Defined Benefits
Foundation Financial Advice staff have extensive experience in demystifying Defined Benefit superannuation, helping clients in advising how to get the most possible out of the formula and identifying saturation points to know when and if to exit these funds - so that clients like you get the right advice, retire in style and miss no opportunities.
Foundation Financial Advice is a specialist Defined Benefit expert Practice and will integrate these funds into your total financial plan. We always strive to provide our clients with the best financial outcome. We know how your accounts work and can objectively advise how to utilize the funds in the context of leave, accumulated years of service, final average salary calculation, leaving a guaranteed environment, your salary/wage inflation, cashflow, debt position, health and specific financial situation.
Make a booking today and find out how we can help YOU. Contact us and have the peace of mind knowing all industry and private funds are considered before we advise you how to make the most of your retirement savings without bias.
How Foundation Financial Advice Will Help You?
We will Advise you how to grow your funds in the optimum manner, complementing the context of your total financial position and only after establishing what you and your family want to achieve. Subsequent investments are only considered at the end of the process and we analyse all industry funds and private funds which have a Platinum rating from independent research house Superratings for the most efficient and appropriate solution for you.
How to position the funds following; Resignation, Retirement and Redundancy. Whether and when to Exempt or Opt out (voluntarily deferring or claiming the entitlement pre-retirement).
Explore what happens if you deliberately leave the benefit unclaimed, why and for how long. Establish when the best retirement date is in the contect of leave entitlements, taxation and the financial year, your EBA and prospective Defined Benefit growth.
Construct a contribution strategy to optimise the Defined Benefit and top-up Accumulation funds without exceeding limits. In addition to exploring that all eligible work service is being counted (Prior Service).
How to navigate through Disability claims and marry the entitlement with Sick leave, WorkCover, Centrelink Disability Support or DVA entitlements.
Who have we helped before?
Given the increasingly unique nature of these funds, it is important to seek expert advice on how to best make the accounts work for you and your personal situation. Contact us or make a booking online now for the unbiased Financial Advice you deserve. In the past we have successfully satisfied clients maximise their Defined Benefit financial position across:
PSS – For Federal Public Sector employees who commenced before 1 July 2005
ESSS DB (still open) – For qualifying (generally operational) Emergency Service workers across Victoria Police, Ambulance Services Victoria, MFB and CFA
ESSSuper New Scheme – For qualifying State employees who joined after 1 July 1988 and 31 December 1993 or who transferred from the Revised or New Scheme in either 1988 or 1994
UniSuper Defined Benefit (still open) – For eligible Higher Education employees who commenced under 65, opted in and did not elect to enter the Accumulation environment for employer superannuation contribution.
ESSSuper Revised Scheme – For qualifying State employees who joined between 1925 and 30 June 1988.
ESSSuper Transport Scheme – Similar to the New Scheme, but with different contribution and accrual (growth rate) options this fund was for qualifying Transport workers between 1 July 1988 and 31 December 1993.
ESSSuper SERB (State Employed Retirement Benefit Scheme) – For qualifying Casual and Temporary workers pre 1988.
Vision Super (LASF DB) – Closed to eligible employees 1 January 1994, if joined prior to 25 May 1988 may be eligible for a lifetime pension component.
What is a Defined Benefit Superannuation Fund?
Defined Benefit super funds require specialised advice which Foundation Financial Advice can support you with. Defined Benefit funds are a super fund which pays a final benefit amount based on a formula that can take into account; your final salary, the number of years that you work for your organisation or government area and often a contribution or accrual of benefit factor.
Like with all formulae there are often saturation points or periods of optimisation. We will explore your specific circumstances and ensure you get the most possible out of these formula driven funds. A further benefit is Defined Benefits are usually capital or investment risk free allowing you to diversify into other investments which carry risk with greater security than non-defined benefit clients. The payment at the end of service or membership maybe a; lifetime pension, lump sum or combination pension and lump sum.
Defined benefit pensions are statistically rare, but highly sought after financial products. Approximately 10% of Australians are members of a defined benefit super fund, while the other 90% of Australians belong to defined contribution (accumulation) super funds.
The annual income you receive from a defined benefit pension is guaranteed for your life, and potentially has reversionary or transferable benefits on death to your spouse or financially dependent children (including adult disabled children in most cases). The downside of such a super pension is longevity risk in that if you’re single, or your spouse dies before you, the super pension dies with you – which could be a risk in the event of passing away prematurely. We will work to also secure a rational and fair Estate Plan for Defined benefit clients.
Who is in these funds?
Defined Benefit holders are generally public sector super funds, and older corporate or executive private super funds. In Victoria ESSSuper and UniSuper still administer Defined Benefits for Higher Education employees and the Victorian Emergency Services (Police, Ambulance Services and qualifying MFB and CFA firefighters).
Importantly there are many Public Service, Higher Education and Corporate employees; Federal, State and Local who have these benefits with a loyal period of tenure or ceased work before these funds closed. In the case of the ESSS DB and PSS there are options which may be “untaxed” or tax deferred these are taxed differently to conventional superannuation accounts.
