Many people think you can’t touch your super until you retire...
But in fact, if you’re over 55 and still working, a Transition to Retirement (TTR) strategy may potentially improve your lifestyle, save you tax and boost your super all while still taking home the same pay.
How it works
Provided you meet the eligibility requirements, a TTR pension strategy allows you to access your super while you’re still working.
Moving some or all of your super into a TTR account and drawing an income from working provides you with several benefits as you prepare for retirement:
- You can reduce your hours in full-time employment, still contribute to super and ease into retirement without loss of take-home income.
- You can make or increase salary sacrifice super contributions, up to your concessional contribution cap and reduce the amount of tax you pay on the rest of your pay, and with regular income from your TTR pension, not suffer any loss of take-home pay.
- Unlike super or money in the bank, the earnings in a TTR account are not taxed - which helps boost your retirement funds quicker.
You won’t be able to convert a TTR account into a lump sum payout until you satisfy a condition of release, except for any unrestricted non preserved component.
But if your circumstances change, you can always transfer the balance of your TTR account into your superannuation fund.
Talk before you transition
TTR is a popular way to prepare for retirement.
But the ability to successfully take advantage of the TTR rules will vary from person to person so we recommend speaking to a licensed financial adviser to get independent advice about how TTR could work for you.
Getting advice