Choice Income - our account based pension

¹ Minimum drawdown amounts apply.

² Readers Digest Most Trusted Brands – Superannuation category winner for 12 years running 2013-2024 according to research conducted by leading independent research agency Catalyst Research. Awards and ratings are only one factor to be taken into account when choosing a super fund. Read the full methodology.

³ AustralianSuper Balanced investment option compared to the SuperRatings Pension Fund Crediting Rate Survey - SRP50 Balanced (60-76) to 31 December 2024. Investment returns aren’t guaranteed. Past performance isn’t a reliable indicator of future returns.

The government has a lifetime limit on the amount of super you can transfer into any tax-free retirement account(s). This is called the ‘Transfer balance cap’.

From 1 July 2023, the transfer balance cap is $1.9 million for individuals who commence their first account-based pension. This will increase to $2 million for individuals who commence their first account-based pension from 1 July 2025.

Depending on your circumstance and when your account-based pension commenced, you may have a personal transfer balance cap from $1.6 million to $1.9 million. From 1 July 2025, the upper limit for some may be up to $2 million.

If you open a Choice Income account and exceed your personal transfer balance cap, you’ll need to reduce the amount of funds in your retirement account(s) by withdrawing the excess amount or transferring to a super account.

For more details, please read How Choice Income works on page 6 of the Choice Income Product Disclosure Statement at australiansuper.com/PDS

You can view your personal cap amount at any time, by logging into your myGov account and going to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) section at my.gov.au

When you have an AustralianSuper Choice Income or TTR Income account, every financial year you’ll need to withdraw a minimum amount. The amount is set by the government, is based on your age and increases as you get older.

You can open a Choice Income account if you are aged 60 or over and retired, if you've stopped working for an employer after turning 60, or if you’ve turned 65 (even if you’re still working).

To open a Choice Income account you need to be an Australian citizen/permanent resident, a New Zealand citizen or hold an eligible retirement visa.

For more on eligibility please refer to the Choice Income Product Disclosure Statement.

You’ll need a minimum balance of $50,000 to start your new Choice Income account, and it’s important to note you can’t add money to a Choice Income account once you’ve opened it.  

If you want to have all your money in one place before you start, ensure you consolidate¹ your super before opening an account based pension.

Keeping your insurance 

You’re not able to have insurance on a Choice Income account, so if you want to keep your insurance you may want to keep a balance of at least $6,000 in your super account.

If you choose your own options, you can

• decide how much income you’ll get (minimum limits apply)
• decide how often you’ll get payments – fortnightly, monthly, quarterly, twice a year or once a year
• choose DIY and PreMixed investment options, or manage your account using Member Direct,

With Smart Default your payments and investment options are pre-selected, modelled and managed by investment experts. 

This means you’re:

• invested in 12% Cash and 88% Balanced investment option,
• initially receiving at least 6% of your balance each year; and as you get older this minimum amount will change (see table below), and
• paid every two weeks

Every July, you'll receive an email or letter confirming your payment amounts for that financial year. You don’t have to do anything, unless you choose to change your payment amount

You can change your payment options, by logging into your account online.

For details on Smart Default, view the Choice Income Product Disclosure Statement, or the TTR Income Product Disclosure Statement.

When you move your AustralianSuper super account or TTR Income account to a Choice Income account, you could be eligible to receive a tax saving called a Balance Booster.

How Balance Booster works

When you have a super account or TTR Income account, AustralianSuper sets money aside to pay for future capital gains tax when investment assets are sold. When you move from a super or TTR Income account to a Choice Income account, your balance is transferred to a tax free environment and you could be eligible to receive an additional credit to your account balance – a Balance Booster.

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Seamless Transfer - Member Direct

If you have Member Direct listed investments with your AustralianSuper super account, you can maintain them when you retire with a Choice Income account, partial transfers are not possible.

By requesting a Seamless Transfer to Choice Income (download form) you don’t need to sell-down or re-purchase your investments, avoiding transaction/brokerage costs and market risk. If you hold term deposits that haven't matured, they will need to be broken prior to the transfer. This may result in a reduction in the interest rate and other penalties may be charged by the issuer

More importantly, by using Seamless Transfer, you won’t trigger a tax event and you will remain invested in the market during the transfer process.

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