Early access to super due to COVID-19

The Government is allowing eligible individuals who have been financially impacted by COVID-19 to access their super early. If you’re eligible, you can apply using the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) online services through your MyGov account.

If you are about to or have already lodged an application:

The ATO will assess your eligibility and if approved, will advise us to make payment. Once we receive advice from the ATO, which may take at least 1 business day, we will arrange payment to your nominated bank account as soon as possible, but within 5 business days. It may then take a further day or two for the amount to show in your bank account balance.

In some cases, we may require further information from you before we can make payment, in which case we will contact you directly. Please make sure your contact details are up to date via our online services. 

If you are considering lodging an application:

Step 1. Check if you are eligible

If you meet one or more of these requirements you may be able to apply to access your super.

• You are unemployed.
• You are eligible to receive a job seeker payment, youth allowance for jobseekers (subject to restrictions), parenting payment (which includes the single and partnered payments), special benefit or farm household allowance.
• On or after 1 January 2020, either
• you were made redundant,
• your working hours were reduced by 20 per cent or more, or
• if you are a sole trader, your business was suspended or there was a reduction in your turnover of 20 per cent or more. 

Step 2. Check whether you have eligible superannuation funds for release

Whilst the ATO may approve the release of superannuation funds, there may be specific rules related to your superannuation account. The following table provides some guidance on rules specific to your selected superannuation scheme, but please contact us if you are unsure.

Step 3. Consider your options, obtain help

There are some key things you should think about before deciding to access your super early.

Other sources of financial support

You may be able to access financial support from the Government through income and household support payments. Some places with helpful information about this are:

moneysmart.gov.au – COVID-19 Financial Assistance
treasury.gov.au – Coronavirus support for individuals and households
serviceaustralia.gov.au – Coronavirus Financial support

Consider the long term impact on your retirement savings.

Super is designed to provide income for you when you retire, so it’s important to understand the impact that accessing super early can have on your retirement savings. Any amount accessed prior to retirement may have a considerable impact on your retirement savings, reducing your account balance now and in the future.

Additional financial support

If you require further support in assessing your options, you can schedule a 15 minute phone session with one of our specialists here.

You can also make an appointment to speak to a Financial Counsellor or Financial Information Service Officer.

Step 4. Check your contact details

Please check your contact details so we can quickly contact you if we need to confirm anything. You can do this via our online services.