Account Based Pensions

VISSF offers an Account Based Pension facility.
An Account Based Pension is a flexible form of investment giving you a regular income. It can also provide key tax advantages.

How does it work? You can determine how large an Account Based Pension you want each year. The amount is determined by your personal circumstances and how long you want your Pension to last.

Please note that your pension payments over a financial year are subject to a minimum of a percentage of your account balance as at 1 July each year.
The percentage is based on your age as shown below:

Age           Percentage

Under 65             4%
65-74                  5%
75-79                  6%
80-84                  7%
85-89                  9%
90-95                 11%
95 or more         14% 

What are the advantages of an Account Based Pension? The advantages of an Account Based Pension include:

• Investment earnings on your account are tax free
• In most instances tax concessions apply to pension payments to members who are under 60 years of age.
• Payments to members over the age of 60 are tax-free.
• You can choose the amount of pension payment (subject to the wide limits set by legislation).
• You can make lump sum withdrawals (not applicable if you are in a transition to retirement arrangement).
• Pension payments are made to your bank account each month.
• You can choose from the full range of investment options available to Fund members.
• On death, the residual amount can be paid to your dependants and/or legal personal representative of your estate as a lump sum, or (if permitted) as a pension to a dependant.

Account Based Pensions and Transition to Retirement Transition to retirement allows you to access all or part of your preserved benefit once you have reached your preservation age, even if you are still employed. A typical example involves choosing to continue working on a part-time basis, using part of your superannuation as an Account Based Pension to supplement your employment income.

While you are receiving a transition to retirement pension, the maximum pension payment that can be made in a financial year is 10% of your account balance at the previous 30 June, (or your account balance when you commence the pension).

Please note that if you commence an Account Based Pension when you reach your preservation age, but before you have retired from the workforce, your pension can only be commuted back into a superannuation account.

Important NotePlease contact the VISSF office to obtain a Product Disclosure Statement. This explains the features of the VISSF Account Based Pension.

It is important that that you seek independent financial advice when deciding whether an Account Based Pension is the right product for you.