AFP super
15.4%, PSSap and the schemes before it

Section 17 of the Australian Federal Police Enterprise Agreement 2024-2027 sets the employer contribution at 15.4% for members in PSSap or another accumulation fund. That's well above the 12% Superannuation Guarantee most state police receive. It covers national police, ACT Policing and Protective Service Officers.

The agreement also says employer contributions won't be reduced by salary sacrifice, and that members in another fund get exactly the same rates and arrangements as PSSap members. Most of the decisions that matter are about insurance, extra contributions, and when to retire.

PSS and CSS are both run by the Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation (CSC), which also runs PSSap. Long-serving members sometimes hold more than one: a preserved PSS benefit from an earlier job alongside a PSSap account, for example. Your CSC statements will show each one.

For employees who started after the agreement commenced, the 15.4% is paid on ordinary time earnings (OTE). Employees already employed before it commenced continued on Fortnightly Contribution Salary (FCS), but can opt out to the OTE basis. That choice is one-way: once you opt out, you can't opt back in.

The composite makes a real difference. A rostered constable at Band 2.4 earns $72,317 base, or about $88,227 with the composite on our calculation, and 15.4% of the larger figure is about $13,587 a year going into super.

If you move from a rostered role to a day role, your super drops with your composite. Factor that in before a late-career move.

The method: contributions taxed at 15%, a 6.5% return after fees, 3% pay growth, 2.5% inflation, results in today's dollars, and no insurance premiums deducted. Officers stay at the stated band. Salaries with the composite are base × 1.22, calculated by us; the agreement prints base rates only.

The comparison row shows what the AFP rate is worth. For the Band 5.3 officer starting at 40, 15.4% instead of 12% adds about $122,000 in today's dollars by 60. For the Band 7.3 officer, retiring at the minimum age of 55 rather than 60 means about $285,000 less, and five more years to fund before preservation age.

The 2026-27 concessional cap is $32,500. Employer contributions count towards it, so at 15.4% the AFP alone fills the cap at a super salary of about $211,039. Any salary sacrifice comes out of whatever is left.

An Executive Level member at the top of the range receives about $35,579 of employer super a year, which is over the cap before any sacrifice. Under the ATO's rules, excess concessional contributions are added to your assessable income and taxed at your marginal rate, with a 15% offset for the tax already paid in the fund.

1. 1

   Check what's already going in

   Step 1

   Multiply your super salary by 15.4%. Include the composite if you're rostered.

2. 2

   Check your carry-forward

   Step 2

   myGov shows any unused cap from the past five years you can still use.

3. 3

   Set up sacrifice through AFP payroll

   Step 3

   The agreement entitles you to the AFP's flexible remuneration packaging arrangements, and your employer contribution isn't reduced.

Division 293 adds 15% tax on concessional contributions when income plus those contributions exceeds $250,000. Because the AFP rate is high, the crossover comes at a salary of about $216,638: lower than at a 12% force.

Senior members still in PSS or CSS are treated differently. For defined benefit interests, the ATO defers Division 293 tax into a debt account that accrues interest until a benefit is paid. Ask CSC how your notional contributions are calculated before you assume you're under the line.

New permanent employees whose first SG contribution reaches PSSap within 180 days of starting are generally eligible for lifePLUS auto. You can opt out within 60 days of your activation letter without paying premiums. Ask CSC whether "base salary" for income protection includes your composite.

PSS members can contribute between 2% and 10% of super salary, or elect to contribute nothing. When you contribute, the employer adds a productivity contribution of about 3%, and an unfunded component depends on your contribution level. The retirement benefit depends on contributing time, your average super salary across your last three birthdays, and your contributions. It's usually a lump sum, with a pension option in most cases.

CSS members can make a 5% basic contribution or elect not to. The main benefit is usually a pension, determined by your reason for leaving, your contributing service and your age, and sometimes your final salary.

The agreement lets you choose any eligible fund that accepts fortnightly electronic contributions from the AFP's payroll file, and the employer rate stays at 15.4%. So the decision comes down to insurance, fees and investment choice, not the rate.

The AFP Act 1979 has no compulsory retirement age. Section 31 lets you retire any time after the minimum retiring age of 55. The old "retire at 60" rule no longer appears in the Act.

Leaving the AFP doesn't by itself release accumulation super. With a preservation age of 60 for anyone born after 30 June 1964, an officer who retires at 55 needs other money for up to five years. If you resign to join a state force, your PSSap account stays open and can stay your fund. State employer rates are lower: see our guides to SA, Tasmania and NT Police super, and the interstate transfer guide.

Under section 32 of the AFP Act, the Commissioner can retire an employee for physical or mental incapacity, with or without consent, and a non-consensual retirement can be reviewed under section 33. For CSS members below maximum retiring age and PSS or PSSap ordinary employer-sponsored members under 60, the AFP can't retire you on invalidity grounds unless CSC certifies it. That certificate is what triggers scheme invalidity benefits.

1. 1

   Workers compensation

   Comcare

   Work-related injuries go through Comcare under the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988.

2. 2

   Income protection

   PSSap

   PSSap lifePLUS auto pays 75% of base salary plus 15.4% super after 90 days, for 2 or 5 years depending on age.

3. 3

   Invalidity retirement

   CSC

   CSC certification under AFP Act s 32 for members under 60 in PSSap or PSS, or below maximum retiring age in CSS.

4. 4

   TPD and balance

   Payout

   PSSap pays your balance plus any TPD cover. PSS and CSS pay their own invalidity benefits.

If you die, PSSap pays your balance and any death cover to your dependants or estate, guided by your nomination. PSS and CSS have their own death and spouse benefits. If you're struggling, Lifeline is on 13 11 14 and Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636.

Your band drives everything here. Check the AFP pay table and how promotion through the barriers works in the AFP promotion guide. The Australian Federal Police Association can help with disputes about super salary.