If you've worked in Australia anytime since 1992, you may still have funds in an Australian Super account, or with the Australian Tax Office (ATO), that could be brought across the ditch and invested with your KiwiSaver savings!
Why bring your Aussie Super to New Zealand?
1. Potential for lower fees
If your funds are still with your Australian Super Fund Provider, you are probably paying at least two sets of fees. Consolidating your super with one KiwiSaver provider could reduce the total cost. It is also possible that you might have more than one super account in Australia if you changed jobs when you were there.
2. Opportunity to earn returns
If your money is being held by the ATO, your money is not currently invested, meaning it is not earning any returns. This is a huge missed opportunity!
See Not sure where your Aussie Super is? further down this article to find out if this situation applies to you.
3. Visibility
Having all your retirement savings in one place makes it easier to keep track of your savings and what is happening with it.
4. Certainty
If you are planning to retire in New Zealand, you probably want to know what your nest egg is worth in New Zealand dollars.
Important to know:
- Once you have transferred your superannuation savings to New Zealand you cannot reverse the decision unless you decide to permanently move back to Australia.
- You can only transfer Australian funds back into KiwiSaver account in your name.
- You cannot access any Australian funds transferred to New Zealand until age 60 and you satisfy the Australian definition of retirement at that age. However, there may be exceptions in the case of significant financial hardship and serious illness, if you meet the criteria.
- Transferred Australian funds cannot be used to assist with the purchase of a first home, nor can they be transferred to another country.
- There is no tax to pay on the transferred balance prior to it being invested in your KiwiSaver account, however, once it is invested the balance will be subject to New Zealand tax just like your current KiwiSaver earnings are. Investments in New Zealand are taxed differently to those in Australia. Australia generally has a flat rate of 15% on earnings from superannuation schemes. New Zealand's tax rate can range from 10.5% to 28% depending on your own Prescribed Investor Rate (PIR). However, Australia taxes capital gains in superannuation schemes on equities whereas New Zealand currently does not tax capital gains on New Zealand equities and most Australian equities. International shares are usually taxed as if they earned 5% per annum. If you require further information, we recommend that you seek independent advice on taxation from an expert.
- There may be other benefits specific to your Australian super scheme which are not provided by KiwiSaver schemes. If you are unsure of the impact of transferring to the Generate KiwiSaver Scheme we suggest you seek personalised financial advice.
Not sure where your Aussie Super is?
There are two places your money could be – with an Australian Super Provider, or with the Australian Tax Office (ATO).
If you have more than AUD6000 in your Aussie Super, or you’ve only recently moved to New Zealand, and have made contributions within the last 16 months, your funds are likely still held by your Australian Super Provider(s).
It is estimated there is over $5 billion of Kiwis' money sitting ‘lost’ in Aussie Super with the Australia Tax Office (ATO). Aussie Super providers transfer inactive accounts to the ATO when:
- The balance is less than AUD6000, and;
- There haven’t been any contributions for at least 16 months.
If you're not sure where your Aussie Super is, contact the Australian Tax Office (ATO) here.
How to transfer your Aussie Super to your KiwiSaver account
Transferring funds to your KiwiSaver account from your Australian Super Provider
If your money is still in your Australian super fund, the paperwork differs based on who your Aussie provider is. Contact your Aussie provider directly to get all the necessary forms and any other documents required, including a statutory declaration form.
If your Aussie provider needs our bank details, feel free to contact our friendly team on 0800 855 322 or email us. If you know the name of your Aussie super provider, Generate may also be able to help you obtain the specific forms you need.
Transferring funds to your KiwiSaver account from the Australian Tax Office (ATO)
If your Aussie Super has been transferred to the ATO, the process of getting your money into your KiwiSaver fund is now very easy.
Generate is a participating provider in a new Australian Tax Office to Inland Revenue process which makes it easier for our members to track down their unclaimed super money sitting with the ATO and transfer it to their KiwiSaver account.
If you are considering whether to transfer funds from your Australian Superannuation Fund into any KiwiSaver scheme in New Zealand, you should have a look at the ATO's published
information on their website. If you have any questions, email us or call 0800 855 322 and we can assist you to bring your Aussie Super to New Zealand.
PLEASE NOTE:
- When the rollover is processed by the Australian providers, most will send the funds to Generate’s bank account that you will provide as part of your application. These funds can be subject to a hold period of 21 days, this period may also vary from time to time.
- Once Generate has received the money in the account, and has the rollover documents provided by the Australian provider, it is expected that these funds will be cleared and allocated into your KiwiSaver within 10 business days.
- This processing time is unfortunately out of Generate's control. We can assure you that we will be allocating these funds into your KiwiSaver account as soon as the money is cleared. You will be informed by email once we receive the deposit, and again once the funds are cleared and allocated into your KiwiSaver account.
- If your money is held with the ATO, Trans-Tasman account transfers (between the ATO and New Zealand IRD) are processed twice each year. Usually, the cut-off is around early January and early July. How long the transfer takes may depend on when in the bi-annual cycle you initiate the request. As soon as we get notice from the ATO, we’ll be in touch with a progress update.
No part of this article is intended as financial advice; it is intended as general information only. To see our Financial Advice Disclosure Statement, please see Generate FAP Disclosure Statement. For more information about the Generate Scheme's see the Generate KiwiSaver Scheme Product Disclosure Statement and the Generate Unit Trust Scheme (Managed Funds) Product Disclosure Statement or the fund updates. The issuer of both schemes is Generate Investment Management Limited. Past performance is not indicative of future performance.