How to make a payment variation

When you have a Retirement Income Pension (including RI Allocated Pension and Transition to Retirement Pension) account and you want to change your payment frequency, the Change of details and pension payment variation form allows you to make this change.

You can also use this form if you need to change your name, your financial institution, notify us of your retirement, or change your pension amount.

If you have a RI Term Allocated Pension account and need to make changes, please contact your Member Services Centre on 13 43 72.

1. Download the Change of details and pension payment variation form

First, click the link to download the Change of details and pension payment variation form.

When you complete the form, you’ll need to complete six sections. You might like to print the form first then use this page as a guide as you complete each section.

2. Provide your personal details

This image shows the ‘Section 1 - Your details’ section of the Retirement Income Pension change of details and pension payment variation form. In this section, you need to provide your GESB member number, Retirement Income Pension account number and personal details, including your title, last name, given name or names, date of birth, gender; postal and email addresses; and telephone numbers.

These details include your member number, your Retirement Income Pension account number, name, date of birth and contact details.

You can find your member number and account number on any statement you’ve received from us.

3. Do you want to change your payment amount?

This image shows part of the ‘Section 2 – New pension amount’ section of the Retirement Income Pension change of details and pension payment variation form. Complete this section to change your pension amount. To determine your pension amount, refer to the appendix on page 3. Please note that if you are changing your pension amount, you will also need to complete Section 3 of this form. Tick one of three payment options listed. Please note: only two options are shown in this image. 1. Minimum pension amount (see appendix on page 3). 2. Maximum pension amount of 10% (only applicable if you have a Transition to Retirement Pension and are under age 65).

You can either:

  • Receive the minimum pension amount as specified on page 8 of the Retirement Income Pension Product Information Booklet.
  • Receive the maximum amount of 10% if your account is set up under transition to retirement rules.
  • Receive a specified amount. This can be either gross or net. Simply enter the amount in the ‘gross’ box if you want any tax to be deducted from the payment amount, or enter the amount in the ‘net’ box if you want the tax to be deducted from your account in addition to the amount you specified. If you choose an amount that falls outside the set limit(s), we’ll adjust it so it falls within Commonwealth government rules.

This image shows part of the ‘Section 2 – New pension amount’ section of the Retirement Income Pension change of details and pension payment variation form. Complete this section to change your pension amount. To determine your pension amount, refer to the appendix on page 3. Please note that if you are changing your pension amount, you will also need to complete Section 3 of this form. Tick one of three payment options listed. Please note: only one option is shown in this image. 3. Other amount per payment. Please specify the gross (before-tax) pension amount or Net (after-tax) pension amount in the fields provided. If you select a pension amount that falls outside the Commonwealth Government pension limits, the amount will be adjusted to the minimum or maximum pension limit accordingly.

4. Do you want to change your payment frequency?

You can choose from monthly, quarterly or annual payments. If you want to change the interval at which your regular pension payments are made, you can switch options here. You can also tell us when you want the payments to start if you are choosing the longer intervals.

This image shows the ‘Section 3 – New pension payment frequency’ section of the Retirement Income Pension change of details and pension payment variation form. Complete this section to change the frequency of your pension payment. You will also need to complete this section if you are updating your pension amount in section 2. Tick one of the boxes provided: 1. Monthly 2. Quarterly or 3. Annually. Also include the date you wish the new pension payment frequency to commence, by including the month and year in the fields provided.

5. Are you under the age of 60?

This image shows the ‘Section 4 – Tax free threshold eligibility’ section of the Retirement Income Pension change of details and pension payment variation form. Tick the box provided to confirm you are under 60 and wish to claim the tax-free threshold on this pension and you have attached a completed Tax file number declaration form. You can obtain a paper copy of the Tax file number declaration form from our website at gesb.wa.gov.au/tfndeclaration or by calling us on 13 43 72.

If you are under the age of 60 and wish to claim your tax-free threshold from your pension, you will need to complete a Tax file number declaration form.

6. Has your bank account changed?

This image shows part of the ‘Section 5 - New financial institution details’ section of the Retirement Income Pension change of details and pension payment variation form. Please complete this section to change your bank account details and nominate the account you wish your pension to be paid to, by providing your bank, building society or credit union name, BSB number, account number and account name. For security reasons, you will also need to provide a copy of your bank statement showing your full name, the bank's name, BSB number and account number. If you are providing an internet statement, it must show your bank name and logo. If it doesn't, you must add your signature, printed name and date to the page. Please also not we cannot accept credit card, overseas bank account or third party statements.

This is where you tell us what bank account you want your regular pension payments to go into. 

You’ll need to provide a copy of your bank statement which includes your full name, the bank’s name and BSB number as well as your account number. If you are providing an internet bank statement, it must show your bank name and logo. If it doesn't, you must add your signature, printed name and date to the page. You’ll also need to complete the relevant boxes on the form to confirm your bank account details.

7. Have you changed your name?

This image shows part of the ‘Section 6 – Change of name’ section of the Retirement Income Pension change of details and pension payment variation form. Please complete this section to change your name and provide us with a certified copy of the documentation that supports your change of name (e.g. marriage certificate, deed poll) and provide your title, Last name (family name) and given name or names in the fields provided.

You can tell us your new name in this section. You will need to provide proof of identity which supports the name change with this form. It could be a certified copy of your marriage certificate or the deed poll record. Find out more about how to provide certified proof of identification.

8. Read the declaration and sign the acknowledgement

This image shows part of the ‘Section 7 – Declaration and signature’ section of the Retirement Income Pension change of details and pension payment variation form. In this section, you need to declare that 1. The information on this form is true and correct. 2. You have read and fully understood the ‘Retirement Income Pension Product Information Booklet’. 3. You understand the ‘Retirement Income Pension Product Information Booklet’ is a general guide only and does not contain personal financial advice. Next, sign and date your completed form.

You’ll need to read the declaration and confirm that the information provided is correct, that you’ve read the Retirement Income Pension Product Information Booklet and acknowledge you understand that this brochure doesn’t provide financial advice.

We will send you confirmation when we’ve completed your instructions.

9. Send the form in

Now that you’ve completed and signed the 'Change of details and pension payment variation' form, you need to send your completed form and supporting documentation to:

GESB
PO Box J 755
Perth WA 6842

Australia Post can take up to six business days to deliver regular mail. Please take this into account when submitting your form to us, especially when you need to meet a processing deadline.

We’re here to help

If you have questions about changing your payment details or need more help with the 'Change of details and pension payment variation' form, please call us on 13 43 72 between 7.30am and 5.30pm (AWST), Monday to Friday.

Page last updated 24 January 2024

Thank you for printing this page. Remember to come back to gesb.wa.gov.au for the latest information as our content is updated regularly. This information is correct as at 20 April 2024.