SuperGuide
Superannuation and retirement planning information
Now updated with a handy video guide. Adverse tax and compliance outcomes can occur if you fail to take your minimum pension payment each year. Don’t get caught due to poor SMSF administration.
While some super reforms are on the way, other proposed changes may struggle to get across the line before the upcoming federal election.
Proposed changes to legacy pensions will make it much easier to switch to newer, more flexible products without some of the previous hurdles and restrictions.
Forewarned is forearmed, as they say, so why not download our 2025 SMSF calendar to ensure you don’t miss any crucial dates, deadlines or opportunities in the year ahead.
Two member questions that explore how to use the recontribution strategy to reduce the super death tax payable by beneficiaries.
Q: I’m drawing a pension from an account-based pension fund. Can that account be moved or switched to another better provider? If so, what is involved?
Running multiple pensions from the one SMSF can be extremely beneficial. From tax planning to estate planning, there is a lot to consider!
Do you know the difference between pension payments and lump sums? The process for taking a lump sum from your accumulation account or your pension account?
Q: I am currently 63 and I work 4 days a week as a receptionist in a doctor’s surgery. I also work 2 days a week in the local chemist. Can I commence a TTR once I cease my role at the chemist shop?
Q: My wife and I have set up a new SMSF with a corporate Trustee (we are the directors). We want to transfer the assets from our old SMSF (we are the trustees). Some of the shares have large unrealised capital gains (e.g. Cochlear, CSL). Will there be capital gains tax payable by the old fund?
Q: I have two super funds and being in my 60s and retired believe I’m eligible to change from accumulation to pension. If I do this, does this need to happen for both funds, or can I choose to have one fund with one account in pension/drawdown mode and have the second fund with one account remaining in accumulation mode?
If you want to stay on the right side of the ATO and avoid costly penalties, it pays to review its list of common mistakes made by SMSFs when lodging their annual return.
Holding real property in an SMSF is a popular strategy, but the rules can be confusing. We answer some common questions from our readers.
Understanding the transfer balance account rules, including timing and transaction reporting, is extremely important for SMSF trustees..
With restrictions on the amount you can use to start a pension, understanding how you can then access these funds has become an even more important issue.
Q: Myself and my husband both 72 have an SMSF. We both have 3 individual pension accounts in our fund. I have paid out the required minimum amounts for this year as per our accountants’ instructions.
There’s growing awareness that TTR pensions can be used to achieve a variety of tax and other outcomes. Here we answer some recent questions from our readers.
Q: If you and your wife are retired and have an SMSF, what happens when one of you dies? Can you keep the money in the SMSF for the other person to still live off if you are the only person on the binding death nomination? Or does it need to get paid out of the SMSF?
