A 30% minimum tax on discretionary (family) trusts is proposed from 1 July 2028. Each beneficiary other than a company would get a matching 30% credit, but it is not refundable. See who pays more, build your own family group and test the opt-out.
From 1 July 2028 the trustee would pay at least 30% on the trust’s net income. Each beneficiary other than a company gets a matching 30% credit, but the credit is not refundable. It only helps where the beneficiary’s own tax for the year is large enough to absorb it.
Every family group is different. Some have one trust and two people; others add a bucket company, adult children or a second trust. Build your own group below, or load an example, then change the income, the shares and whether each trust stays in the trust tax or opts out. The planner adds up the tax on the trusts’ income across the whole group, today and under the proposed rules.
Where one trust distributes to another, the receiving trust uses the 30% credit against its own 30% and passes a credit on to its beneficiaries. The credit is lost where the receiving trust has a loss or has opted out, or where the income ends up in a company.
| Beneficiary | Other income | % of Trust A | % of Trust B | Remove |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total |
Save a scenario, change the shares or opt a trust out, and save again to compare. Saved scenarios stay on this page only and clear when you leave.
Our view: good in theory, tight in practice.
A family trust existing on 1 July 2028 could opt out of the minimum tax by nominating fixed percentages of all its income and capital for named beneficiaries, every year. The election must be made for 2028–29 and notified by the time that return is due or lodged. Answer the questions below to see which constraints would matter for your family.
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Request your detail pack. We prepare a fuller analysis of your structure from these figures, then go through it with you and document a plan.
Law from 1 July 2027. Split your gain at 30 June 2027, compare a valuation with the Government formula and see the tax against the old rules.
Model your gain → TrustsProposed from 1 July 2028. Build your family group, compare a wage with distributions and test the opt-out election.
Model your family group → ReadBoth changes explained in one place, with a worked case study, the options for each trust and short answers to client questions.
Read it → WorkersFrom 2026–27, an automatic deduction with no receipts. See whether claiming your own expenses would give you more back.
Check your options → CarsThe 12-week rule, what each trip needs, where logbooks fail, and whether a logbook beats 91 cents a kilometre.
Read and compare → TalkBring your summary to a consultation with a Porters CA Chartered Accountant in South Perth or Albany.
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