TOP 10 SPECIAL, Over-50s contributions cap, annuities, bring-forward rule, TRIPs and more
Welcome to the June 2011 edition of SuperGuide newsletter, a free and independent source of superannuation information for consumers.
The highlights of the June 2011 SuperGuide newsletter are:
- WHAT’S GOING ON WITH THE OVER-50s CONCESSIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS CAP? I have received dozens of emails from SuperGuide readers asking for clarification about the over-50s concessional cap, including who will be eligible for the $50,000 cap from July 2012, and how the $500,000 account balance threshold will be implemented. This article and SuperGuide’s companion Q&A feature will hopefully answer most of your questions. Click on the article link below to find out more.
- OVER-50s CONCESSIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS CAP: TOP 10 Q & As. You can find the answers to 10 of the most popular questions received by readers on the concessional cap for over-50s. Click on the link below to find out more.
- PEACE OF MIND, AT A COST: 10 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT ANNUITIES. For some retirees and prospective retirees, the risk of another sharemarket crash has redirected attention to the possibility of a guaranteed income in retirement. Some investors are reconsidering their options and wondering whether peace of mind is worth more than the potential for higher returns, despite the extra costs associated with accepting an annuity. Click on the article link below to find out more.
- SUPER FUNDS DELIVER 8.6% FOR 12 MONTHS TO MAY 2011. The median superannuation growth fund delivered 8.6% for the 12 months to 31 May 2011, although the median superannuation growth fund has delivered 10.% for the financial year to date (July 2010 to May 2011), according to rating company Chant West. Click on the link below to find out more.
- SUPER TOP 10 LISTs. SuperGuide regularly publishes Top 10 lists on important superannuation topics. We have now created a special section on our home page where you can find all of our Top 10 lists. We have added the over-50s concessional cap (10 Q&As) article and our annuity article to the new section, and we have updated and expanded four of our most popular Top 10 features listed immediately below.
- BRING-FORWARD RULES: 10 FACTS YOU SHOULD KNOW. The annual non-concessional (after-tax) contributions cap is $150,000 (for the 2010/2011 year and for the 2011/2012 year), although Australians under the age of 65 have the opportunity to bring-forward two years’ worth of non-concessional contributions. Click on the article link below to find out more.
- FOR OVER-65s: TEN TIPS WHEN MAKING SUPER CONTRIBUTIONS. If you’re aged 65 or over, you must satisfy a work test, and meet additional requirements when making super contributions. Click on the article link below to find out more.
- TRIPs: 10 INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT TRANSITION-TO-RETIREMENT PENSIONS. A transition-to-retirement pension enables Australians aged 55 or over to access their super in the form of a pension without retiring or satisfying another condition of release. TRIPs can also save super fund members a heap of tax. Click on the article link below to find out more.
- SMSF BASICS: TRISH’S 10 COMMANDMENTS OF DIY SUPER. When presenting to investment forums on DIY super, I often used the term ‘ten commandments’ as a tool to help the audience grasp the major rules that apply to self-managed super funds (SMSFs). Click on the article link below to find out what made the Top 10.
In this month’s newsletter, we also give you an update on where SMSF trustees invest their super money, and we have Q&As covering where you can find the special form required to claim a tax deduction for your super contributions, how the two contributions caps interact, whether shift work and overtime count for Superannuation Guarantee entitlements, and the tricky aspects of contributing when you’re 63, 64 or 65.
Over the next few weeks, we will be updating all content for the 2011/2012 financial year. We will give you more details on the updated content in the July 2011 newsletter.
Note: You can click on the links below or you can access the newsletter link directly via the SuperGuide website. Click here if you want to access the JUNE 2011 newsletter page via the website.
If you like this newsletter and our website, then please pass on the newsletter to your friends and encourage them to sign up for the SuperGuide newsletter. As consumers, we have more influence with decision-makers when we speak as a group. Also, you can follow us on Twitter, or you may prefer to become a SuperGuide fan on Facebook, or do both.
Thanks again for your support and interest in SuperGuide.
Trish Power
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FEATURES
Super contributions: What’s going on with the over-50s concessional cap?
I have received dozens of emails from SuperGuide readers asking for clarification about the over-50s concessional cap, including who will be eligible for the $50,000 cap from July 2012, and how the $500,000 account balance threshold will be implemented.
Read more
Super contributions: Over-50s concessional cap (10 Q&As)
In this article, you can find the answers to 10 of the most popular questions received by readers on the concessional cap for over-50s.
Read more
Peace of mind, at a cost: 10 things to know about annuities
The Global Financial Crisis, and the financial carnage that followed, devastated the value of many Australian retirement portfolios. For some retirees and prospective retirees, the risk of another sharemarket crash has redirected attention to the possibility of a guaranteed income in retirement, taking the form of an annuity.
Read more
Super funds deliver 8.6% for 12 months to May 2011
The median superannuation growth fund delivered 8.6% for the 12 months to 31 May 2011, although the median growth fund has delivered 10.0% for the financial year to date (July 2010 to May 2011), according to rating company Chant West.
Read more
SMSF investment: Where does all the DIY super money go?
Each quarter the ATO releases self-managed super fund statistics derived from annual return data. Some of the more interesting data outlines the investments that SMSF trustees choose, and how much SMSF money is invested in the different asset types.
Read more
MORE SUPER TOP 10 LISTS
Bring-forward rule: 10 facts you should know
I receive a lot of questions from readers about how the non-concessional (after-tax) super contributions rules work; in particular, how the bring-forward rule works. For the benefit of our readers, here is a 10-point summary explaining the bring-forward rule.
Read more
For over 65s: Ten super tips when making super contributions
You can make superannuation contributions up to the age of 74, and these can be concessional (before-tax) or non-concessional (after-tax) contributions. If you’re aged 65 or over, then you must satisfy a work test if you intend to make super contributions. Anyone under the age of 65 can make super contributions without having to satisfy a work test.
Read more
TRIPs: 10 interesting facts about transition-to-retirement pensions
I often describe transition-to-retirement pensions (TRIPs) as the super saver’s version of ‘having your cake and eating it’. A transition-to-retirement pension enables Australians aged 55 or over to access their super in the form of a pension (income streams) without retiring or satisfying another condition of release.
Read more
SMSF basics: Trish’s 10 commandments of DIY super
If you’re running a self-managed super fund, then you’re obviously aware that being a SMSF trustee/member is a very different experience to belonging to a large super fund. In a large super fund, someone else looks after your superannuation benefits. As a SMSF trustee, you make all of the C-A-R-T decisions. CART is a term that I have coined to help trustees understand their fund responsibilities and it stands for Compliance, Administration, Reporting and Tax obligations.
Read more
Q&As: SUPER CONTRIBUTIONS
Concessional contributions: What form do I use to claim a tax deduction?
Q: I want to make a tax-deductible super contribution. I am trying to find the official form for claiming this type of deduction. Could you lead me to a link where I could find a generic S290-170 notice of intent to deduct? It would be great to have a generic list of forms that would assist self-managed super fund (SMSF) trustees.
Read more
Does shift work count for SG entitlements and insurance cover?
Q: Hi, I’m a shift worker and have a question about whether my ‘Super fund salary’ figure which my employer gives to my super fund should include both my base and shift loading salary. At the moment it only includes my base even though my employer does pay super for both my base and shift loading. What I’m concerned about is that they only give my base salary to my super fund which is what is used to calculate my life insurance and income protection. My shift loading is permanent 33% on top of my base salary and never changes. So shouldn’t my total base and shift loading salary be given to my super fund, so they can base my life insurance and income protection benefits on my total salary?
Read more
Super contributions: Juggling two caps is not excessive
Q: For a taxpayer aged over 50, can a total contribution of $200,000 this financial year (150K non concessional and 50k concessional) and a total contribution of $500,000 next financial year (450k non concessional and 50K concessional) be made without attracting penalty tax?
Read more
Non-concessional contributions: Tread carefully when age 63, 64 or 65
Q: I am 64 and want to take advantage of the bring-forward rules when making non-concessional contributions. I turn 65 sometime during the 2011/2012 financial year. There is a possibility that I will be able to dispose of a property during the financial years 2011/2012 or 2012/2013.
Read more
