Q & A- Retirement Planning

What is a retirement income?

It is the income that one earns after retiring from work and it is generally based on their superannuation savings, investments, pension, home equity funds, rental income or inheritance.

When should I start saving for my retirement?

The sooner you start saving for your retirement, the better it is. Ideally, you could start saving when you start earning your money. It is a very good practice to keep aside some portion of your earnings as savings for your retirement on a regular basis. The sooner you'd have started to save for retirement, the longer your money would have the time to grow.

In Australia, superannuation is encouraged by the government as a way to save for retirement.

April 2015

From when can I access my super funds?

As per laws laid down by the government, you can access the funds in your super after you reach the preservation age and retire. You could also access your super once you reach 65 years of age (whether you've retired or not). Preservation age is the age up till when you cannot access your super unless certain specific conditions are met.

Other specific circumstances under which government would give permission to access the super are severe financial difficulties, compassionate grounds and in case a temporary resident is permanently leaving the country.

For how long can I get retirement income?

You could select the duration of income as per your savings and the regular amount you wish to withdraw as retirement income. You could either withdraw all your super savings as one lump sum or use them over time, or you could transfer your super savings to a pension account from which you can withdraw a fixed amount periodically.

You could draw the income till your funds last, or till you pass away. After you pass away, the balance of funds would be given to your nominated beneficiary or your estate.April 2015

What are the sources for funding my retirement?

Possible sources of your retirement income can be- Your superannuation savings Any investments outside your superannuation Pension received from the government as social security Money earned from selling your home or rental income Any part-time employment

April 2015