The Latest On Superannuation

The superannuation changes are unfare and what's more a big issue regarding these changes seems to be overlooked by everyone. The reduction to $25k pre tax contribution unfarely penalises older workers who are getting close to retirement with small superannuation balances that have now reached a time in their life that they can afford additional contributions - this stinks If I had $1.6m or the ability to put $500k into super I would have nothing to complain about 

Good grief team - stop pussyfooting around. Self funded means no drag on the government and should be treated with respect with no changes. If you have already retired there should be NO changes to anything. Why on earth would we agree to anything else. Need to resist forcefully especially against that idiot Morrison. 

Get your hands off super or be prepared to pay everyone a pension and the same rules should also apply to the pollies if implemented. 

Could these points be useful discussion points: 1. A $1.6 million cap per person, or $3.2 million per couple is more than generous, provided the rules are changed to allow couples to equalise each others superannuation up to this limit. 2. The lifetime cap per person should be the same, $1.6 million per person. It shouldn't matter whether it is accumulated through concesssional or non-concessional means. That allows small business owners and farmers to sell their assets when they retire and not be disadvantaged; the $500K lifetime cap is the unfair component that is also effectively retrospective. Making it the same $1.6 m. figure per person should make the retrospective argument irrelevant. 3. With these caps in place, a person should be allowed to put up to $100K per annum into superannaution until they reach the cap. This sort of concession is still tiny compared to the concessions that politicians and public servants receive from the taxpayers of Oz. 4. Politicians and public servants superannuation payments and benefits should be taxed in exactly the same way as all other taxpayers are, i.e. the country viz. we the taxpayers, can't afford to be paying them based on 75% of their final salary, as this bears no resemblance to whether the money that should have been set aside and invested in their super scheme has earned enough to fund that level of income. 5. If this can't get over the line, then politicians and public servants super retirement payments must be capped at $80,000 per annum per person, which would equate to an average 5% p.a. return on $1.6 million of public funds. No public servant (incl. politicians) should have tax free income above that amount. If their salary package exceeds this amount, then it must pay tax at normal rates, the same as the rest of taxpayers. 6. The extra tax gained from #5 will help offset or even balance the cost of #'s 1 to 4. Then we may be able to start talking about what's fair and what's not fair in superannuation. 

I believe that Super should be left alone. It is only at this time in my life at 57 am I able to afford a reasonable salary sacrafice but will I be able to continue rhis with the proposed changes. I am female, single and currently working seasonal job. Trying to be self funded. And playing catchup. If the proposed changes get the go ahead I will no doubt be fronting up for the pension at some point rather than not at all. AK Qld 

What about scaling back Politicians generous super and benefits, after all they are the ones that wasted the surplus and lets not forget the futures fund. 

My concern with the changes to super is the 15% tax on my transition to retirement pension. This will cost me approx. $8,500.00 a year in tax, plus reducing the amount I can salary sacrifice from $35,000.00 down to $25,000.00 adds more tax. I think these changes will cost me Approx. $10,000.00 extra in tax a year and I am not on a high income. 

Fine..if you want to mess with my super, then treat all super the same and that applies to all politicians past and present and lets see what happens then? 

I am sick of Labour and liberal governments tampering with superannuation. I have had a SMSF since 2003 and worked very,very hard during my life so I can enjoy what years I will have left, I never went to University and I never got a first home owners grant from the government. My body is worn out at 59 and I will struggle to be able to work till I am 67, the retirement age that both labour and liberal have imposed on me by continually changing the gaol posts. I will not qualify for a pension, but I earned every dollar and have been spend thrifty during my life time and paid my taxes albeit at times I think too much. What reward do I receive for my hard work for this country, I only get governments who want to try and take it off me, money I am saving for my retirement so I can be comfortable in my remaining years and give it to those who think that welfare is their right and do not contribute to this country, its people, our children and our future. Superannuation is a very big basket of savings money for the Government and an easier target than stopping the bludgers and those not paying their fair share of tax. Start concentrating on reducing welfare to those persons abusing the system and stealing from hard working Australians like myself, my wife and my children 

I'm a self funded retiree on a superannuation pension established several years ago. I built up my retirement nest egg by sacrificing salary in favour providing for my retirement and not being a burden on society. Now the Government seeks to tax me because that nest egg has grown above $1.6 mil. My wife's nest egg is nowhere near that but I can't transfer any to her. This in my mind is retrospective. Had I known this when I retired I could have put more in her name. Further, at best, the tax should only be based on the amount when the pension was established and not on the growth which has occurred over time. Clearly this is unfair compared to someone who establishes a pension now.