In this guide
If you’ve ever changed jobs, moved house or changed your name then chances are you could be owed a slice of billions in lost or unclaimed super across Australia.
Or perhaps you are aware you have super sitting in multiple accounts, but just never get around to sorting them out.
This is not just an administrative problem. If you have several super accounts it could mean you’re paying multiple fees, charges and insurance premiums, which may significantly reduce your overall retirement income.
Not only that, but if you’ve lost track of your super you have no way of telling if your money is invested in a good super fund or a lemon.
Whatever the reason, why leave money on the table when it’s a relatively quick and simple matter to claim what’s yours?
What is lost and unclaimed super?
Super funds must report ‘lost’ super to the Australian Tax Office (ATO) twice a year. The definition of lost includes situations where you are uncontactable at your current address and you have made no contributions or rollovers into the account for the past 12 months. Or where your account has been inactive, meaning it has received no contributions or rollovers, for five years.
Note: Under the Protecting Your Super laws that took effect from 1 July 2019, super funds are required to pay inactive, low-balance accounts to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). This includes accounts that have not received any contributions for 16 months with an account balance below $6,000. The ATO will then proactively reunite any unclaimed money it holds for you into one of your active super accounts.
Unclaimed super is different to lost super and refers to super that is eligible to be withdrawn but the fund has been unable to contact you. Unclaimed super can be the super of:
- Fund members aged over 65
- Non-member spouses
- Deceased members
- Former temporary residents.
Unlock this guide with a free SuperGuide account
Prefer full access? See what’s included in membership
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.