Superannuation Transfer Balance Cap (TBC) Calculator 2026
Calculate your 2026-27 Australian super Transfer Balance Cap (TBC) — the lifetime limit on what can be moved into the tax-free retirement (pension) phase. Shows used cap, remaining cap, excess transfer balance, and the 15% / 30% excess transfer balance tax. Based on ATO indexation rules. Free, private, runs entirely in your browser.
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Source: Australian Taxation Office — Transfer Balance Cap (ato.gov.au). Last updated: May 3, 2026.
What Is the Australian Transfer Balance Cap (TBC)?
The Transfer Balance Cap (TBC) is a lifetime limit on the total amount of superannuation savings that an Australian retiree can move into the tax-free retirement (pension) phase. Earnings on assets supporting a retirement-phase income stream are tax-free, while accumulation-phase assets are taxed at 15% on earnings — so the TBC was introduced from 1 July 2017 to limit the size of this concession. The cap is indexed for inflation and applies once-per-lifetime to amounts transferred IN to retirement phase. Source: Australian Taxation Office (ato.gov.au). Last updated: May 3, 2026.
For the 2026-27 financial year (1 July 2026 – 30 June 2027), the general Transfer Balance Cap is A$1.9 million. Importantly, your personal TBC may be lower than the general cap if you started your first retirement-phase income stream in an earlier financial year — your personal cap was set at the cap level on the day you first triggered the transfer balance account, and indexation only applies proportionally to any unused portion. Check your personal TBC on ATO online services (myGov → ATO → Super → Information → Transfer balance cap).
How Personal TBC Indexation Works
Indexation of the TBC is proportional, not absolute. If you have NEVER had a retirement-phase income stream, your personal TBC equals the current general TBC ($1.9M for 2026-27). If you started your first pension in 2021-22 or 2022-23, your personal cap is fixed at $1.7M (the general cap during that period) and only the proportion you have NOT used will be indexed in future. If you started before 1 July 2021, your personal cap is fixed at $1.6M. The ATO calculates your highest-ever transfer balance account percentage and only indexes the unused fraction.
Practical example: Maria started her first account-based pension on 1 March 2022 with $1,400,000, when the general cap was $1.7M. Her personal cap is $1.7M, and she used 82.4% of it ($1.4M / $1.7M). When the general cap rose to $1.9M, only the 17.6% unused portion gets indexed proportionally — Maria's personal cap rises to about $1.735M, not $1.9M. This is why early retirees often have a lower personal cap than later retirees.
What Counts as a Credit or Debit?
A credit increases your transfer balance account: starting a new account-based pension, transition-to-retirement (TTR) income stream converting to retirement phase, defined benefit pension valuations, and reversionary pensions inherited from a deceased spouse (with a 12-month delay). A debit decreases your account: full or partial commutations of a retirement-phase income stream back to accumulation, lump sum withdrawals from a pension account, structured settlement contributions, and family law payment splits. Importantly, ongoing pension drawdowns are NOT debits — only formal commutations are. Investment growth or losses inside the pension account also do NOT change your transfer balance account once a credit has been recorded.
Death benefit pensions follow special rules: a reversionary pension is automatically credited to the surviving spouse's transfer balance account 12 months after death, while a non-reversionary death benefit must either be paid as a lump sum or used to start a new pension (which counts as a credit). Many surviving spouses inadvertently breach the TBC because their existing pension plus the inherited reversionary push them over the cap.
Excess Transfer Balance Tax: 15% or 30%
If your transfer balance account exceeds your personal cap, you have an excess transfer balance and the ATO will issue an excess transfer balance determination. You must commute the excess back to accumulation phase (or take it as a lump sum). On top of that, the ATO levies excess transfer balance tax on the notional earnings on the excess: 15% for the first time you breach, and 30% for any subsequent breach. The notional earnings are calculated using the general interest charge (GIC) rate, which is around 11% per annum in 2026 — so the tax compounds quickly if not addressed. Source: ATO — Transfer Balance Cap, ato.gov.au. Last updated: May 3, 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Australian Transfer Balance Cap for 2026-27?
The general Transfer Balance Cap for 2026-27 (1 July 2026 – 30 June 2027) is A$1.9 million. This is the lifetime limit on the total amount that can be transferred into a tax-free retirement-phase income stream (account-based pension). Your personal TBC may be lower than the general cap if you started a retirement-phase pension in an earlier year, because indexation is proportional based on your highest-ever transfer balance percentage.
How does Transfer Balance Cap indexation work?
TBC indexation is proportional, not absolute. If you have never had a retirement-phase pension, your personal TBC equals the current general cap. If you started before 1 July 2021, your personal cap is locked at $1.6M. If you started in 2021-22 or 2022-23, your personal cap is locked at $1.7M. Indexation only applies to the unused fraction of your highest-ever transfer balance percentage. Check your exact personal cap via myGov → ATO → Super → Transfer balance cap.
What counts as a credit to the transfer balance account?
Credits include: starting a new account-based pension, transition-to-retirement (TTR) income stream converting to retirement phase, defined benefit pension valuations, and reversionary pensions inherited from a deceased spouse (with a 12-month delay). Investment growth INSIDE a retirement-phase pension is NOT a credit — once a pension is started, the credit is fixed regardless of subsequent earnings.
What counts as a debit?
Debits decrease your transfer balance account and free up cap space. They include: full or partial commutations of a retirement-phase pension back to accumulation, lump sum withdrawals from the pension account, structured settlement contributions, and family law payment splits. Ordinary pension drawdown payments (the regular minimum drawdowns) do NOT create debits — only formal commutations do.
What is the excess transfer balance tax?
If your transfer balance account exceeds your personal cap, you have an excess transfer balance. The ATO calculates notional earnings on the excess at the General Interest Charge (GIC) rate (around 11% in 2026) and levies excess transfer balance tax on those notional earnings: 15% for the first breach, 30% for any subsequent breach. You must also commute the excess back to accumulation phase to remove the breach.
Can I have more than $1.9 million in super in 2026-27?
Yes. The TBC limits only the amount in tax-free retirement (pension) phase. You can hold any amount in accumulation phase, where earnings are taxed at 15%. Many high-balance retirees keep $1.9M in pension phase and any excess in accumulation phase. From 1 July 2025 the new Division 296 tax (an additional 15% on earnings) applies to the portion of your total super balance above $3 million — separate from the TBC.
How does the TBC affect inherited reversionary pensions?
A reversionary death benefit pension is automatically credited to the surviving spouse's transfer balance account 12 months after the original member's death. Many surviving spouses inadvertently breach the cap because their existing pension plus the inherited reversionary push them over. They typically have 12 months from death to commute part of either pension before the credit is recorded.