Topic
Superannuation
121 articles on superannuation — general-advice insights for Australians.
Can you roll over a super death benefit? Yes — but you cannot keep it
A death benefit can move between funds. It can never sit in accumulation or merge with your own super.
LRBAs in SMSFs: how self-managed super funds can borrow to buy property — and what the 2026 residential ban changed
New residential LRBAs ended on 10 August 2026. What is banned, what is grandfathered, and what borrowing an SMSF can still do.
The Transfer Balance Cap: how much super can sit in the tax-free retirement phase, and how the $2.1 million limit works in practice
TBC caps retirement-phase super at $2 million; personal caps vary and reversionary pensions require pre-planning.
Is my super safe? What actually protects your superannuation
Super isn't covered by the bank deposit guarantee, but trust law and APRA protect it.
The new financial year: what changes on 1 July, and the retirement review it should prompt
1 July resets super caps, but the Age Pension changes in March and September instead.
SMSF asset valuation: the market value rule and what auditors look for
SMSF asset valuations at 30 June feed every other compliance calculation the fund relies on.
Non-Arm's-Length Income for SMSFs in retirement: the 45% tax penalty trustees must avoid
NALI taxes SMSF income from non-arm's-length dealings at 45%, even in tax-free pension phase.
When your SMSF stops being Australian: residency rules for travelling trustees
An SMSF fails Australian residency if trustees are overseas too long, with catastrophic tax cost.
The SMSF sole purpose test: what your fund can and can't do for you today
An SMSF must be maintained solely for retirement purposes, with no current-day benefit to members.
When you're suddenly the only trustee: the SMSF survivor's six-month window
A surviving spouse has six months to fix an SMSF's trustee structure or lose compliance.
Super contributions after age 75: what's still possible and what's not
At 75, super law shuts most voluntary contributions except employer SG and downsizer.
Super stapling and the late-career job change: what the 2021 rules mean for pre-retirees
Since 2021, a job change no longer opens a new default super account.
TPD lump sums and the disability service modification: how a tax mechanic protects under-60 claimants
A tax modification converts part of a TPD lump sum from taxable to tax-free.
Why you might not have the full $2.1 million transfer balance cap: proportional indexation explained
Your personal transfer balance cap can be well below the current $2.1 million headline figure.
When a pensioner dies mid-year: the regulated minimum drawdown question
A pensioner's death mid-year pro-rates the minimum drawdown, and only pre-death payments count.
Salary sacrifice in the pre-retirement window: how it works, what it saves, and where the limits sit
Salary sacrifice in the pre-retirement years delivers the largest tax saving when marginal rates peak.
The Division 296 tax on super balances over $3 million: what high-balance members need to know
Division 296 is now law: two tiers, realised earnings only, indexed thresholds.
End-of-financial-year super contributions: the 30 June timing trap
A super contribution counts when the fund receives it, not when you send it.
Starting a pension can cancel your insurance: the trap most retirees never see coming
Starting a pension can silently cancel super insurance, with no warning until a claim fails.
Lost super and the pre-retirement audit: the check that often pays for itself
A pre-retirement lost-super audit is one of the cheapest, highest-payoff checks a retiree can do.
Defined benefit super and the hidden cap eater: notional taxed contributions explained
Defined benefit members can breach the concessional cap without making a single cash contribution.
Age Pension treatment of super in accumulation phase: same Centrelink rules, different tax
Accumulation and post-2015 pension-phase super get identical Centrelink deeming — the difference is tax.
The $131,250 defined benefit income cap: when more pension means more tax
The defined benefit income cap, now $131,250, taxes senior DB pensioners' income above the line.
Division 293: the extra 15% super tax for high earners — and why super is still worth it
Division 293 adds 15% tax on super contributions above $250,000 income — super still wins.
Pension phase earnings tax: why super in retirement phase is tax-free — and why it matters
Pension phase super earns tax-free, up to your Transfer Balance Cap of $2.1 million.
The Retirement Income Covenant: what your super fund must now do for you in retirement
Since 2022 super funds must have a genuine retirement income strategy, and quality varies widely.
Salary sacrifice vs personal deductible contributions: two roads to the same destination
Both routes reach the same tax outcome — the real choice is flexibility versus set-and-forget.
SMSF winding up: when and how to close a self-managed super fund
Winding up an SMSF proactively, before capacity fails, avoids a costly crisis exit.
Tax on super withdrawals: why it's generally tax-free at 60, and the specific exceptions that matter
Super withdrawals are tax-free from 60, but the taxable component still matters at death.
Term Allocated Pensions and legacy income streams: the commutation window is open, and it closes in 2029
Legacy pension holders can now commute to a lump sum before the 2029 window closes.
Total Superannuation Balance: the 30 June figure that gates your contribution capacity for the year ahead
Your Total Superannuation Balance at 30 June gates almost every voluntary contribution option next year.
Treasury's Best Practice Principles for retirement income: what they mean for super fund members
Treasury's new Best Practice Principles will reshape super funds' retirement products and communications.
Your Future Your Super: the performance test, stapling, and what it means for your fund choice
The YFYS performance test and stapling reforms changed how super funds are chosen.
Switching super funds in pension phase: the mechanics (and the traps) the brochures don't mention
Switching super funds in pension phase means closing one pension and opening another.
From 15% to zero: when (and how much) to turn your super into a pension
Super doesn't turn tax-free automatically at retirement — you must actively start a pension.
Getting a windfall into super: how to stack the contribution caps in a single year
A windfall can stack multiple super contribution avenues well beyond the standard caps.
Salary packaging in the charity and health sectors: a pre-retirement super-building opportunity
Charity and health workers can salary package tax-free, then supercharge their super.
The quiet drag on your retirement: understanding super and investment fees
Super fees compound relentlessly, so even small differences erode your retirement balance.
Forced to draw more than you spend? What to do with super pension money you don't need
You must withdraw the minimum pension amount, but you never have to spend it.
Superannuation and bankruptcy: creditor protection and the contribution clawback rules
Super is protected from creditors in bankruptcy, but panic contributions can be clawed back.
TBAR: Transfer Balance Account Reporting for SMSF members in retirement phase
SMSFs must lodge quarterly TBAR reports on pension events, with real penalties for delays.
TPD definitions in super: 'own occupation' vs 'any occupation' and the 1 July 2014 reform
Since 2014, new super-held TPD cover can only use the any-occupation trigger.
Ceasing employment at 60: accessing super without "retiring"
At 60+, changing jobs unlocks your super with no need to declare retirement.
SMSF ECPI methods: segregated, proportionate, and the disregarded small fund assets trap
A fund fully in retirement phase all year escapes the disregarded assets rule.
SMSF non-arm's length expenses (NALE) and the 2024 reforms: what the cap means for retirement-phase SMSFs
2024 reforms cap general expense NALE at twice the underpaid amount, not the whole fund.
SMSF trustee disqualification and the ATO penalty regime: what happens when compliance fails
Individual SMSF trustees each personally cop 60-unit penalties for breaches like member loans.
Closing the women's retirement savings gap: strategies for the late-career years
Spouse splitting and carry-forward contributions can meaningfully close the gender super gap.
Concessional contribution timing: the 28-day SG rule, payday super reform, and final-year retirement planning
Q4 super is due in late July, so it usually lands in the next financial year.
The Excess Concessional Contributions Charge: how the interest mechanism adds to the cost of breaching the CC cap
Excess concessional contributions attract marginal-rate tax plus a BBSW interest charge.
NCC bring-forward: when not to trigger, and why single-year contributions sometimes beat the maximum
Triggering the NCC bring-forward locks your cap for two years — sometimes that's a cost.
The pension reset misconception: why commutation does not unlock additional TBC indexation for fully-used members
Commuting and restarting a pension can't recapture cap space once your TBC is 100% used.
Protecting Your Super and PMIF reforms: how default insurance gets cancelled in inactive super accounts, and what late-career members need to check
Inactive super accounts can lose default life and TPD insurance without you noticing.
SMSF bare trust wind-up: transferring legal title after LRBA repayment
Repaying an SMSF LRBA doesn't automatically transfer legal title from the bare trustee.
The 47% no-TFN tax in super: how providing your TFN to every fund saves substantial tax
Super contributions to a fund without your TFN on file are taxed at 47%.
The untaxed element of super lump sums and death benefits: public sector schemes, the untaxed plan cap, and tax treatment for retirees and dependants
Public sector super lump sums often carry an untaxed element with different tax rules.
The CGT cap election: how retiring business owners can move $2.2 million into super in a single sale
Qualifying business sale proceeds can enter super outside the NCC cap via the CGT cap.
The 16x rule: how defined benefit lifetime pensions consume your transfer balance cap
A DB lifetime pension eats transfer balance cap space at 16 times its annual amount.
Excess non-concessional contributions: the release election that turns a 47% penalty into a manageable cost
Releasing excess NCCs plus earnings beats paying the flat 47% excess contributions tax.
Pension commencement timing: the first-year pro-rata calculation and the 1 June rule
A pension's first-year minimum drawdown is pro-rated, and nil if started after 1 June.
The pension proportioning rule: how the tax-free percentage of your pension is locked in forever at the moment you start it
A pension's tax-free percentage locks in at commencement and can't be improved later.
Personal injury settlements and section 292-95: how to preserve injury damages in super outside the contributions cap
A qualifying injury settlement can bypass the NCC cap entirely if claimed within 90 days.
SMSF actuarial certificates: why most mixed-phase funds need one each year, and what the disregarded small fund assets rule changed
The 2017 DSFA rule made annual actuarial certificates mandatory for most high-balance SMSFs.
Collectibles in your SMSF: the Reg 13.18AA rules and why the painting can't hang at home
SMSF collectibles must stay strictly investment-only — no personal use, storage, or display.
Corporate trustee vs individual trustees: the SMSF setup decision that compounds for decades
A corporate SMSF trustee simplifies membership changes, death events, and penalty exposure.
Cryptocurrency in your SMSF: the compliance landscape and why separation from personal holdings is the most common breach
SMSF crypto is permitted, but must be strictly separated from any personal holdings.
The 5% rule: how SMSF in-house assets work, and why most family lending arrangements break it
Related-party loans, investments, and leases through an SMSF are capped at 5% of assets.
Permanent incapacity and super: the early-access pathway for members who can no longer work
Permanent incapacity lets younger members access super early with a favourable tax boost.
Public sector pension indexation: how PSS, CSS, MilitarySuper and DFRDB pensions grow over a long retirement
PSS, CSS, MilitarySuper and DFRDB pensions index differently — and it compounds for decades.
The work test for super contributions after age 67: what counts and what doesn't
The 2022 reform kept the work test alive only for personal deductible contributions.
The myth of compulsory super cashing at 65: why you don't have to touch your super at any age
No law requires cashing out or converting super at any age since the 2007 reforms.
In-specie super contributions: transferring shares (and sometimes property) into super rather than cash
Transferring shares or business property directly into super triggers CGT but shifts future gains to super rates.
Why the notice of intent has to come first: the sequence that decides whether a personal super contribution is deductible
Commencing a pension before lodging a notice of intent permanently kills the deduction.
The partial commutation vs pension drawdown distinction: how the same withdrawal from an account-based pension can have two different treatments
The same lump sum can be a pension drawdown or a partial commutation, with very different consequences.
Why the Payday Super reform matters most in the years closest to retirement
Payday Super's real impact for pre-retirees is on contribution cap timing, not compounding.
The 30 June pension trap: how a single missed drawdown makes a whole year of fund earnings suddenly taxable
Missing an SMSF pension's minimum drawdown by 30 June can retrospectively cost tens of thousands in tax.
Section 305 of the tax act: how to move UK, NZ, US pensions to Australian super without triggering marginal-rate tax
Two ITAA provisions can eliminate marginal-rate tax on a foreign pension transfer to super.
The SMSF Investment Strategy Review Duty: Why Treating It as a Set-and-Forget Document Risks Personal Trustee Penalties
SMSF investment strategies must be reviewed regularly, not filed away at establishment.
The Trans-Tasman Retirement Savings Portability Scheme: Moving Super Between Australia and New Zealand KiwiSaver
The Trans-Tasman scheme moves super between Australia and NZ tax-free, subject to the NCC cap.
The June contribution reserve: doubling up the concessional cap in your final pre-retirement year
A late-June SMSF contribution can double a year's concessional tax deduction to $60,000.
The super contribution window just shifted — did you move into a better zone?
The 2025-26 TBC indexation shifted every bring-forward TSB threshold up by $100,000.
The bear market trap for SMSF trustees: how a falling portfolio can force the sale of the one asset that held its value
A market downturn can push an SMSF's in-house asset percentage over 5% with no new investment.
The business property in your SMSF is fully assessed for the Age Pension — here is why that matters
Business real property in an SMSF has no Age Pension exemption, unlike the principal home.
Spouse contribution splitting: a pre-retirement lever for couples with an age gap
Splitting contributions to a younger spouse keeps super off the Age Pension radar for longer.
The TTR strategy builds your super — but at 67, every dollar of it counts against the Age Pension
TTR super is invisible to Centrelink until 67, then counts in full, all at once.
The annual super statement review: 60 minutes that consistently pay for themselves
A once-a-year, hour-long super statement check routinely surfaces lapsed nominations and wasted premiums.
Super insurance in the pre-retirement window: review the cover, the premiums, and the definitions before you retire
Default super insurance steps down and costs more with age — review it before, not after, retiring.
Women's retirement: addressing the gender super gap and the catch-up mechanisms that work
Spouse splitting, co-contributions, and carry-forward caps can meaningfully close the gender super gap.
Transferring your account-based pension to a different fund: what actually happens, and the costs that often go unmentioned
Moving an ABP to a new fund involves three separate events and four underappreciated costs.
What actually happens to your superannuation when you retire — and why it matters
ABPs convert super to tax-free retirement income; minimum drawdown and longevity risk both require planning.
Non-concessional contributions: the bring-forward, the 2025-26 TSB thresholds, and what pre-retirees need to know
Non-concessional contributions cap $120,000 in 2025-26; bring-forward of $360,000 available for TSBs below $1.76 million.
When can you access your super? The two ages that matter — and they're not the same
Preservation age (60) and Age Pension age (67) are separate — the seven-year gap matters.
SMSF vs industry or retail fund: when a self-managed super fund is the right choice
SMSFs become cost-competitive around $300,000–$500,000, but trustee obligations are a genuine ongoing cost.
Superannuation splitting on divorce: how the family law mechanism works, and what separating couples should understand
Super is divisible property under family law, and the split carries preservation and tax implications.
Contribution splitting: how couples can equalise super between spouses
Splitting up to 85% of concessional contributions to a spouse's fund equalises super between partners.
Excess contributions tax: when you've put too much into super — and how to fix it
Excess super contributions attract tax up to 47%; the release election is the fix.
The government super co-contribution: a free 50% boost for low and middle-income earners
Make a $1,000 personal super contribution and the government tops it up by $500 automatically.
The re-contribution strategy: converting taxable super to tax-free for adult-child beneficiaries
Converting taxable super to tax-free through re-contribution reduces death benefit tax for adult-child beneficiaries.
Carry-forward concessional contributions: using up to 5 years of unused super cap
Members with TSB under $500,000 can access up to five years of unused concessional cap.
Excess concessional contributions: the release authority election that lets you pay the tax from super
The release authority lets members pay excess concessional contribution tax directly from their super fund.
Grandfathered pre-2015 account-based pensions: the Centrelink concession many retirees don't know they have
Pre-2015 account-based pensions may be assessed under the older return-of-capital method, not deeming.
Super fund mergers: what they mean for members and what to do
Super fund mergers are largely administrative, but insurance, fees, and investment options all need checking.
Claiming a tax deduction on your personal super contributions: the Notice of Intent
A Notice of Intent must be lodged to claim a personal super contribution deduction.
DB pension vs lump sum at retirement: one of the most consequential decisions for defined benefit members
For defined benefit members, pension vs lump sum is often irreversible and requires specialist advice.
Early release of super: the legitimate grounds, and the illegal schemes to avoid
Super early release requires hardship, terminal illness, or other specific grounds — not promoter schemes.
Ethical and sustainable investing in super: aligning retirement savings with personal values
Most super funds offer ethical options, but verifying substance over labelling requires careful due diligence.
Excess transfer balance tax: what happens when super pension balances exceed the cap
Exceeding the Transfer Balance Cap triggers tax on notional earnings, not the excess balance itself.
LISTO and the government co-contribution: two super boosts for low-income earners
LISTO and the government co-contribution each add up to $500 to low-income super accounts.
Self-employed and approaching retirement: late-career super strategies that work
Self-employed individuals have no automatic SG — but several late-career tools can rapidly rebuild super.
SMSF trustee succession: what happens when a trustee dies or loses capacity
SMSF trustee death or incapacity triggers a six-month compliance clock — planning avoids the crisis.
Reviewing your super fund in retirement: fees, products, and when to switch
Fees, product range, and service quality all shift in importance once you retire.
Consolidating super accounts: how to tidy up before retirement without losing your insurance
Super consolidation before retirement can silently cancel insurance — a structured approach avoids the trap.
Lump sum or pension at retirement? The decision that shapes your tax position for decades
Retirement-phase pension earnings are tax-free at the fund level; lump sums forfeit that advantage forever.
The minimum pension drawdown: a legal floor, not a spending recommendation
Account-based pension minimums run from 4% at under 65 to 14% at 95 and over.
The spouse contribution tax offset: a modest $540, and the equalisation strategy it belongs to
The $540 tax offset is modest; the equalisation strategy behind it is not.
The terminal medical condition rule: tax-free super access for members facing serious illness
Two-practitioner certification of terminal illness unlocks full tax-free super access, regardless of age or components.
Member-direct investment options in retirement: the middle ground between default super and SMSF
Member-direct gives super fund members ASX share control without the trustee burden of an SMSF.
When to draw your pension within the financial year: timing, the 30 June trap, and why most of the time it doesn't really matter
The 30 June minimum drawdown deadline matters far more than within-year timing.
SMSF auditor independence: what the 2021 changes mean for trustees today
Since 2021, the same firm can no longer do your SMSF's accounts and audit.
Your SMSF in retirement: what continues, what changes, and what's worth reconsidering
An SMSF in retirement offers control but compliance obligations don't stop — two risks need planning.
Transition to retirement: what a TRIS actually does — and doesn't — in 2026
TRIS fund earnings are taxed at 15% since 2017 — know what the strategy still delivers.
Turning your super into an income you can count on
The shift from building a nest egg to drawing from it is the most important transition in retirement — and the least discussed.