Accessing your money
As superannuation is designed specifically to fund your retirement, there are restrictions on when you can access your money.
Retirement
You can access your super when you permanently retire after reaching your preservation age. Your preservation age is set by the Australian Government and is based on your date of birth.
| Date of birth | Preservation age |
|---|---|
| Before July 1960 | 55 |
| 1 July 1960 — 30 June 1961 | 56 |
| 1 July 1961 — 30 June 1962 | 57 |
| 1 July 1962 — 30 June 1963 | 58 |
| 1 July 1963 — 30 June 1964 | 59 |
| From July 1964 on | 60 |
You are also considered retired for access to super purposes if you reach age 60 and then change jobs or are not working at all, or when you turn 65 (whether you are working or not).
Transition to retirement
You can also access your superannuation as regular pension income (but not lump sums) when you reach your preservation age, even if you are still working. LGsuper offers a Pre-retirement Pension account for this purpose.
Other limited circumstances
There are only a few situations where you can access your preserved superannuation as a lump sum before retirement. These are:
- death
- total and permanent disability
- failure of health
- temporary residents permanently leaving Australia (excluding NZ residents)
- severe financial hardship, as defined by the Australian Government
- compassionate grounds, approved by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority
Non-preserved benefits
Some super contributions and investment earnings made before 1 July 1999 may be accessible before your preservation age. These amounts will be shown on your annual benefit statement as unrestricted non-preserved amounts that can be accessed at any time, or restricted non-preserved amounts that can be accessed when you leave your employer.
