Super smart; top superannuation tips for 2019

Alex Ritchie-07/01/2019- 2 min read

The new year can bring with it a lot of positive new changes. Most of us are guilty of ignoring our superannuation, but this this year, why not include a super health check in your resolutions?

According to Industry Super Australia, the latest figures show duplicate account fees and insurance premiums have eaten into our savings by over $2 billion, lost superannuation had amounts to $17.5 billion, and one third of workers simply haven’t been paid what they are entitled to.

Industry Super Australia chief executive, Bernie Dean, said “consumers could take a few simple steps in 2019 to help set their superannuation up for the future.

“Most people don’t start thinking about superannuation until they near retirement, but early action could make a huge difference to a nest egg.

“Consumers may consider consolidating multiple accounts; claiming lost superannuation; and choosing a fund that has out-performed over the long term.

“They should also check they’re being paid the correct amount, as almost three million workers were short-changed their super in 2016,” Mr Dean said.

Whip your super into shape with these tips from Industry Super Australia:

Look at the long-term net performance of your fund. How does it stack up? For the average income earner a 2 per cent performance gap may be a difference of around $200,000* at retirement.

Consider consolidating multiple accounts to avoid duplicate fees and insurance premiums. In 2018, the Productivity Commission identified 10 million unintended multiple superannuation accounts – that’s one third of all super accounts.

Check you’re being paid the super you are entitled to. Employers have three months to pay into an employee’s super account, so a wage slip may not reflect actual payment. If your super doesn’t add up, let your fund or the tax office know.

If you’ve ever changed jobs, check if any of the lost super held by the tax office is yours. According to them, one account contains a whopping $2.2 million in unclaimed super.

*ASIC Money Smart calculator – start age 27, retire age 67, income $80,000 starting balance zero. Balance with investment returns of 4.5 per cent = $442,402. Balance with investment returns of 6.5 per cent = $663,270. Difference= $220,868 (Current dollars CPI deflated).

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Fact Checked -

This article was reviewed by Property & Personal Finance Writer Nick Bendel before it was published as part of RateCity's Fact Check process.

Alex Ritchie

Personal Finance Editor

Alex is a personal finance writer and editor at RateCity, and has been writing about finance for over five years. She is passionate about closing the gender pay and superannuation gap, and aims to help young Aussies to overcome their financial apathy and better manage their finances. Alex has been published in numerous print and online outlets, including Money Magazine, Lifehacker Australia, and Business Insider.

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Learn more about superannuation

Superannuation is paid by employers to employees, at least once every three months. The ‘superannuation guarantee’ is currently 9.5 per cent – which means that your employer must pay you superannuation equivalent to 9.5 per cent of your salary. The guarantee is scheduled to rise to 10.0 per cent in 2021-22, 10.5 per cent in 2022-23, 11.0 per cent in 2023-24, 11.5 per cent in 2024-25 and 12.0 per cent in 2025-26.

Superannuation is generally taxed at 15 per cent. However, if you earn less than $37,000, you will be automatically reimbursed up to $500 of the tax you paid. Also, if your income plus concessional superannuation contributions exceed $250,000, you will also be charged Division 293 tax. This is an extra 15 per cent tax on your concessional contributions or the amount above $250,000 – whichever is lesser.

You can withdraw your superannuation when you meet the ‘conditions of release’. The conditions of release say you can claim your super when you reach:

Age 65
Your ‘preservation age’ and retire
Your preservation age and begin a ‘transition to retirement’ while still working

You or your partner could be forced to surrender part of your superannuation if you divorce, just like with other assets.

You can file a claim for division of property – including superannuation – as soon as you divorce. However, the claim has to be filed within one year of the divorce.

Your superannuation could be affected even if you’re in a de facto relationship – that is, living together as a couple without being officially married.

In that case, the claim has to be filed within two years of the date of separation.

Either way, the first thing to consider is whether you’re a member of a standard, APRA-regulated superannuation fund or if you’re a member of a self-managed superannuation fund (SMSF), because different rules apply.

Standard superannuation funds

If your relationship breaks down, your superannuation savings might be divided by court order or by agreement.

The rules of the superannuation fund will dictate whether this transfer happens immediately, or in the future when the person who has to make the transfer is allowed to access the rest of their superannuation (i.e. at or near retirement).

Click here for more information.

SMSFs

If your relationship breaks down, you must continue to observe the trust deed of your SMSF.

So if you and your partner are both members of the same SMSF, neither party is allowed to use the fund to inflict ‘punishment’ – such as by excluding the other party from the decision-making process or refusing their request to roll their money into another superannuation fund.

This no-punishment rule applies even if the two parties are involved in legal proceedings.

Click here for more information.

Financial consequences

Superannuation funds often charge a fee for splitting accounts after a relationship breakdown.

Splitting superannuation can also impact the size of your total super balance and how your super is taxed.

Click here for more information.

Lost superannuation refers to savings in an account that you’ve forgotten about. This can happen if you’ve opened several different accounts over the years while moving from job to job.

You can use your MyGov account to see details of all your superannuation accounts, including any you might have forgotten. Alternatively, you can fill in a ‘Searching for lost super’ form and send it to the Australian Taxation Office, which will then search on your behalf.

Lost superannuation refers to savings in an account that you’ve forgotten about. This can happen if you’ve opened several different accounts over the years while moving from job to job.

You can withdraw your superannuation when you meet the ‘conditions of release’. The conditions of release say you can claim your super when you reach:

Age 65
Your ‘preservation age’ and retire
Your preservation age and begin a ‘transition to retirement’ while still working

The preservation age – which is different to the pension age – is based on date of birth. Here are the six different categories:

Date of birth	Preservation age
Before 1 July 1960	55
1 July 1960 – 30 June 1961	56
1 July 1961 – 30 June 1962	57
1 July 1962 – 30 June 1963	58
1 July 1963 – 30 June 1964	59
From 1 July 1964	60

A transition to retirement allows you to continue working while accessing up to 10 per cent of the money in your superannuation account at the start of each financial year.

There are also seven special circumstances under which you can claim your superannuation:

Compassionate grounds
Severe financial hardship
Temporary incapacity
Permanent incapacity
Superannuation inheritance
Superannuation balance under $200
Temporary resident departing Australia

Superannuation in Australia is currently 9.5 per cent – which means that your employer must pay you superannuation equivalent to 9.5 per cent of your salary.

The ‘superannuation guarantee’, as it is known, has been at 9.5 per cent since the 2014-15 financial year. It is scheduled to rise to 10.0 per cent in 2021-22, 10.5 per cent in 2022-23, 11.0 per cent in 2023-24, 11.5 per cent in 2024-25 and 12.0 per cent in 2025-26.

Superannuation is designed to provide Australians with money in their retirement. The government has strict rules around when people can take that money out of their fund because it wants to prevent people eroding their savings before they reach retirement.

As a general rule, you can only take money out of your superannuation fund when you reach:

Age 65
Your ‘preservation age’ and retire
Your preservation age and begin a ‘transition to retirement’ while still working

That said, you can take money out of your superannuation fund early based on one of these seven special conditions:

Compassionate grounds
Severe financial hardship
Temporary incapacity
Permanent incapacity
Superannuation inheritance
Superannuation balance under $200
Temporary resident departing Australia

Superannuation is money set aside for your retirement. This money is automatically paid into your superannuation fund by your employer.

First home buyers are the only people who can use their superannuation to buy a property. The federal government has created the First Home Super Saver Scheme to help first home buyers save for a deposit. First home buyers can make voluntary contributions of up to $15,000 per year, and $30,000 in total, to their superannuation account. These contributions are taxed at 15 per cent, along with deemed earnings. Withdrawals are taxed at marginal tax rates minus a tax offset of 30 percentage points.

Voluntary contributions to the First Home Super Saver Scheme are not exempt from the $25,000 annual limit on concessional contributions. So if you pay $15,000 per year into the First Home Super Saver Scheme, you have to make sure that you don’t receive more than $10,000 in superannuation payments from your employer and any salary sacrificing.

The superannuation rate, or guarantee rate, is the percentage of your salary that your employer must pay into your superannuation fund. The superannuation guarantee has been set at 9.5 per cent since the 2014-15 financial year. It is scheduled to rise to 10.0 per cent in 2021-22, 10.5 per cent in 2022-23, 11.0 per cent in 2023-24, 11.5 per cent in 2024-25 and 12.0 per cent in 2025-26.

A superannuation fund is an institution that is legally allowed to hold and invest your superannuation. There are more than 200 different superannuation funds in Australia. They come in five different types:

Retail funds
Industry funds
Public sector funds
Corporate funds
Self-managed super funds

Retail funds are usually run by banks or investment companies.

Industry funds were originally designed for workers from a particular industry, but are now open to anyone.

Public sector funds were originally designed for people working for federal or state government departments. Most are still reserved for government employees.

Corporate funds are arranged by employers for their employees.

Self-managed super funds are private superannuation funds that allow people to directly invest their money.

Accessing your superannuation is a simple administrative procedure – you just ask your fund to pay it. You can access your superannuation in three different ways:

Lump sum
Account-based pension
Part lump sum and part account-based pension

However, please note that your superannuation fund will only be able to make a payout if you meet the ‘conditions of release’. The conditions of release say you can claim your super when you reach:

Age 65
Your ‘preservation age’ and retire
Your preservation age and begin a ‘transition to retirement’ while still working

The preservation age has six different categories:

Date of birth	Preservation age
Before 1 July 1960	55
1 July 1960 – 30 June 1961	56
1 July 1961 – 30 June 1962	57
1 July 1962 – 30 June 1963	58
1 July 1963 – 30 June 1964	59
From 1 July 1964	60

There are also seven special circumstances under which you can claim your superannuation:

Compassionate grounds
Severe financial hardship
Temporary incapacity
Permanent incapacity
Superannuation inheritance
Superannuation balance under $200
Temporary resident departing Australia

Opening a superannuation account is simple. When you start a job, your employer will give you what’s called a ‘superannuation standard choice form’. Here’s what you need to complete the form:

The name of your preferred superannuation fund
The fund’s address
The fund’s Australian business number (ABN)
The fund’s superannuation product identification number (SPIN)
The fund’s phone number
A letter from the fund trustee confirming that the fund is a complying fund; or written evidence from the fund stating it will accept contributions from your new employer; or details about how your employer can make contributions to the fund

You might want to provide your tax file number as well – while it’s not a legal obligation, it will ensure your contributions will be taxed at the (lower) superannuation rate.

Superannuation is paid by employers to employees. Employers are required to pay superannuation to all their staff if the staff are:

Over 18 and earn more than $450 before tax in a calendar month
Under 18, work more than 30 hours per week and earn more than $450 before tax in a calendar month

This applies even if the staff are casual employees, part-time employees, contractors (provided the contract is mainly for their labour) or temporary residents.

Currently, the superannuation rate is currently 9.5 per cent of an employee’s ordinary time earnings. This is scheduled to rise to 10.0 per cent in 2021-22, 10.5 per cent in 2022-23, 11.0 per cent in 2023-24, 11.5 per cent in 2024-25 and 12.0 per cent in 2025-26.

Employers must pay superannuation at least four times per year. The due dates are 28 January, 28 April, 28 July and 28 October.