The First Home Super Saver scheme
Use your super fund as a tax-advantaged savings account for your first home deposit. Annual and total contribution caps, the tax treatment, and what happens when you withdraw.
The First Home Super Saver scheme (FHSS) lets you make voluntary super contributions and later withdraw them, plus most of the earnings on them, to put toward your first home.
It is not a separate account. The contributions sit alongside the rest of your super inside your fund, and the ATO calculates the FHSS-releasable portion when you apply to withdraw.
Why this can be useful
Super is a tax-advantaged environment. Voluntary concessional (before-tax) contributions are taxed at 15% inside the fund instead of your marginal income tax rate. For someone on a $80,000 salary, that is a noticeable saving relative to saving the same money inside a bank account.
When you withdraw under FHSS, the released amount is taxed at your marginal rate minus a 30% tax offset. That keeps the net effect well below the original marginal rate for most people.
The caps
- You can release a maximum of $15,000 of voluntary contributions made in any one financial year.
- You can release a maximum of $50,000 of voluntary contributions across all years, plus the deemed earnings on them.
- Only voluntary contributions count: not the Superannuation Guarantee your employer pays.
- The contributions must be voluntary concessional (salary sacrifice or personal deductible) or voluntary non-concessional (after-tax personal contributions).
How you withdraw
You apply through myGov for a "FHSS determination" before signing a contract on a property. The ATO tells you the maximum releasable amount. You then request the release, your fund pays it to the ATO, the ATO withholds the tax and pays the net to you.
You have 12 months to sign a contract once you receive the released funds. You can ask for one 12-month extension. If you do not buy in that period, you can recontribute the amount to super or it stays released and taxed.
Who can use it
You must:
- Be 18 or over to request the release.
- Have never owned property in Australia (including investment property, vacant land or commercial property).
- Live in the property for at least 6 of the first 12 months after it becomes practical to do so.
The contributions can begin at any age, including before 18, but you cannot release the funds until you turn 18.
This is general explanatory information. For tailored advice see a licensed financial adviser.