Treasurer Jim Chalmers handed down what is, by some margin, the most significant structural tax reform package since the introduction of the GST. Beneath the macro headlines sits a Budget that does something far more consequential than balance the books – it rebalances the Australian tax system itself.
The strategic direction is straightforward, and runs through every major measure announced: income from work will be taxed more lightly; income from accumulated capital will be taxed more heavily. That theme holds across discretionary trusts, capital gains tax, and negatively geared residential property. Read together (and these measures are designed to be read together) the package represents a fundamental shift in how Australia treats long-term private wealth.
Andersen’s Federal Budget 2026–27 Report, sets out our team’s expert analysis of every significant measure announced, including the technical interactions, transitional rules and planning implications our clients are already working through.
Inside the Report
The Report covers the three centrepiece reforms – the CGT discount replacement, the new 30 per cent minimum tax on capital gains, the restriction of negative gearing to new builds, and the discretionary trust minimum tax, alongside the package of cost-of-living and business measures that have been positioned to soften the political impact.
Our team has also addressed several areas where the technical interactions matter as much as the headline measures, including:
- Pre-CGT assets, brought into the CGT regime for the first time since 1985.
- Bucket company strategies, fundamentally changed by the trust reform.
- Pillar Two, recalibrated under the OECD’s side-by-side package.
- Mobile employees and expats, where pre-existing residency rules now interact with the new measures in ways the Budget Papers don’t address.
- The R&D Tax Incentive reset, which gives with one hand and tightens with the other.
A Planning Window, Not a Window of Inaction
The major commencement dates of 1 July 2027 and 1 July 2028 give clients a meaningful planning window but it is not unlimited. The decisions that matter most under these changes such as restructures, valuations, succession events and asset disposals are not decisions that can be made in the months immediately before commencement.
Whether or not the technical detail moves significantly during consultation, the structural intent is now beyond doubt. For Andersen clients, the priority is reviewing position now, before legislation lands.
Read the Andersen Federal Budget 2026–27 Report (button)
Our Report covers every significant measure announced, with practical commentary across individuals, property investors, family groups and trusts, private clients, SMEs and start-ups, corporate and multinational groups, and superannuation structures.
Visit Our Budget Hub
For ongoing analysis visit the Andersen Budget 2026–27 hub.
Contact Andersen to Discuss How the 2026–27 Budget Impacts You
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