Every so often, something happens in the wider world that causes people to pause and look inward. Not at the headlines themselves, but at their own situation. The 2026 Federal Budget has been one of those moments.
In the past few weeks, I have sat with clients and families carrying a quiet unease. Not panic. More a dawning awareness. The structures they had put in place, trusts, investment portfolios, future plans, suddenly felt less settled than they had before.
I kept hearing the same things:
"I thought everything was set up and okay." "I didn't realise how exposed things have now become." "I need a structure that gives us more control, not less."
These are not small feelings. When you have spent decades building something, land, a business, a family's future, the idea that the rules might change underneath you is deeply unsettling.
What the Budget actually proposes
It is worth being clear about what is on the table, and what is not yet law. Many of these measures are still proposals, and some may change before they come into effect.
Property and investment changes
One of the more significant announcements concerns property and investment. From 1 July 2027, negative gearing on residential property is proposed to be limited to new builds. Properties already held at Budget night are expected to keep their current treatment. For investors who purchase an established property after Budget night, losses may still be offset against rental income and carried forward, but they would no longer be offset against salary or wages.
Capital gains tax changes
The proposed changes to capital gains tax are equally significant. Currently, investors generally receive a 50% discount on capital gains when they sell an asset held for more than 12 months. Under the Budget proposal, that discount would be replaced from 1 July 2027 with a method that adjusts the cost base for inflation, alongside a 30% minimum tax on net capital gains. Importantly, these changes are proposed to apply to all investments, including assets acquired before 1985 that have until now been exempt from CGT.
Transitional arrangements for capital gains tax changes
For assets already owned before 1 July 2027, the transitional arrangements are worth understanding carefully. Current rules would apply to gains accrued up to that date. For gains accruing after 1 July 2027, the new method would apply, using the asset's value at that date as the new cost base. Investors would need to establish that value either through a formal valuation or an apportionment formula that the ATO will provide tools to calculate. This only comes into play when an asset is actually sold, so there is time to plan thoughtfully rather than react quickly.
Changes for family trusts
If your family uses a discretionary trust, the proposed 30% minimum tax from 1 July 2028 is worth understanding carefully. In broad terms, this would bring discretionary trusts closer to company tax treatment and is likely to affect planning strategies that currently produce a lower tax outcome. Not every trust will be affected, fixed trusts and certain income types are expected to be excluded, and restructuring relief may be available for those who want to move out of a discretionary trust structure. This is an area worth reviewing carefully with your adviser and accountant.
Superannuation and SMSFs
One of the more reassuring aspects of the Budget is that superannuation, including self-managed super funds, is proposed to remain outside the new capital gains tax changes for now. The current treatment inside super is expected to stay the same.
Is your structure still aligned with your life?
Even when a Budget measure sounds straightforward on paper, its real impact depends entirely on your personal circumstances: the structure you hold assets in, your family situation, your timeline, and what you are ultimately trying to protect or pass on.
This is particularly relevant for rural families using discretionary trusts for farm or business succession, and for women whose financial security is tied to trust structures.
What this moment invites is not a reactive decision. It is a better question: is the structure I have built still aligned with the life I am living now, and the one I am planning for?
Budgets will come and go. But the decisions we make in response to them shape the next decade. That is why they deserve careful thought, not just a quick review.
If this Budget has stirred something in you, discomfort, curiosity, or a quiet sense that it is time to look again, that is a worthwhile place to begin. If you would like to work through what these changes might mean for your family and your plans, let's have that conversation.
The information contained in this post is general in nature and does not take into account your personal objectives, financial situation or needs. Before acting on any information, you should consider the appropriateness of the information having regard to your own objectives financial situation and needs.
