Key points:

The LISTO is a government initiative designed to help low-income earners.
It’s effectively a tax refund, but it’s paid to your super fund rather than directly to you.
If your total income is less than $37,000, you could receive up to $500.
You don’t need to make a claim to receive the LISTO. If you’re eligible, the ATO will automatically pay the LISTO into your super account.

What is the Low Income Super Tax Offset (LISTO)?

When you get paid, your employer puts 12% of the pre-tax amount into your super fund as a Super Guarantee (SG) contribution. On the way through the ATO takes 15% of this in contribution tax. The LISTO helps low-income earners by offsetting this 15% tax. It’s effectively a tax refund, but it’s paid to your super fund rather than directly to you.

Why was the LISTO introduced?

The LISTO is a government initiative designed to help low-income earners. It aims to reduce the amount of tax taken from their superannuation contributions.

By reducing the tax burden on super contributions, the LISTO can improve the retirement savings of low-income earners, making it easier for them to build a more secure financial future.

LISTO eligibility

To be eligible for the LISTO, you need to meet ALL of the following criteria:

you or your employer pay concessional (before-tax) contributions (including SG amounts) for the year to a complying super fund
you earn $37,000 or less a year (to work out your eligibility, the ATO uses your actual or estimated adjusted taxable income)
you have not held a temporary resident visa at any time during the income year (note that New Zealand citizens in Australia are eligible for the payment)
you lodge a tax return and 10% or more of your total income comes from business and/or employment, or you don't lodge a tax return and 10% or more of your total income comes from your employment.

You should also make sure your super fund has your tax file number (TFN). This is because your super fund won't be able to accept the LISTO payment without your TFN.

How is the LISTO calculated?

The actual amount you receive depends on your income and the amount of concessional contributions you have made.

To manually work out how much LISTO you may be eligible to receive, multiply all your concessional super contributions for a financial year by 0.15 and then round to the nearest cent (eg. $2,500 x 0.15 = $375). The Government also has an online calculator you can try.

The maximum payment each financial year is $500 and the minimum is $10.

How to claim the LISTO

The good news is you don’t need to make a claim to receive the LISTO. The ATO makes the necessary calculations when you lodge your tax return. If you’re eligible, the ATO will automatically pay the LISTO into your super account.

The Low Income Super Tax Offset (LISTO): How it supports low-income earners