Salary sacrifice calculator 2026-27
What salary sacrificing into super does to your tax, your take-home pay and your super, including the Medicare levy surcharge and Division 293 tax, and how much of the $32,500 concessional cap your employer's super already uses.
- 2026-27 tax year
- Rates verified against the ATO on
- Sources · How we calculate · How we check
Estimated tax saved a year, 2026-27
$2,400
Sacrificing $10,000 lowers your take-home by $6,100 and adds $8,500 to super after the 15% contributions tax.
Cap room before sacrifice: $10,900 of the $32,500 concessional cap, after $21,600 employer SG.
| Tax | With sacrifice | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Income tax | $43,970 | −$3,700 |
| Medicare levy | $3,400 | −$200 |
| Contributions tax (fund, 15%) | $4,740 | +$1,500 |
| Total tax | $52,110 | −$2,400 |
Single, resident all year, with appropriate hospital cover, no HELP debt, Division 293 paid personally. Super is preserved until you meet a condition of release. An illustration, not a recommendation.
Sacrificing the full cap room at different salaries
Sacrificing whatever cap room the employer's SG leaves, single with hospital cover, 2026-27.
| Salary | Cap room | Tax saved |
|---|---|---|
| $120,000 | $18,100 | $3,077 |
| $150,000 | $14,500 | $3,480 |
| $180,000 | $10,900 | $2,616 |
| $200,000 | $8,500 | $2,720 |
| $220,000 | $6,100 | $1,952 |
| $240,000 | $3,700 | $1,184 |
The saving is largest where your marginal rate is highest and Division 293 does not apply. Once income plus contributions pass $250,000, Division 293 adds 15% to sacrificed amounts that sit over the threshold, which cuts the saving. Above about $270,830 your employer's SG uses almost the whole cap, so there is little or no room left.
How we calculate
- We work out a full year twice, without and with the sacrifice: income tax, the 2% Medicare levy, the Medicare levy surcharge if you have no appropriate cover, Division 293 tax, and the 15% contributions tax your fund pays.
- Tax saved = total tax without sacrifice minus total tax with it. Salary sacrifice still counts as qualifying earnings for employer SG.
- Salary sacrifice is a reportable super contribution, so it is added back when the ATO tests income for the Medicare levy surcharge.
- Contributions above the $32,500 cap are excess. This calculator warns and leaves them out rather than modelling them. Carry-forward contributions are not modelled.
Questions
How much can I salary sacrifice?
Your employer's SG and your salary sacrifice together count toward the $32,500 concessional cap in 2026-27. Unused cap from the last five years can be carried forward if your total super balance was under $500,000 on 30 June 2026: work out your carry-forward room.
Does salary sacrifice reduce the Medicare levy surcharge?
It does not change your tier: it is a reportable super contribution, which is added back when working out income for surcharge purposes. It does reduce the taxable income the surcharge is charged on. See the Medicare levy surcharge calculator.
Does salary sacrifice reduce Division 293 tax?
No. Division 293 adds your concessional contributions back to income, so moving salary into super leaves the test total unchanged. It can increase Division 293 tax when a larger share of your contributions then sits above the $250,000 threshold. See the Division 293 calculator.
Can I get the money back?
Super is preserved until you meet a condition of release, such as retiring after preservation age. Check with your fund or the ATO.