Get your hands on your super savings
Open an account with a minimum of $20,000. You'll need to transfer this money from your Future Saver account.
Pay yourself a regular income, tax-free
Choose how much and how often you’d like to receive payments from your super. Get it paid into your nominated account, so it’s just like pay day.[M5]
Access your money when you need it
Going on a holiday? Buying something big? Access your account anytime, either online or through the app. There are no withdrawal limits, so you’re always in control of your money.
You decide how much and how often you pay yourself, so you have a regular income. Weekly, fortnightly, monthly, quarterly or beyond. It’s your choice.[M5]
Tax free earnings and tax free withdrawals, so you can spend your hard-earned retirement savings on the things you love.
Around 30% of the income generated from your super comes from investment earnings in retirement. So it pays to keep your savings invested.
What you need to know
If you have a Retirement Transition account with Aware Super, it automatically updates to become a Retirement Income account when you turn 65.
You can simply open a Retirement Income account online with a $20,000 minimum deposit. There is a transfer maximum, which is currently $1.9 million.
There are no maximum withdrawals for a Retirement Income account. However, there is a minimum annual income payment percentage set by the government, based on your age.
Stay invested in retirement
Did you know around 30% of the income paid from your super comes from investment earnings you make in retirement?
That’s a fair chunk of change, so it pays to keep your savings invested, even in retirement.
Aware Super has a range of investment options designed to meet your changing needs. You decide how your money is invested and you can switch options any time.
- Is this account right for you?
- Fees and costs?
- Forms & documents
- FAQ
Ready to open a Retirement Income account?
Before you open an account
- Consolidate any super accounts you have into your Aware Super account.[C1]
- Decide how much you need to pay yourself in retirement, taking into account if you’re eligible for the Government Age Pension.
- Not sure how you’re tracking and want to? Get expert retirement advice - at not extra cost.[AD2]
If you’re ready to retire now, or within the next 2 years, book a Retire Ready Check-in - at no extra cost.
How to open an account
Log in now to open a Transition to Retirement account. You’ll need:
- Your personal details including two forms of ID
- How much you want to transfer from your super
- How much you want to withdraw as regular income and how often it will be paid
- What you want to invest in
- Who you want to nominate as a beneficiary.
If you’re not yet an Aware Super member, you can join online or complete the ‘Open a retirement account’ form in the PDS.
Before you apply, read the Target Market Determination (TMD) and Product Disclosure Statement (PDS).
Questions? Speak to our retirement experts on 1300 192 602.
Fees and costs
If you have a Retirement Income account, the fees and costs are:
- An account-keeping fee of $52 per year
- An administration fee of 0.23% of your account balance each year, up to a maximum of $125 per month ($1,500 per year).
Plus administration costs paid from reserves that are not otherwise charged as administration fees of 0.01% per annum.^ These costs are not directly charged to your account but have reduced the reserve balance held by the fund to cover future administration costs.
Forms and documents
For all the product information and details regarding a Retirement Transition account, please read the following documents:
- Retiring with Aware Super fact sheet (PDF, 560kB)
- Product Disclosure Statement (PDS)- the PDS provides more detailed information about our Retirement Transition product.
- Target Market Determination (TMD)- the TMD describes who the product is suitable for. You can use this information to help decide whether this product is right for you
Frequently asked questions
The Aware Super Retirement Income account is designed for people who are:
- 65 or over, even if still working
- have reached their preservation age and retired
- have ceased an employment arrangement at 60 or over, or
- have become permanently incapacitated, or terminally ill.
Your account works by allowing you to transfer your super balance into an income stream account with Aware Super. You can then receive regular income payments based on how much and how often you want (subject to Government minimums). This can be tailored to suit your needs.
You can also make lump sum withdrawals from your account, as well as change the amount of income you receive or how often you are paid.
If you are between your preservation age and 64 you are able to draw an income from your super. If you are still working, you can able to open a Retirement Transition account - it is important to note that a maximum annual payment limit of 10% of your balance applies. To be eligible you need to have reached your preservation age and not be permanently retired.
If you are aged 65 or over, you are only eligible to open a Retirement Income account (whether you are working or retired).
If you are between your preservation age and 64 you are able to draw an income from your super. If you are still working, you can able to open a Retirement Transition account – it is important to note that a maximum annual payment limit of 10% of your balance applies . To be eligible you need to have reached your preservation age and not be permanently retired.
If you are aged 65 or over, you are only eligible to open a Retirement Income account (whether you are working or retired).
It’s ok if you're not ready to draw down from your super. You can keep your money invested in a regular super (accumulation) account and let it grow. When you're ready, you can transfer your super into a Retirement Income account.
Yes, if you are 65 or over and still working, you can open a Retirement Income account.
If you’re between your preservation age and 64 and still working, you can open a Retirement Transition account. This can be a great way to reduce your working hours and maintain the same level of income.
Investment returns could make up to 30% of your super balance at retirement, so it’s important to make the right investment choice. Aware Super has a menu of investment options designed to meet your changing needs
You can decide how your money is invested and can switch between investment options at any time.
Choose from our default option, Conservative Balanced, or create your own mix of investment options.
You'll need to make a minimum initial investment of $20,000 to open the account.
There is a lifetime limit on the total amount of super you can transfer into retirement phase income streams. This is called the Transfer Balance Cap and is currently $1.9 million. Your personal Transfer Balance Cap might be lower, depending on your circumstances. You can view your personal Transfer Balance Cap on ATO Online via your myGov account.
Yes, you can withdraw lump sum amounts whenever you need.
With a Retirement Income account you get to choose how much you get paid , and how often. And you can change this as often as you like. This means you can:
- receive regular income payments from your account into your nominated bank account
- make extra cash withdrawals whenever you need to, and
- choose how much and when you get paid each year.
Yes, you can still keep your super in an accumulation account if you wish.
This depends on your age. If you are aged 60 or over all income payments and cash withdrawals are 100% tax free.
Before the age of 60, income payments and cash withdrawals can be taxed. All investment earnings are tax-free at all ages.
The Government decides the preservation age rules for accessing super. Because people are living longer in retirement, they gradually increase the preservation age from age 55 to 60. This is to encourage Australians to grow larger super balances to have more money in retirement.
