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Nominate who will receive your super

It’s important to consider who you want your retirement savings to go to if you pass away.

Super is not automatically covered in your will

If you want your super and insurance benefits to be distributed the way you want, you need to let your super fund know. This process is called nominating a beneficiary.

This video explains how it works.

Your options for beneficiary nominations

Nomination type

Non-binding Binding Reversionary
(TTR and Retirement Income accounts only)
A preferred recipient for your super or retirement income account, and any life insurance payable, when you pass away. This is a legally binding request your super fund must follow, provided it is valid.

The person/s receive any remaining super or retirement income, and any life insurance payable, when you die. Find out more in this video.

 The nominated person will receive your ongoing retirement income payments when you die.

Pros and cons

Non-binding Binding Reversionary
  • easy to change
  • doesn’t expire
  • may forget to update if you change your mind about your beneficiary
  • acts as a guide for your super fund, but it can be broken if it doesn’t meet super/tax laws or is contested by family
  • provides certainty so you know who will get your super
  • your beneficiaries must be dependents or a Legal Personal Representative
  • easy to set up – just fill out our form and have it signed by two witnesses
  • expires every three years
  • we’ll remind you to update it
  • regular payments after you die, reducing admin for your beneficiary during a stressful time
  • flexibility to change the way your beneficiary receives payments
  • you can only nominate one person
  • it doesn’t expire, so if your circumstances change and you don’t update us, your super may not go to your preferred beneficiary
  • it could impact your beneficiary’s Centrelink entitlements
  • tax benefits, depending on the age and financial position of your beneficiary

Who can you nominate?

Non-binding Binding Reversionary
  • spouse/partner
  • dependants
  • your legal personal representative (more details below)
  • spouse/partner
  • dependants
  • your legal personal representative (more details below)
  • a spouse or partner
  • a child who is:
    – under 18, or
    – an ‘adult child’ who is disabled or financially dependent under the age of 25.
Type of payment
Lump sum Lump sum Regular income payments or lump sum
How do I make a nomination?
Update nominations with firstonline
OR
Nomination of beneficiary form		 Nomination of beneficiary form
+ two witnesses must sign the form		 TTR and Retirement Income account Nomination of beneficiary form

Who can be nominated as a beneficiary for super?

There are four types of super beneficiary you can nominate to receive your super and insurance payments if you die. You can select one or more from the options below and assign a percentage of the payment you want them to receive.

  • Spouse / Partner
    • Includes married and de facto (same or different sex) relationships.
  • Children
    • Your Children of any age (including step, adopted, ex-nuptial or children of your spouse)
  • Interdependent
    • Someone who lives with you o a long-term or permanent basis, where one or both of you provide financial and domestic support, and personal care of the other
  • Financial Dependant
    • Someone who relies on you (totally or partially) for financial assistance or support. For example, you pay the bills, rent, etc.

What if I want my super to go to someone else?

If the person you want to receive your super can’t be nominated as a beneficiary, don’t worry. While super doesn’t automatically become part of your estate, you can nominate your Legal Personal Representative to receive your death benefit and distribute it. This is the executor of your Will, or the person responsible for administering your estate if you do not have a Will. This gives you more options for who gets your super.

How to include super in your will

If you want your super to be distributed as part of your will, then it’s important to make a binding nomination to your Legal Personal Representative. On the form, you would put Legal Personal Representative as the beneficiary.

Special rules for making a binding nomination

  • A Binding Nomination must be signed by two witnesses who are at least 18 years old and are not named as beneficiaries.
  • The form is invalid if not received by First Super before your death.
  • Your Binding Nomination will cease to have effect if you subsequently marry, remarry or divorce. You can amend or revoke a Binding Nomination at any time by sending us a new nomination form.
  • If a person you have nominated dies before you or is not eligible to receive a share of your Death benefit, that person’s part will be distributed equally among the surviving nominated dependants and/or legal personal representative.
  • If you do not provide all details requested in this form or if it is not properly witnessed, then First Super considers it a Non-Binding Nomination.
  • If you fail to properly and clearly specify the percentage (%) of your benefit payable to each person, it will be distributed equally among those persons nominated who are eligible to receive a benefit, providing the Nomination Form was otherwise valid.

Tax on payments to beneficiaries (Binding and non-binding)

If the person receiving your death benefit is a dependant (e.g. spouse, financial dependant or children under 18), a lump sum death benefit will be tax free.

If the person is not a dependant (e.g. adult children) they will be taxed:

  • 15% plus Medicare levy on taxed elements
  • 30% tax plus Medicare levy on untaxed elements

Payments to an estate or Legal Personal Representative will be paid as a pre-tax lump sum and the estate will be responsible for tax treatment of the death benefit.

Tax on payments to reversionary beneficiaries

An income stream to your reversionary beneficiary will not be taxed if either:

  • you are aged 60 or older when you pass away or
  • your reversionary beneficiary is aged 60 or older

In all other cases the reversionary beneficiary will be taxed the same way as any other member of the Fund.

If your spouse receiving your Retirement Income payments has tax-free retirement accounts exceeding $1.9 million, they may have to pay extra tax. 

For more information, contact the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) on 13 10 20

Seek financial advice

As part of your membership, if you’d like to speak with someone nominating beneficiaries, our financial planning team can step you through your options at no additional cost. Request an appointment online or call 1300 360 988 to arrange a consultation today.