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Superannuation

Superannuation is designed to encourage individuals to fund their own retirement. It is a method of providing retirement benefits for the individual by making contributions to a superannuation fund during the member's life until retirement.

Superannuation involves employers, the self-employed and employees making contributions on a regular basis over a long period to a superannuation fund to primarily provide income for retirement.

The superannuation fund holds the contributions in trust for the member and invests the contributions to increase the fund's assets. These assets are then used to provide benefits to members when they retire or suffer a serious disability, or to a member's family if the member dies.

The Government taxes superannution savings at lower rates than normal savings if the superannuation fund is a complying superannuation fund. This and the accumulation of the fund's earnings from investment, combined to produce a larger benefit for retirement. This is part of the Government's plan to ensure an adequate income for Australians when they retire.

When you retire permanently from the workforce and have reached the preservation age, you can access your superannuation. There are three ways you can access your superannuation:

take it as a lump sum
roll it over into a pension or annuity
in a combination of both

When can I access my superannuation?

You can access your superannuation when you have satisfied certain criterias. To access your superannuation, you must have retired permanently from the workforce and have reached your preservation age.

Aside from accessing your superannuation because of retirement, there are also other conditions that permits the release of your superannuation. These include: terminating gainful employment and benefit less than $200, permanent or temporary incapacity, severe financial hardship, compassionate grounds, and temporary residents departing Australia.

The information above does not consider the particular circumstances of any person, and do not constitute advice. You should not rely upon the information as such. The information provided is intended to be for your interest and convenient only.

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