Can you please outline the benefits of salary sacrificing into super under the current legislation?

Q.

There was talk in the 2008 budget of changing the way salary sacrificed superannuation will affect your adjusted assessable tax income, and how this would in turn affect means testing for a range of benefits such as family tax etc. Although I have searched I have not been able to find out if this legislation was approved and after speaking to the tax department I am still unsure of how it will be applied 2009/2010. There are obvious long term benefits in salary sacrificing but I would like a clearer picture of the rulings to work out what is best for me.

This is a complex issue and the rules are being tightened the whole time. For example, salary sacrificed contributions will now be included when eligibilty for the co-contribution is being assessed and there have been restrictions for people receiving Centrelink benefits and when assessing eligibility for the Commonwealth Seniors Health Card. The best option would be to keep in regular contact with your financial advisor who should be right up to date with what is happening.