution allows individuals aged 55 or over to contribute up to $300,000 (or $600,000 per couple) into their super from the proceeds of selling their main residence. These contributions are not subject to the concessional or non-concessional contribution caps, age restrictions, or the work test. They also do not count towards the $2.1 million total super balance limit for making NCCs.
To be eligible: you (or your spouse) must have owned the home for at least 10 years, the home must be in Australia and not a caravan, houseboat, or mobile home, it must be a dwelling that qualified (in whole or part) for the main residence CGT exemption, and you can only make a downsizer contribution from the sale of one home in your lifetime. You must make the contribution within 90 days of receiving the proceeds (or longer if the ATO approves an extension).
The contribution is taxed as a non-concessional contribution inside the fund (not taxed again). However, it does count towards your transfer balance cap and total super balance for other purposes. The downsizer contribution does not affect your eligibility for the Age Pension asset test exemption on your family home — once you sell and put the proceeds into super, those funds are counted under the Centrelink assets test, which may reduce your Age Pension entitlement.
How it works
The downsizer contribution lets someone aged 55 or over put up to $300,000 per person (or $600,000 per couple) from the sale of their home into super, without it being counted against the usual concessional or non-concessional caps, without any age-based work test, and without needing to meet the normal contribution age restrictions. It's a one-off entitlement — you can only use it against the sale of one home in your lifetime.
To use it, the home has to have been owned for at least 10 years and have qualified, at least in part, for the main residence CGT exemption. You must make the contribution within 90 days of receiving the sale proceeds, and you notify your fund it's specifically a downsizer contribution using the approved ATO form so it's processed correctly rather than as an ordinary contribution against your caps.
Being exempt from the contribution caps doesn't mean it's exempt from every threshold — it still counts toward your transfer balance cap and total super balance, and once the money is inside super it becomes assessable under the Centrelink assets test, which can reduce Age Pension entitlement even though the family home itself was exempt from that test. People sometimes assume downsizer contributions escape all thresholds because they're exempt from the contribution caps specifically, which isn't the same thing.
Example: a couple using the downsizer contribution
A couple, both over 60, sell their family home — owned for 15 years — for $900,000. Each partner can contribute up to $300,000 of the proceeds into their own super, $600,000 combined, without it counting against either person's concessional or non-concessional caps for the year.
Because neither of them has made a downsizer contribution before, both are eligible, even though ordinary non-concessional contribution caps might otherwise have limited how much they could add to super in a single year using regular after-tax contributions.
Calculate it yourself
Open calculator →Related Terms
Non-Concessional Contributions
After-tax super contributions that are not taxed inside the fund, with an annual cap of $130,000 (2026-27).
Total Superannuation Balance
The total value of all your super interests across all funds, used to determine eligibility for various super concessions.
Transfer Balance Cap
The maximum amount of super you can transfer into a tax-free retirement phase income stream — $2.1 million for 2026-27.
Principal Place of Residence (PPOR)
Your main home, which is generally exempt from capital gains tax when sold.
Preservation Age
The minimum age at which you can access your super savings, ranging from 55 to 60 depending on your date of birth.