You can withdraw your super: when you turn 65 (even if you haven't retired) when you reach preservation age and retire, or. under the transition to retirement rules, while continuing to work.
Once you reach age 60 you can normally access your super tax free.
You can get your super when you retire and reach your 'preservation age' — between 55 and 60, depending on when you were born. There are special circumstances where you can access your super early.
Withdrawing Over Age 65
If you are over age 65, there is no restriction on how much super you can access, even if you are still working. Reaching age 65 is classified as a full superannuation condition of release, meaning you have full access to your super, which can be withdrawn as a lump sum or income stream.
Withdrawals are paid and taxed as a normal super lump sum. If you're: under 60, this is generally taxed between 17% and 22% over 60, you won't be taxed.
Your preservation age is the age you can access your super if you are retired (or start a transition to retirement income stream). If you were born before 1 July 1960 you have already reached your preservation age of 55 years. You can access your super once you have met a condition of release.
If you want full access to your super balance when you reach 60, you will need to fulfill one more condition; an employment arrangement coming to an end. You can then access the money as an account-based pension income stream, a lump sum withdrawal, or a combination of both.
If you're aged 60 or over and withdraw a lump sum: You don't pay any tax when you withdraw from a taxed super fund.
You may be able to take your superannuation as a lump sum payment when you retire. This is usually tax-free from age 60.
Assume, for example, you will need 65 per cent of your pre-retirement income, so if you earn $50,000 now, you might need $32,500 in retirement.
This obviously depends on what annual income you want to fund but if you want to be able to afford a comfortable retirement—which is an income of just over $48,000 a year for a single according to the ASFA Retirement Standard—then you need a balance of at least $500,000.
How much super you'll need in retirement depends on the lifestyle you want. According to the government's MoneySmart website, if you own your home, the rule of thumb is that you'll need two-thirds (67%) of your current income each year to maintain the same standard of living.
For example, if you are under 65 years old, you can access between 4–10% of the balance of money in your super account each financial year. Once you have met a condition of release with a nil cashing restriction, you can access your super benefits in other ways and don't need a TRIS.
Tax on withdrawals of taxable component
Your marginal tax rate or 32%, whichever is lower – unless the sum of the untaxed elements of all super lump sum benefits received under the super plan exceeds the untaxed plan cap. Amounts above the cap will be taxed at the top marginal rate.
If you are under age 60, you may be required to pay lump sum withdrawal tax, depending on the amount you withdraw and your superannuation tax components. The Low Rate Cap amount actually allows you to receive up to $230,000 of the taxable component tax-free. This is a lifetime (i.e. not annual) indexed cap.
Yes, provided you have reached the Age Pension age, you may be eligible for the Age Pension even if you have super savings.
You can withdraw your super: when you turn 65 (even if you haven't retired) when you reach preservation age and retire, or. under the transition to retirement rules, while continuing to work.
How much should I have saved for retirement by age 60? We recommend that by the age of 60, you have about eight times your current salary saved for retirement. So, if you earn $75,000 a year, you would have between $525,000 to $600,000 in retirement savings by 60.
While you're under Age Pension age
We don't count you or your partner's superannuation in the income and assets tests, if your fund isn't paying you a superannuation pension. If your fund is paying you a superannuation pension, it is assessable as an income stream.
Pension payments are tax-free after age 60: Any super benefits, either pension or lump sum, paid to you after age 60 are tax-free.
If you are between 60 and 65 you are only required to cease an employment arrangement to meet the retirement condition of release. If you are between preservation age and age 60, in addition to ceasing employment, at that time you must not intend to return to work for over 10 hours per week.
You can retire and then return to work. In fact, you can retire whenever you want, at any age, and recommence work at your leisure – there's no rules preventing you doing that.
Your preservation age is the age you can access your super if you are retired (or start a transition to retirement income stream). If you were born before 1 July 1960 you have already reached your preservation age of 55 years. You can access your super once you have met a condition of release.