FHSS scheme projection.
Available for first home
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Using super as a deposit vault
The First Home Super Saver scheme is a clever piece of policy that lets you save your house deposit inside superannuation and pull it back out when you are ready to buy. The appeal is tax. Money you push into super as a concessional contribution is taxed at just 15 percent going in, instead of your marginal rate, and when you withdraw it the tax is calculated at your marginal rate less a generous 30 percent offset. For most working buyers that combination beats parking the same cash in an ordinary savings account, where every dollar of interest is taxed at full freight.
The scheme has firm limits. You can count up to $15,000 of voluntary contributions in any single year and up to $50,000 in total across all years toward a withdrawal. This tool models that build-up, applies the 15 percent contributions tax, adds the deemed earnings the ATO credits to your balance, then takes off the withdrawal tax to show what actually lands in your bank account.
Three years of $15,000, taxed and returned
Picture a buyer on a 32 percent marginal rate salary-sacrificing $15,000 a year for three years. That is $45,000 of contributions, just under the $50,000 lifetime ceiling. Watch how the tax layers work.
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That $43,108 is roughly $12,500 more than you would have if you had taken the same gross salary, paid 32 percent income tax on it, and saved the leftovers in a bank account. The chart sets the deposit you walk away with against what plain after-tax saving would have left in your hands.
Where the deemed earnings really come from
One detail surprises almost everyone. The earnings you withdraw are not your fund's actual investment returns. The ATO applies a fixed deemed rate, the shortfall interest charge rate, to your eligible contributions, and that is the figure released regardless of how your super performed. In a strong market your real returns might exceed it, in which case the surplus stays in super; in a weak year the deeming rate protects you. The tool uses an approximate deemed rate so the released amount sits in a realistic range, but the precise figure shifts each quarter.
A practical warning worth heeding: you must apply for an ATO determination and request the release before you sign a contract, or within a tight window around it, and the money can take a couple of weeks to come through. The classic mistake is finding the perfect home, signing on the weekend, and only then trying to access the savings. Plan the release timing into your buying process, not after it.
Who benefits and who should think twice
This works best for a disciplined first buyer on a decent income, ideally above the 30 percent bracket, who is a year or three from purchasing and can afford to lock the money away until then. The higher your marginal rate, the wider the gap between the 15 percent entry tax and the offset-reduced exit tax, so high earners gain most. It suits poorly anyone who might not buy at all, since accessing the money for non-housing reasons is heavily restricted and the tax advantage assumes a genuine first home purchase.
Can a couple combine their FHSS savings?
Yes, and it is one of the strongest features. Each individual has their own $50,000 limit, so a couple buying together can release up to $100,000 between them toward the same property. Each person applies separately and the caps are not shared, which makes the scheme considerably more powerful for two buyers than the headline single-person figure suggests.
What if I never end up buying a home?
You have options, but none are as good as buying. You can keep the money in super for retirement, recontribute the released amount, or in limited cases pay an extra tax of 20 percent on the assessable portion to keep it outside super. The scheme is built to reward a genuine purchase, so treat the savings as earmarked for a deposit rather than a flexible pool.
Do these contributions count against my concessional cap?
If you make them as salary sacrifice or claim a deduction, yes. They are concessional contributions and sit inside your $30,000 annual concessional cap alongside your employer's superannuation guarantee. Push too hard and you risk exceeding the cap and triggering extra tax, so high earners with large employer contributions should check the headroom before maximising the scheme.