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Pat Hoey has put the following tax saving options together which can help you towards your retirement planning.

Superannuation tax saving options towards retirement

Please note – this is just factual information on how people can save tax in their superannuation towards their retirement years.  We recommend that you get financial advice that is relevant to your personal situation.

1. From age 60

1. Can start a retirement ‘account-based’ pension , to stop super fund paying 15% on earnings (but super fund still pays 15% tax on tax deductible contributions that you or work pays in)
2. But must meet a retirement release condition to start a ‘account-based’ pension, which you don’t have to fully retire, but need to at least cease some form or employment arrangement. Read more about this in following link.

Accessing super: Ceasing employment after 60 (superguide.com.au)

1. Need to take out minimum pension withdrawal based on % of your super balance (which from 60-64 is 4% of super balance)
2. A good article you can read more details on this superannuation tax saving strategy is:

Are you paying tax due to not starting a super pension? (morningstar.com.au)

1. Otherwise you can start a ‘transition to retirement’ pension from your super fund, but the super fund still pays 15% tax on earnings.
2. A good article you can read more details on this is:

How Does a Transition to Retirement (TTR) Pension Work? | Canstar

2. From age 65

1. Can get access to super pension (retirement ‘account-based’ pension) without meeting a retirement release condition.
2. Which if you start a pension, stops super paying 15% on earnings.
3. Need to take out minimum pension withdrawal based on % of your super balance (which from 65-74 is 5% of super balance)
4. So it can save some considerable tax $ in the super fund, based on 15% tax savings on earnings.
5. As I noted above under the age 60 area, a good article you can read more details on this superannuation tax saving strategy is:

Are you paying tax due to not starting a super pension? (morningstar.com.au)

3. Don’t need the pension money?

1. If don’t need the pension money personally (due to other income or fund you have), some people choose will take the pension $ out, and put it back into their super fund to:

1. Get the tax deduction up to $30k super tax deduction limit
2. Otherwise the super pension $ can be part of non-concessional limit of $120k that you can put into your super fund(but not get tax deduction for) – which your super balance needs to be below $1.9M to be allowed to contribute non-concessional contributions (as of the 2024/25 year).

1. Or an option could be you put the pension $ in to your spouse’s super if they are below the $1.9M super balance limits
2. This can also help move some of your super from a ‘taxed’ to a ‘tax-free’ position, which can save tax on your super when you pass away and your super goes to non-dependent beneficiaries.
3. This method can be known as super recontribution strategy, which the following article talks about this

Super recontribution strategy: How it works

 By Pat Hoey