If you have been financially affected by COVID-19 you can access up to $10,000 of your superannuation in 2019–20 and a further $10,000 in 2020–21. You will not need to pay tax on amounts released and the money withdrawn will not be taken into account for any income or means tests.
From 20 April 2020, you can apply online through myGov to access up to
- $10,000 of your superannuation by 30 June 2020
- a further $10,000 between 1 July 2020 and 24 September 2020.
The government has also announced that eligible temporary residents will be able to apply to access up to $10,000 of their super before 1 July 2020.
Temporary residents
To be eligible for early release of super, temporary residents must be in one of the following circumstances:
- You hold a student visa that you have held for 12 months or more and you are unable to meet immediate living expenses.
- You are a temporary skilled work visa holder, your working hours have reduced to zero and you remain engaged with your employer.
- You are a temporary resident visa holder (excluding student or skilled worker visas) and you cannot meet immediate living expenses.
Assessing your eligibility
You do not need to attach evidence to support your application. However, you should keep records and documents to confirm your eligibility as we may ask you for this information.
It is important that you assess your eligibility accurately. We are administering this measure on behalf of all Australians and will manage the eligibility criteria with strict guidelines to ensure we can support those financially affected by COVID-19. There are penalties for making false and misleading statements.
Implications of accessing your super early
Accessing your super early will affect your super balance and may affect your future retirement income.
Withdrawing superannuation may also affect your:
- income protection insurance
- life / total permanent disability insurance cover.
Insurance may not be available on accounts that:
- are fully withdrawn
- have a balance below $6,000
- are inactive low balance accounts.
You should consider whether you need to seek financial advice before submitting your application for early release of super.
Get ready to apply
You can register your interest now by logging into your myGovaccountExternal Link and following the Intention to access coronavirus support instructions. We will notify you by email or SMS when applications open. You do not need to phone us.
Before applications open on 20 April, you can do these steps:
- Set up your myGov account and link it to the ATO.
- Have your bank account information available – you will need this to complete your application.
- Check your super balance.
There are four ways you can check your super balance:
- Check your total superannuation balance in ATO online services. There will be an ‘as at’ or ‘effective’ date for the balance. In a lot of cases it will be 30 June 2019 as funds are only required to report to us once a year. This means your account balance may have changed.
- If you have access to your super fund’s online member portal, you can log on and check your current account balance there. It might be a good time to establish a login to your fund portal if you haven’t already.
- Check the last statement that your fund issued to you. This might be by paper or email.
- Call your fund, but understand that they have had a large increase in members calling and there could be delays in having your call answered.
Submit an application
Applications for early release of superannuation will be accepted through ATO online services via myGov from 20 April 2020.
You can only submit one application in each financial year:
- year one, between 20 April and 30 June 2020
- year two, between 1 July and 24 September 2020.
This is even if the total amount released is less than $10,000.
The online form on myGov will display all your superannuation accounts, as reported to us by your funds. You can request the release of your super from multiple super accounts. For example, if you want to receive a total of $10,000 you can request $5,000 from one fund and a second $5,000 from another fund. This must be done within one application form.
We encourage you to check your fund’s online portal to confirm that there is sufficient money in your account for you to claim.
Make sure you provide your correct bank account details in the application.
After you apply
Once we have processed your application we will send you a letter of approval or rejection (called a determination). This will be available in your myGov Inbox within 2–3 days.
Once your application is approved you do not need to contact us or your fund. Your fund will make the payment to you without you needing to apply to them directly.
However, if your fund is a SMSF, you will need to let them know that you have received the determination so they can make the payment to you.
If you find difficult to do it by yourself & need Chartered Accountant to withdraw your super fund please contact us and will forward your details to them.
