Salary Packaging Calculator

Is salary packaging the same as salary sacrifice?

How do you calculate salary packaging?

Take the amount you package, work out the income tax, Medicare levy, and any HECS you would have paid on it at your marginal rate, then subtract any tax the benefit itself attracts (for example, super contributions tax on packaged super, or nothing for FBT-exempt benefits). What's left is your annual saving. The estimator above does this automatically using the current year's tax brackets.

Does salary packaging actually save you money?

Usually yes, provided the tax on the benefit is lower than your marginal tax rate. FBT-exempt benefits — like capped living expenses for hospital and NFP employees or an exempt electric vehicle — save your full marginal rate on every dollar packaged. Watch for provider administration fees, which come out of the saving, and remember packaged super is preserved until retirement.

Who can salary package?

Any employee whose employer offers it can package super, and most can package a car through a novated lease or FBT-exempt work equipment. The generous capped living-expenses benefits ($9,010 per FBT year for hospital and ambulance employees) are limited to FBT-exempt employers — public hospitals, NFP hospitals, ambulance services, and registered charities.

Do salary packaging caps follow the financial year or the FBT year?

The FBT-exempt caps (living expenses and meal entertainment) reset with the FBT year, which ends on 31 March — not 30 June. Super caps, including the concessional contributions cap, follow the ordinary financial year. If you're starting partway through a year, you can usually still use the full cap before it resets.