When you claim your super after leaving Australia (a DASP), tax is withheld at 65% if you held a working holiday visa (417/462), 35% on the taxed element for most other temporary visas (482, student 500, 485), and 65% for everyone — regardless of visa — once the super has been transferred to the ATO as unclaimed money. The rates are set by legislation and taken out automatically before the money reaches you, so a $10,000 balance pays out $3,500 (working holiday) or $6,500 (most other visas, while fund-held).
The DASP tax rates for 2026
| Your situation | DASP tax rate | You keep |
|---|---|---|
| Working Holiday / Work & Holiday (417, 462) — super still with your fund | 65% | 35% |
| Most other temporary visas (482, 500, 485…) — taxed element, super with your fund | 35% | 65% |
| Untaxed element (rare — mainly some public-sector schemes) | 45% | 55% |
| Super already transferred to the ATO as unclaimed money — any visa | 65% | 35% |
Source: Australian Taxation Office — Departing Australia superannuation payment (DASP) tax rates.
Two things to notice. First, the rate follows your visa, not your nationality or how much you earned — there's no tax-free threshold and no sliding scale on a DASP. Second, the last row overrides the others: it doesn't matter which visa you held once your super becomes ATO-held. That row is where most avoidable money is lost, and it gets its own section below.
What that means in dollars
- Backpacker, 417, $8,000 balance: 65% tax = $5,200 withheld → $2,800 paid to your bank.
- Work & Holiday, 462, $4,000 balance: 65% tax = $2,600 withheld → $1,400 paid.
- Student, 500, $12,000 balance (fund-held): 35% tax = $4,200 withheld → $7,800 paid.
- Skilled worker, 482, $25,000 balance (fund-held): 35% tax = $8,750 withheld → $16,250 paid. The same balance claimed after the ATO transfer flips the numbers: $16,250 tax, $8,750 paid — waiting costs $7,500.
These examples treat the whole balance as a taxed element, which is what nearly all employer-paid super is (rates per the ATO's DASP rate schedule). For your own figures — including a balance estimator if you don't know what you've got, and a fee toggle — use the DASP tax calculator.
The 65% trap: ATO-held super
Roughly six months after you've left and your visa has ended, your fund is required to hand your balance to the ATO as unclaimed super money. From that moment it is taxed at 65% when paid out — regardless of which visa you held (source: ATO — DASP), and it earns only CPI interest while it sits there.
For working holiday makers the rate is 65% either way, so the trap costs interest, not tax. For everyone else it nearly doubles the tax: a student or 482 holder who claims while the money is still fund-held keeps 65 cents in the dollar; the same person claiming after the transfer keeps 35. Check your own dates with the 6-month deadline checker, and see the full leaving-Australia guide for how the six-month rule works and how to claim before it bites. Already past the deadline? The money is still 100% claimable — just at the 65% rate.
Why working holiday super is taxed more than other visas
Parliament set a special 65% DASP rate for working holiday makers from 1 July 2017, alongside the backpacker income tax rules; other temporary visas kept the 35% taxed-element rate (45% on any untaxed element, which is rare outside some public-sector schemes). The rates sit in legislation and are applied automatically by your fund or the ATO at payment — per the ATO's DASP guidance, no application route or agent changes them.
Held more than one visa? The rule follows the money, not your last visa: if your payment includes any super contributed while you held a 417 or 462, the ATO applies the 65% working holiday rate to the DASP. A student who later switched to a 482 and never held a WHM visa stays at 35%; a backpacker who later studied does not.
A final tax — nothing more to lodge
DASP withholding is a final Australian tax. You don't report the payment in an Australian tax return, and there's no refund or offset of it later — what lands in your bank is the finished number. Whether your home country taxes the receipt is a local question; the leaving-Australia guide covers this and the rest of the process step by step, from finding your funds to getting paid.
DASP tax questions, answered straight
How much tax will I pay on a $10,000 super balance?
On a working holiday visa (417/462): $6,500 tax, $3,500 paid to you. On a student or skilled visa (500/482), while the super is still with your fund: $3,500 tax, $6,500 paid. If the $10,000 has already been transferred to the ATO as unclaimed money: $6,500 tax whichever visa you held. Rates per the ATO's DASP schedule — run your own balance through the DASP calculator.
Is the DASP tax refundable or claimable back later?
No. DASP withholding is a final tax — it is not reported in an Australian tax return and cannot be refunded or offset later. That is different from PAYG tax on wages, which is why some backpackers get an income tax refund for their final year but never a DASP refund.
I held both a working holiday visa and another visa — which rate applies?
Under the ATO's rules, if your payment includes any super contributions made while you held a 417 or 462, the 65% working holiday rate applies to the DASP. If you never held a working holiday visa, the 35% taxed-element rate applies (while the super is still with your fund).
Can an agent reduce the DASP tax rate?
No — the rates are set by legislation and withheld automatically by your fund or the ATO. Anyone promising a lower rate should be avoided. The only legal lever is timing: claiming before your super is transferred to the ATO keeps non-working-holiday visas at 35% instead of 65%.
Is the tax different if I apply through the ATO's free system?
No. The tax outcome is identical whether you use the ATO's free DASP application yourself or a registered agent like us — the withholding happens when the payment is made, at the legislated rates. An agent changes the legwork (finding funds, fixing rejections, chasing payment), never the tax.
Do I pay tax on the payment in my home country as well?
The DASP tax is a final Australian withholding tax, so nothing more is owed in Australia. How your home country treats the receipt is a local question — most clients confirm with their local tax office using the payment summary provided with the claim.
Know your number? Go get it.
$149 + GST flat · no super, no fee · every fund plus ATO-held money · paid worldwide in about 28 days.