How do I apply for my super if I have a terminal illness?

If you have been diagnosed with a terminal illness, you may be able to access your super early, even if you don’t have insurance with your super account.

If you do have insurance, you may need to draw on your super while we are assessing your insurance claim.

We appreciate this is a very difficult time for both our members and their families. If you are terminally ill or helping a terminally ill member, here are some important things to know when applying to access super.

This FAQ covers:

What is the definition of ‘terminal illness’ for the purposes of super?

To be eligible to receive your super when you are terminally ill, you need to have been given a life expectancy of no more than 24 months. This needs to be certifiable by two medical practitioners. At least one of the practitioners must be a specialist practising in the field relating to the illness or injury.

If you have been told you have a terminal illness but have a prognosis greater than 24 months, you may still be eligible to withdraw your super. Please call your Member Services Centre on 13 43 72 for more information.

What do I need to claim my super early for terminal illness?

You will need the following documents to support your claim:

  1. Letters from two legally qualified medical practitioners1

    At least one of the medical practitioners must be a specialist practising in the area of your illness.

    We strongly recommend you show the sentence below to your doctor and specialist, as they must write word for word:

    [The individual] suffers from an illness or injury that is likely to result in their death within 24 months of the date of this letter.

    Please note: the ‘individual’ should be your name and ‘the date’ is the date the medical practitioner signs the letter.

    If we do not receive the required wording, we may not be able to authorise the early release of your super2.

  2. Benefit access form

    Please complete and send us the relevant Benefit access form for your account. If you are not sure which form you need, please call us on 13 43 72 and we will send you the right form.

  3. Certified identification

    Please refer to our Proof of identity fact sheet for identification requirements.

  4. Bank statement

    Please provide a bank statement with the details of the account you want your funds paid into.

    Please note:

    • If you are acting on behalf of a terminally ill member and hold an administration order or enduring power of attorney, we are still required to pay into a bank account in the member’s name
    • We accept bank accounts in joint names, as long as the member’s first name and surname appear in the bank account name
    • Please refer to the Benefit access form for the types of bank accounts that are eligible to receive the super payment. This form also outlines the information we need on your bank statement

Other important things to know:

Please make sure you submit your Benefit access form and all of the above supporting documents together.

Once we receive all the documents we need, it may take up to 10 business days to process your request. We appreciate the urgency of the situation and we will attend to your terminal illness application as a priority.

Please note: if your Benefit access form or any of the supporting documents are incorrect or incomplete, your claim may be delayed.

What is the first thing I need to do when making a claim?

Once you have read this FAQ, you should call your Member Services Centre on 13 43 72. You may even find you have insurance that you weren’t aware you could claim on.

We will take some details from you, and arrange for you to speak with one of our insurance claims consultants. Our insurance claims team also looks after the early release of super for terminally ill members who don’t have insurance with their account.

Do I need to have stopped work before I can claim my super?

This depends on the type of account you have.

If you are a GESB Super or West State Super member and you’ve been diagnosed with a terminal illness, you don’t need to have stopped working or no longer be an employee to access your super.

If you are a Gold State Super member and you’ve been diagnosed with a terminal illness, please call your Member Services Centre on 13 43 72 for more information.

How much tax will I pay on my benefit?

If you meet the ’terminal medical condition’ of release for super, you will be eligible to receive your lump sum payment tax free.

If you plan to transfer your super to another fund, please call us first on 13 43 72, to make sure you understand the tax implications.

How can another person help with my claim?

There are a number of ways:

  • Letter of authority (signed by the member)

    You can send us an authority to notify us that you want someone else to help with your super withdrawal. This can be your spouse, parents or children, other relatives, a financial adviser, lawyer3, case worker, friend or anyone you choose to nominate.

    You can use our Third party authority form to do this.

  • Enduring power of attorney

    If you hold an enduring power of attorney for a member with a terminal illness, please send through a certified copy of this document.

    For information on how to certify an enduring power of attorney, please see our Proof of identity fact sheet, and refer to the list of who can certify the document and what they need to provide. Please note each page of the enduring power of attorney needs to be certified.

    If you intend to sign forms or make changes on behalf of a member (including changing a postal address), you will also need to provide your certified identification.

    If the enduring power of attorney is joint and several, we will need all named parties to sign forms submitted on behalf of the member, and certified identification provided for each person.

    If your enduring power of attorney was made interstate or overseas, you will need an order from the Western Australian State Administration Tribunal to confirm that your power of attorney can be used in Western Australia.

I’m making an insurance claim but need some of my super now. What can I do?

If you are able to provide the required documents outlined above in the ‘What do I need to claim my super early for terminal illness?’ section, then you may be able to access your funds while you are making an insurance claim.

It’s important that you don’t close your account while you are making your insurance claim.

If you are thinking about accessing your super while your insurance claim is being assessed, please call your Member Services Centre on 13 43 72, and ask to speak with your case officer.

If I outlive my prognosis, do I have to pay the money back?

No. If you were assessed as being terminally ill for the purposes of super and outlive the prognosis that you were given, you won’t need to pay back the money you withdrew from your super.

Please note: you can access any remaining super at any time after the certification period ends, but these amounts may not be tax free.

Other resources available to you

If you need to speak to someone, Lifeline Australia has a 24-hour counselling service which you can access for free by calling 13 11 14, or visiting their website.

You can also contact Beyond Blue on 1300 224 636 or visit their website, or you may be able to access other services by speaking with your General Practitioner.

1 Legally qualified medical practitioners means persons who have general or specialist registration recorded in the Register of Practitioners.
2 As required under the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (Cth).
3 You can send in a letter of authority for your lawyer, but they also have the option of sending in a certificate of appointment, proving that they are acting on your behalf. If we receive a certificate of appointment, we won’t require a letter of authority.

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 May 2024.