Your Future, Your Super: what does it mean for you?

The federal government has introduced new laws called the Your Future, Your Super package (YFYS) with the aim of improving super for everyone.

There are three main changes:

super fund ‘stapling’
a new annual performance test for super funds, and
measures to ensure that super funds always act in your best financial interests.

Super fund ‘stapling’ – wherever you go, your super fund will follow

Stapling means your super fund will automatically move with you if you change jobs – effectively being ‘stapled’ to you.

Under the previous system, your super was usually paid into your employer’s default fund. So, if you’ve changed jobs, it’s likely that you’ve had a new account opened for you with a different super fund each time.

With the new stapling system, the fund that’s currently receiving your super contributions will be the one that follows you when you change jobs, unless you tell your employer otherwise.

Why is stapling being introduced?

If you’ve had more than one job, you’ve may have more than one super account. This means you could be paying multiple sets of fees and other costs (like insurance premiums) that are eating away at your retirement savings.

Stapling aims to reduce the number of super accounts you’ll have over your working life. Being stapled to one fund means you won’t be paying more fees and costs than you need to, because you won’t have a new super account opened every time you change jobs.

When will stapling take effect?

From 1 November 2021.

What do you need to do?

Nothing. When you change jobs, it’ll be up to your new employer to check whether you have an existing stapled fund into which they’ll need to pay your super contributions.

If you don’t have a stapled fund (because you’ve just entered the workforce, for example), you can either nominate one, or you can let your employer put you into their default fund (which will become your stapled fund in the future).

You can always change your super fund at any time. Stapling just means that unless you tell your employer otherwise, your super will stay with one fund from 1 November 2021 and throughout the rest of your working life.

You’re in control

Being stapled to a fund doesn’t mean your super is out of your hands. Consolidating your super into Hostplus now means you’ll only ever pay one set of fees, plus you’ll get all the benefits of our low admin fees, competitive performance, flexible insurance offerings and the freedom to choose the investment option that best suits your needs.

Merge your super funds here

New annual performance test for super funds

From 1 July 2021, all super funds will undergo an annual performance test which will measure the net investment returns of MySuper products (like our default Balanced investment option) against Australian Prudential Regulatory Authority (APRA) benchmarks. Funds that fail the test two years in a row will need to take steps to address their performance issues before they sign up any new members

We’re pleased to report that we've passed the inaugural MySuper performance test conducted by APRA. The test places greater emphasis on a fund’s longer-term results. Our MySuper Balanced option has been ranked by independent researcher SuperRatings as one of the top 3 default options over rolling 5, 7, 10, 15 and 20-year periods¹.

Another measure that’s been introduced is a new “YourSuper” comparison tool on the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) website, where you’ll be able to compare your super fund’s performance to other funds.

The great news is that as a Hostplus member, you’re already in one of the top-performing funds with a history of strong long-term returns.

Improved accountability and transparency

As part of the YFYS package, all super funds will be required to act in the best financial interests of their members, something Hostplus has proudly always done.

We’re well placed to meet these new requirements, which includes providing you with clearer information in our annual reports and at annual member meetings about how we manage your money.