Anyone aged 65 or over can access super benefits without retiring or satisfying any other special condition of release. Turning 65 is a condition of release. Unless you’re in a public sector fund, such super benefits will be tax-free when paid on or after the age of 60. For a general summary of the super and ... Read more
Superannuation strategies
Superannuation strategies can be any super-related action that can help an individual grow his or her benefit. Such action can include strategies that protect existing super benefits, minimise costs, help boost your super savings by making extra super contributions, or by actively selecting your super account’s selection options.
If you run an SMSF, then you may be considering SMSF-specific strategies in relation to administering your SMSF, or investing your super monies, or running an SMSF pension.
All Australians contemplating retirement, at some stage will be considering retirement strategies such as deciding on the right age to retire, working out how much money will be needed for a life in retirement, whether they will be eligible for the Age Pension, and deciding who gets their super savings after they leave this earth.
For more information on important superannuation strategies, refer to the links below:
- Housekeeping strategies (such as reporting your tax file number, choosing a super fund, checking fees, nominating beneficiaries)
- Contributions strategies (such as salary sacrificing, spouse contributions, non-concessional contributions, co-contributions, capital gains tax management)
- Investment strategies (such as choosing an investment option, asset allocation, shares that pay franked dividends
- Age-based strategies (such as making super contributions, accessing super, timing retirement)
- Retirement strategies (such as how much super is enough, lump sums, super pensions, Age Pension, work test)
- SuperGuide checklists
The following SuperGuide articles provide examples of superannuation strategies:
Set out below are all SuperGuide articles referring to Superannuation strategies.
Retirement planning: Choosing the right super strategies for your age
A superannuation fund is an investment vehicle, rather than an investment. Many fund members, journalists and even investment analysts are confused about this distinction. For example, asking whether property or super is the better investment is the wrong question. The right question to ask, is whether the tax savings ... Read more
Super loophole still benefits politicians and senior public servants
Amid the confusion surrounding the $1.6 million transfer balance cap on super pensions, and the short timeframes available to comply with this change (which took effect from July 2017), a small but important loophole was missed by the super experts, and continues to be ignored by the superannuation lobby groups, and ... Read more
Super health check for beginners: 10 tips for your 2018/2019 retirement planning
Note: This article is current for the 2018/2019 financial year. SuperGuide regularly publishes an updated super checklist for beginner readers. More advanced checklists can be found elsewhere on the site. Use this list as a prompt for your 2018/2019 super resolutions. You may not keep all of your resolutions, but ... Read more
Want to make 50% return on your super contribution?
If you earn less than $53,000 or so a year, or your spouse or children earn less than $53,000 or so a year, then you, or your spouse, or child, have an opportunity to potentially make a 50% return on your money when you make an after-tax super contribution to your super fund. Read on to find out how you can turn ... Read more
Excess contributions rules: A quick summary
If you plan to make superannuation contributions to a super fund, you need to be mindful of the contributions caps for both concessional (before tax) contributions and for non-concessional (after-tax) contributions. You also need to understand the financial (or other) consequences of exceeding those contributions ... Read more
Super contributions: How much co-contribution will I get?
Q: Where do I go to find a calculator that helps me work out how much co-contribution I will be entitled to, and how much super I need to contribute to get that co-contribution? I am also looking for something that shows the sliding scale for different income levels and different super contributions. The federal ... Read more
Super contributions: Can I make a retrospective payment to my fund to reduce tax?
Q: After completing my personal tax return my accountant advised I was up for $45,000 in income tax – (I had ceased work and sold an investment property, then unexpectedly recommenced work). My question to you is: Can I now make a contribution to my SMSF to reduce the income tax payable personally, that is, making the ... Read more
Superannuation death benefits and the $1.6 million transfer balance cap
We have received many questions from readers about how the new $1.6 million transfer balance cap will operate when a fund member dies, especially if the fund member has arranged for his or her spouse to receive a superannuation death benefit pension, including a reversionary pension. This article provides a brief ... Read more
Non-concessional contributions: Re-contribution strategy still applies
Q: My wife turns 60 this financial year and it has always been my intention to cash out her portion of our small self-managed super fund (SMSF) and re-contribute it straight back in, so as to ensure that when she and I pass away, our children are not hit by tax. Is that still a valid strategy and if so, am I correct in ... Read more
Superannuation death benefits: Who receives super payments, and how much tax is paid?
On the death of a super fund member, a superannuation death benefit can be paid to the dependants of the fund member, or to the fund member’s estate. The term ‘dependant’ has two special meanings when referring to superannuation death benefits. A super fund can only directly pay a superannuation death benefit to ... Read more
Superannuation death benefits: Beware the dastardly death tax, and retirement cap
Although superannuation death benefits are tax-free when paid to individuals who are ‘dependants under the tax laws’, a ‘death tax’ continues to apply when super monies are paid to individuals who are ‘dependants under the super laws’ BUT are ‘non-dependants under the tax laws’. Dependants under the super laws can ... Read more
