Risk of clients ageing out of bring-forward contribution changes

18 June 2021
| By Laura Dew |
image
image
expand image

Advisers will have a bit longer to wait to finalise terms of bring-forward contributions with clients after the Treasury Laws Amendment (More Flexible Super) Bill was deferred to the House of Representatives.

The bill had been due to pass on 17 June but was delayed after amendments by One Nation leader Pauline Hanson.

Unlike other bills, advisers were anticipatory as the changes could apply before the end of the financial year which would mean individuals aged 65 to 66 would have time to make the most of the contributions.

Tim Howard, technical consultant at BT, said it already been delayed by 12 months due to COVID-19 and advisers were fearful their clients would miss the cut-off.

The bring forward contributions would be particularly useful if people were likely to come into a large sum of money such as via a house sale or an inheritance but would only apply to people aged 65 and 66. Therefore, many people had turned 67 during the legislative delay and were unable to make use of the contributions.

“This is our number one asked question as it would apply to the current financial year,” he said.

“With the delays, advisers are worried about their clients having their birthday and ticking over and therefore missing out or being unable to meet the works test.

“Advisers have been questioning what they can tell clients if it isn’t in the law yet, they want their clients to still have the opportunity to top up early before the end of the financial year.

“There won’t be much time to use it [this financial year] if it isn’t passed soon and some people will miss out but that is unavoidable. Hopefully some people will still be eligible next year as well.”

Read more about:

AUTHOR

Recommended for you

sub-bgsidebar subscription

Never miss the latest developments in Super Review! Anytime, Anywhere!

Grant Banner

From my perspective, 40- 50% of people are likely going to be deeply unhappy about how long they actually live. ...

11 months ago
Kevin Gorman

Super director remuneration ...

11 months 1 week ago
Anthony Asher

No doubt true, but most of it is still because over 45’s have been upgrading their houses with 30 year mortgages. Money ...

11 months 1 week ago

Jim Chalmers has defended changes to the Future Fund’s mandate, referring to himself as a “big supporter” of the sovereign wealth fund, amid fierce opposition from the Co...

1 day 12 hours ago

Demand from institutional investors was the main driver of growth in Australia’s responsible investment (RI) market in 2023, as the industry continued to gain momentum....

1 day 12 hours ago

In a new review of the country’s largest fund, a research house says it’s well placed to deliver attractive returns despite challenges....

1 day 13 hours ago