Mark Ellem, head of education at Accurium, said in a recent webinar that in December last year the regulator highlighted an increase in the number of calls from super fund members who wondered if they could access their super under compassionate grounds if they didn’t qualify for hardship provisions.
“The ATO said that there are not too many people satisfying the grounds for accessing funds under compassionate grounds rules either,” Ellem said.
To access funds under financial hardship grounds, Ellem said members need to be on a Commonwealth income for at least 26 weeks and in possession of written evidence from Centrelink which needs to be given to their trustee no more than 21 days after it is received.
“If you are under the preservation age you also need to be mindful that you can only get one lump sum payment in a 12-month period and that’s based on the first payment that you receive, not a calendar year or a financial year,” he said.
“The payment needs to be greater than $1,000 and the single payment can be no more than $10,000.”
However, the other thing members need to think about, especially if they are under preservation age, is whether the amount they could receive is the gross amount.
“You might have a member who applies for $10,000 but they’re not necessarily going to get $10,000 in their hand because it’s going to be reduced by tax,” Ellem said.
Regarding accessing super under compassionate grounds, Ellem said there are a very strict set of circumstances under which the ATO will release funds – the main ones being for medical reasons, medical transport, updating your house or vehicle to deal with the medical issue, and for payment of certain treatment.
Members will also need at least two doctors to confirm that the benefits are for surgery or medical aids, and are required for quality of life or to assist the member in their daily functioning.
Ellem said members may also be able to access super if their home is under threat of foreclosure, or they are to be evicted because the bank or lender is going to repurchase the property.
Again, the member will need to get a letter from the lender.
“Once again, there are limitations on how much money you can receive and again the thing to consider here is in relation to tax,” Ellem said.
“So, if a member is allowed to take $20,000 out of their super, does the vendor get the whole $20,000 to cover the expense and then tax is potentially added on top of that? Or is the full amount allowed to be removed from the fund $20,000 including the tax so potentially short-changing the member?”
Ellem said he has spoken to many people within the industry and has sought confirmation from the ATO regarding this question but has not yet received a response.
