Can I access my super in financial hardship?
21 January 2020
5
min read
Super is a long-term saving plan designed to help you financially prepare for your retirement, but there are also some limited conditions that can potentially give you early access to your super, including severe financial hardship.1
Generally, if you are under 60 years of age, you must have reached your preservation age and be permanently retired to access your super.
The preservation age is a minimum age, set by the Australian Government, that your super must be ‘preserved’ until. The preservation age is between 55 and 60, depending on the year and month you were born.
If you're between 60 and 64 years old, you can access your super as long as you're retired. If you're over 65, you can access your super without restrictions, even if you're still working.2
But to gain early access to your super there are a number of stipulations.
There are two avenues to receive early access to your super: if you’re under the age you can access your super (preservation age), or if you’ve reached it.
Eligibility rule 1: If you're under the preservation age, and:
You’ve received an eligible Commonwealth income support payment for a continuous period of 26 weeks- You can prove to QSuper that you cannot meet reasonable and immediate family expenses.
You may be eligible to receive early access to your super.
Eligibility rule 2: If you've reached the preservation age but are not retired, and:
- You’ve received an eligible Commonwealth income support payment for a total of 39 weeks after reaching your preservation age
- You’re not gainfully employed (you work less than 10 hours a week) on the date of your application.
You may be eligible to receive early access to your super.
If you’re applying under eligibility rule 1, you can withdraw between a minimum of $1,000 and a maximum $10,000 over a 12-month period. If you are applying under eligibility rule 2 there is no restriction on the maximum amount or how often you can access your super. A super withdrawal due to financial hardship is paid and taxed as a super lump sum.
To gain early access to your superannuation in financial hardship, you will need to demonstrate that you cannot meet reasonable and immediate family living expenses after receiving 26 continuous weeks of government income support. This is not required if you claim when on income support for 39 weeks after reaching preservation age.
If you can meet these expenses with your fortnightly income or net assets, you will not be eligible for early super access.
Reasonable and immediate family living expenses include:
- Groceries, electricity, gas and phone
- Rent or board
- Minimum credit card or loan repayments
- House or car insurance
- Medical expenses
- School fees, books or other education costs for school-aged children.
If you’re single, you will be assessed on your individual circumstances. If you’re applying as a family, you will be assessed on combined income, assets, debts and expenses.
To prove you’re eligible for super access, you’ll need to show proof of income, including any:
- Income from paid employment
- Income support payments
- Child support payments
- Interest on bank accounts.
Additional proof you’ll need to provide for early super access is information about all your assets and debts. If your net assets exceed $50,000 (including your family home), these must be used to meet your reasonable and immediate family living expenses before we will consider releasing your super.
If you need assistance with loan repayments to prevent the potential loss of your home you may be eligible to apply for compassionate grounds.
You can apply for early access to super in financial hardship with the steps below:
- 1. Locate your Centrelink Customer Reference Number (CRN)
- 2. Complete the application form
- 3. Prove proof of identity
- 4. Send us your application.
Find out more about accessing your super due to financial hardship.
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It’s never too early to start planning for your retirement. We understand that keeping on top of your living expenses can be difficult if you don’t have all the information available.
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1. Australian Tax Office website, accessed 13 January 2020, https://www.ato.gov.au/individuals/super/withdrawing-and-using-your-super/early-access-to-your-super/
2. Australian Tax office website, accessed 13 January 2020, https://www.ato.gov.au/individuals/super/withdrawing-and-using-your-super/