As evidenced in the strategy suggested by Andrew Dunkerley for June and Marcus, a downturn in assets is not 100% negative for those receiving Age Pension entitlements. Andrew projected the result of the decline in the couple’s assets would lead to a boost of more than $3,000 in Age Pension benefits per annum. How so? Because anyone receiving the Age Pension will be assessed using a means test and their assets are deemed to earn income. By keeping Centrelink updated if your assets fall lower, it is likely you will be rewarded with a higher fortnightly payment.
Need to know
Higher income is appealing, but there are a couple of caveats here.
Some members will need to report changes to super which is in accumulation mode, others will have their money in an Account-Based Pension (ABP), others in private investments (local and global shares) and still others in a Self-Managed Super Fund (SMSF). Reporting requirements can vary depending upon where your assets are held.
As noted by Steven Sadler, Head of the Customer Service Team, the documents required may vary, so it might be easier to contact our entitlements team for an explanation. If you have an ABP it’s relatively simple – you will need to request an updated schedule. But if your fund is in accumulation it is much trickier because Centrelink needs to see the units of the accumulation account, not just the total balance.
And don’t forget, the obligation to inform Centrelink of meaningful (above $2000) asset changes goes both ways. Should your assets rise again you will need to advise Centrelink. If you don’t, then when Centrelink becomes aware of the higher balance, you risk having a debt raised against you for previous overpayments.
Further information
We have previously covered the details of what you need to do to keep Centrelink up to date. Here are two recent articles which explain the ‘what’ you need to do and the second, detailing the ‘how’ you go about doing this.
