With 2.5 million Australians approaching retirement in the next decade, we need to ensure we have the right settings and products to deliver the retirement that Australians with super need and deserve. 

We need to make retirement simpler, easier and more flexible. These days, Australians move in and out of retirement – and their super should give them the flexibility to do just that. 

What is the problem? 

Currently, outdated legislation means older Australians who pick up some part-time hours every now and then have to open a new super savings account, rather than being able to make super contributions straight into their retirement account. 

This puts them at a disadvantage. Super contributions deposited into a savings (accumulation) account and their earnings, are subject to tax. To avoid these taxes, retirees would need to roll their retirement balance back into their savings (accumulation) account, and then roll the entire balance into a new retirement account. This is not only administratively complex, it may also incur more fees. 

It’s time to remove this red tape. 

Solution 

SMC recommends a legislative change to enable contributions to be made into a retirement account. SMC recommends this change be subject to existing contribution rules and is not suggesting the taxation settings on contributions change. 

Who benefits? 

SMC estimates 100,000 Australian retirees would benefit.  This figure would grow as the population ages and people work longer. 

Making this legislative change would simplify the superannuation settings for these retirees, reduce red tape and make retirement easier and more flexible. 

Retirees may also pay less in fees as they would no longer have to maintain two accounts and transfer savings between accounts. They would also benefit from a tax cut as their earnings would be deposited into their tax-free retirement accounts.