When can I access my super? All conditions of release explained

Generally, superannuation is designed to provide retirement income and your savings can’t be accessed until you reach age 60 and retire.

It sounds simple enough, but in practice there are multiple ways you may be eligible to legally access your super under Australian legislation. These are known collectively as conditions of release.

The four most common conditions of release are:

1. Age 60 and retiring
2. Age 60 and starting a transition-to-retirement income stream
3. Being 65 or over
4. Death

Early release of super

There are additional conditions of release that will allow you to access your super early if you meet strict eligibility criteria:

5. On compassionate grounds
6. If you’re suffering severe financial hardship
7. If you’re diagnosed with a terminal medical condition
8. If you’re temporarily incapacitated
9. If you’re permanently incapacitated
10. Through the First Home Super Saver Scheme
11. If you’re a temporary resident departing Australia
12. If you terminate gainful employment with less than $200 in your super account

We’ll look at each of these conditions of release in more detail in this article.

1. Age 60 and retiring

The definition of retirement for superannuation purposes is more complicated than the common meaning of the word and doesn’t necessarily require you to be leaving work for good.

The retirement condition of release has two branches. Meeting either one will permit you to access all your super (as a lump sum, an income stream, or a combination of both). 

The first branch requires you to declare you have permanently retired from the workforce. To make this declaration you must have:

• Reached your preservation age (now 60)
• Ceased gainful employment (at any time in the past)
• No intention of becoming gainfully employed again in the future.