When you stop working the contributions to super from your employer will stop. However your super will continue to be invested according to the investment strategy you have chosen. The insurance in your super will generally cease around retirement age. This is because it is designed to protect your income earning potential while you are working. As premiums are no longer drawn from your account, this leaves more capital to fund your retirement.
A super account is designed for the phase of life when you are putting money in. When you are ready to start receiving your super as income, you can:
- opt for an account that will provide you with regular income payments
- take some of your super as a lump sum (to reduce debt for example)
- or both.
Deciding what to do with your super when you retire is one of the key financial decisions in life. We strongly recommend that members speak to a licensed financial adviser when approaching, starting or transitioning into retirement.
Accounts to help manage your retirement
Account Based Pension
A retirement income account (or Account Based Pension) is designed to provide you with regular income payments. With this account, your income payments are tax free and also any earnings from your investments.
To get started, roll over at least $25,000 of your super into your new Account Based Pension account (although your cannot rollover more than your transfer balance cap - see further information under 'Key retirement rules' below). Once you have opened your account you cannot add any more money. Government rules then require you to drawdown at least 4% of your account balance as pension payments each year. We will help you keep track of this.
Open an account
Transition to Retirement account
If you are not ready to retire completely, but keen to reduce your working hours or maybe salary sacrifice to boost your super, you can use a Transition to Retirement strategy. This is where you keep your super account open to receive contributions from your part time work, and use payments from your Transition to Retirement account to supplement your reduced salary.
Government rules require you to drawdown at least 4% but not more than 10% of the balance of your Transition to Retirement account each year. We will help you keep track of this.
See the
Retirement Section PDSOpens in new window
for more information.
Investment choice - retirement
When you are in retirement – or transitioning to it – it’s important the investment strategy that applies to your account is in line with your risk appetite. Some people find it quite stressful to experience the highs and lows of a high risk or growth style investment option when they are depending on regular income from their account. Even so, having no exposure to investment risk might reduce your long term spending power in retirement.
We strongly recommend that you speak to an ANZ Staff Super financial adviser when approaching, starting or transitioning to retirement.
It's also important to revisit and adjust your retirement plan regularly as circumstances change. Speaking to a financial adviser and staying informed about changes in economic conditions and retirement regulations can help you make informed decisions throughout your retirement journey.
As your circumstances change, you may need to review your investment options. But before you make a choice, you should seek financial advice. You can contact an ANZ Staff Super financial adviser on 1800 000 086 who can give limited financial advice over the phone.
There are ways to structure your investments (for example you can use a mix of investment options and if you wish you can specify the option(s) that payments should be drawn from). You can read more about
our investment options
or find more information in the
Retirement PDSOpens in new window
.
Key retirement rules
Even though super is your money and you can access it when you retire, there are some rules about accessing it you need to know:
- Transfer balance cap: there is a cap on the amount of super money you can move into the retirement income phase. This cap is between $1.6 million and $1.9 million, depending on your circumstances. Once you reach this cap, you cannot add any more.
- If you have a number of super accounts, it’s a good idea to considering consolidating them before rolling them together and before commencing a retirement income account.
- Minimum drawdown amounts apply for account based pensions and there is also a maximum of 10% for Transition to Retirement accounts. Once you start a retirement income stream your minimum annual payment amount (pension drawdown), is calculated based on your account balance on 1 July multiplied by the percentage factor below.