The SMSF Professionals’ Association of Australia (SPAA) supports the Government’s initiative to increase the concessional contributions caps for those 60 and older from 1 July this year and for anyone 50 and older from 1 July next year.
In 2011, SPAA co-ordinated a joint industry letter calling on the Government to increase the concessional cap to $35,000 for individuals over 50, and the Government’s 5 April announcement vindicated its position.
Graeme Colley, SPAA’s Head of Technical and Professional Standards, says: “We advocated an increase in concessional contributions after the cap was reduced in the 2009 Federal budget, knowing how important it is for people nearing the end of their working lives and wanting an adequate sum in retirement.
“So the increase to $35,000 is a step in the right direction. In particular, it will give women and those with broken work patterns the opportunity to contribute more at a time when they are able to and build a more dignified and self-sufficient retirement.”
Mr Colley says SPAA supports the Government’s decision to abandon the proposal to allow those 50 and over with superannuation balances of less than $500,000 to access a higher concessional contribution limit.
“This was a complex and costly system that would have meant valuing a person’s superannuation fund balances and benefits to determine whether their balance in superannuation was under the threshold.”
