Home sellers from age 50 could add $500,000 to super
Senator Jane Hume of the Liberal Party wants to widen the downsizer super rule. It lets older people who sell their home put some of the money into super. People could use it younger, put in more money and have a full year after the sale to do it.
Official name: Unlocking Supply of Family Homes Bill 2025
- Right now you must be 55 or older to make a downsizer contribution to your super. This bill would lower that to 50.
- The most you could put in would go up from $300,000 to $500,000 per person.
- You would have 12 months after selling your home to make the payment. Today you have 90 days.
- It comes from Senator Jane Hume, not the government. It is still being debated in the Senate.
Who it affects
- Home owners aged 50 to 54: They could make a downsizer contribution for the first time, if they sell a home they have owned for at least 10 years.
- Older people selling the family home: They could put up to $500,000 each into super from the sale, up from $300,000.
- People who sold and then got busy: They would have a full year after the sale to put the money in, up from 90 days.
- Young families looking for a bigger home: The senator says more large homes would come up for sale if more older people downsize.
Downsizer rule used by 98,595
Superannuation, or super, is money you save through work for when you retire. There are limits on how much you can add to it each year, because money in super is taxed at a low rate.
Since the 2017-18 budget year there has been a special rule called the downsizer contribution. It lets older people sell their home and put part of the money into super. This payment does not count toward the normal yearly limits.
The Australian Taxation Office, the agency that collects tax and runs the super rules, says 98,595 people have used the downsizer rule since 2018-19.
Senator Jane Hume brought this bill to the Senate, Parliament's second house, in November 2025. Her notes on the bill say it builds on a policy of the former government led by Scott Morrison. She says it gives older people more security in retirement and frees up big family homes for younger families.
Starting age lowered to 50
Today you must be at least 55 years old to make a downsizer contribution. The bill changes that to 50.
Say you are 52, your kids have left home and you sell the house you have owned for 20 years. Under this bill you could put some of the sale money into super using the downsizer rule. Today you would have to wait three years.
More time to pay in
Right now you have 90 days after the sale settles to put the money into super. Settlement is the day the sale is finished and the new owner takes over the house.
The bill would stretch this to 12 months. The senator says this removes a paperwork hurdle. People who are busy moving or buying a new place would have more time to sort out their super.
A bigger $500,000 limit
The most each person can put in as a downsizer contribution is $300,000 today. The bill raises it to $500,000.
A couple could each put in up to the limit, as long as the total is not more than what they got from the sale. The senator says house prices have gone up a lot since the rule began, so the cap should go up too.
What stays the same
The other tests in the tax law do not change. The home must be in Australia, and caravans, houseboats and other mobile homes do not count.
You must have owned the home for at least 10 years. The sale must be free of capital gains tax under the rule for your main home. Capital gains tax is tax on the profit when you sell something that went up in value.
You can only use the downsizer rule once in your life. You cannot put in more than you got from selling the home.
The money still counts toward the transfer balance cap. This is the limit on how much super you can move into the retirement phase, where it pays you an income. The bill's notes say the cap was $2 million in 2025-26.
Waiting in the Senate
If it passes, the law would start the day after the Governor-General signs it. The Governor-General stands in for the King. The new rules would only apply to payments made after that day, so nothing goes backwards.
Senator Hume introduced the bill in the Senate on 26 November 2025. The Senate debated it on 12 August 2026. It has not been voted on.
To become law it must pass the Senate, then pass the House of Representatives, the lower house, then be signed by the Governor-General. Bills from senators who are not ministers often do not get a final vote.
Its journey through Parliament
| 26 Nov 2025 | Senate: Introduced and read a first time |
| 26 Nov 2025 | Senate: Second reading moved |
| 12 Aug 2026 | Senate: Second reading debate |