The Shifting Three Ages of Getting on in Life and Why it Pays to Know - Retirement, Super and the Age Pension
Few would feel sorrow for the forced retirements of the hard-working and probably very well-paid partners from top accountancy and consultancy firms.
One of them, KPMG, recently scrapped its retirement age policy of just 58. Another Deloitte says their top people will no longer be ‘expected’ to leave aged 62.
Yet for the rest of us, it pays to figure out what, if any, laws apply to when you chose to pack in work for good, get your hands on that super nest egg or even claim the age pension.
Deloitte’s move came after they settled a case worth almost $4 million with a former partner claiming the practice was discriminatory and breached age discrimination laws.
It’s a long-standing myth that we may/should/must retire aged 65. There are no such rules or regulations in Australia and subject to age discrimination, capacity, and competency work for as long as you chose.
It does vary around the world, and in Czechoslovakia, a woman’s retirement-aged was even conditional on how many children she’d had.
Out of 35 nations in a list - in nine the pension age differs between men and women. The global economic watchdog, the OECD, says the lowest usual pension age is 58 for Turkish women and 60 for men in Luxembourg, Slovenia and Turkey. For men, the highest such age is 67 in Iceland, Israel and Norway.
But to return to Australia, the age rules which you should know are about when you can access the money to fund your retirement. One is about superannuation and the other the age pension and guess what, they are different.
The quaintly named preservation age is the earliest time you can typically access your super, and it can vary between 55 and 60 depending on when you were born. There are some other conditions and details, and it’s best to contact your fund to find out more.
To get the full or part age pension, you must address various hurdles, including an income and assets test. The qualifying age is being increased by six months every two years until July 1 2023, when it will max out at 67. Again check as it depends on your age.
While there’s no simple answer to the access age to super and pension, be assured there’s no requirement to quit work at any age!
Have you felt pressured to retire early, or have you taken the initiative to quit ahead of time by choice?
Any information contained in this communication is general advice, it does not take into account your individual circumstances, objectives, financial situation or needs.
