{"id":"C2016A00080","name":"Superannuation (Excess Transfer Balance Tax) Imposition Act 2016","slug":"superannuation-excess-transfer-balance-tax-imposition-act-2016","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"80 of 2016","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":436291,"registerId":"C2016A00080-fast-fetch-1775953537080","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-12","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Superannuation (Excess Transfer Balance Tax) Imposition Act 2016","content":"---\nmeta-content-style-type: text/css\nmeta-content-type: application/xhtml+xml; charset=utf-8\n---\n\n?xml version=\"1.0\" encoding=\"utf-8\" standalone=\"no\"?>\n\n![](image.001.png)\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nSuperannuation (Excess Transfer Balance Tax) Imposition Act 2016\n\n \n\nNo. 80, 2016\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nAn Act to impose excess transfer balance tax, and for related purposes\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nContents\n\n1 Short title\n\n2 Commencement\n\n3 Definitions\n\n4 Imposition of tax\n\n5 Amount of tax\n\n6 Severability\n\n \n\n![](image.001.png)\n\n \n\n \n\nSuperannuation (Excess Transfer Balance Tax) Imposition Act 2016\n\nNo. 80, 2016\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nAn Act to impose excess transfer balance tax, and for related purposes\n\n[Assented to 29 November 2016]\n\nThe Parliament of Australia enacts:\n\n1  Short title\n\n  This Act is the Superannuation (Excess Transfer Balance Tax) Imposition Act 2016.\n\n2  Commencement\n\n (1) Each provision of this Act specified in column 1 of the table commences, or is taken to have commenced, in accordance with column 2 of the table. Any other statement in column 2 has effect according to its terms.\n\n \n\n- Commencement information\n- Column 1 Column 2 Column 3\n- Provisions Commencement Date/Details\n- 1. The whole of this Act At the same time as Schedule 1 to the Treasury Laws Amendment (Fair and Sustainable Superannuation) Act 2016 commences.However, the provisions do not commence at all if that Schedule does not commence. 1 January 2017\n\n\nNote: This table relates only to the provisions of this Act as originally enacted. It will not be amended to deal with any later amendments of this Act.\n\n (2) Any information in column 3 of the table is not part of this Act. Information may be inserted in this column, or information in it may be edited, in any published version of this Act.\n\n3  Definitions\n\n  In this Act:\n\nexcess transfer balance period has the same meaning as in the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997.\n\nnotional earnings means the sum worked out under subsection 294‑230(3) of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 for the excess transfer balance period.\n\n4  Imposition of tax\n\n  Excess transfer balance tax payable under section 294‑230 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 is imposed.\n\n5  Amount of tax\n\n (1) The amount of the excess transfer balance tax is:\n\n (a) if the circumstances mentioned in subsection (2) apply—30% of the person’s notional earnings for the excess transfer balance period; or\n\n (b) in any other case—15% of the person’s notional earnings for the excess transfer balance period.\n\n (2) For the purposes of paragraph (1)(a), the circumstances are:\n\n (a) the excess transfer balance period starts on or after 1 July 2018; and\n\n (b) the person has previously been liable to pay excess transfer balance tax for an excess transfer balance period starting on or after 1 July 2018.\n\n6  Severability\n\n  If, apart from this section, section 4 would impose, in relation to a person, a tax the imposition of which in relation to the person would exceed the legislative power of the Commonwealth, section 4 has effect as if it did not impose that tax in relation to the person.\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n[Minister’s second reading speech made in—\n\nHouse of Representatives on 9 November 2016\n\nSenate on 23 November 2016]\n\n \n\n(172/16)\n\n \n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This Act remains tightly focused on its original purpose: imposing a specific tax on excess transfer balances. It has not expanded beyond this narrow function since enactment. The Act deliberately defers all substantive rules to the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997, maintaining its minimalist design."},"complexity_factors":["Extremely short statute—only 6 sections","Minimal defined terms (only 2 defined in the Act itself: 'excess transfer balance period' and 'notional earnings')","Heavy reliance on external legislation—all substantive calculation rules are in the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997","Simple binary rate structure (15% vs 30%) with clear triggering condition","No nested exceptions or complex conditional logic","Single purpose statute with straightforward severability clause"],"plain_english_summary":"This law creates a tax penalty for people who have too much money in their retirement pension accounts.\n\n**What it does:**\n- When Australians retire, they can move their superannuation (retirement savings) into a 'retirement phase' account where earnings are tax-free. However, there's a limit on how much can go in—this is called the **transfer balance cap**.\n- If someone puts more than the cap into these tax-free retirement accounts, they have an **excess transfer balance**.\n- This Act imposes a tax on the 'notional earnings' (the investment profits you would have made on the excess amount) during the time the excess remained in the account.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- Retirees with large superannuation balances who exceed the $1.6 million transfer balance cap (indexed over time).\n- People who accidentally or deliberately keep too much in their tax-free retirement pension accounts.\n\n**How much tax:**\n- **15%** of the notional earnings for first-time breaches.\n- **30%** of the notional earnings if you've breached the cap before (from 1 July 2018 onwards).\n\n**Why it matters:**\nThis is a deterrent to stop wealthy Australians from using superannuation as a tax-free savings vehicle beyond reasonable retirement needs. It ensures the tax concessions for retirement savings are targeted appropriately."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This act has not expanded beyond its original purpose. It is a narrow imposition act that merely sets the tax rate and activates the liability defined in the Tax Act. No amendments or additions have been made to broaden its scope."},"complexity_factors":["Only 2 defined terms, both cross-referenced to the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997","Simple conditional logic in section 5 (two tax rates based on prior liability)"],"plain_english_summary":"This law imposes a tax on superannuation balances that exceed a certain cap (the transfer balance cap) during the retirement phase. If you have too much money in your pension account, the excess is taxed on its deemed earnings at 15% (or 30% if you've already been penalised before). The money is treated as if it earned income, and you pay tax on that notional income. The tax only applies to amounts above the cap and is calculated under the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997. The law itself is short and simply activates the tax; the detailed rules are in the Tax Act."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/superannuation-excess-transfer-balance-tax-imposition-act-2016","history":"/api/acts/superannuation-excess-transfer-balance-tax-imposition-act-2016/history","analysis":"/api/acts/superannuation-excess-transfer-balance-tax-imposition-act-2016/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/superannuation-excess-transfer-balance-tax-imposition-act-2016/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/superannuation-excess-transfer-balance-tax-imposition-act-2016/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/superannuation-excess-transfer-balance-tax-imposition-act-2016/documents"}}