RI Term Allocated Pension

Your investment options

We invest your super across a range of different asset classes to give you the best chance to grow your retirement savings. You can have your super automatically invested in the Balanced plan - or you can choose your investment plan. This means you can:

• Choose the asset classes your super is invested in, from Shares to Cash
• Choose how much of your money is allocated between the asset classes
• Change your investment plan to suit your retirement savings goals

Your super might be one of the biggest investments you’ll ever make. The investment plan you choose now can make a difference to how much you earn each year and over the term of your pension.

Different assets can create different returns

Your RI Term Allocated Pension offers you a range of investment plans. These plans invest in different assets, with the returns linked to how the financial markets perform.

You can choose to invest in a range of different asset class allocations through our Readymade plans or create your own combination of asset classes with Mix Your plan.

You can choose a Readymade plan

There are four Readymade plans with different levels of risk and return expectations.

For more details, please see Investment options - RI Term Allocated Pension.

You can choose the Cash plan and another Readymade plan

This means some of your money will be invested in the Cash plan and the rest of your money in another Readymade plan. You can have your pension paid from the two plans in a certain order – for example, the Cash plan first. Or you can choose a percentage of your pension payment to be taken from each investment plan. If there are not enough funds in your chosen plan, then the rest of your payment will be taken from your other plan.

The amount of money in each investment plan will reduce as your pension payments are made. From time to time, you might like to review the amounts in your investment plans and transfer money between them.

You can Mix Your plan

There are five Mix Your plan options which allow you to select your own mix of asset classes.

You can choose the order or the percentage of your pension to be paid from each of your asset classes. To maintain your chosen percentage, you’ll need to check there is enough money invested in your asset classes. If there are not enough funds in one of more of your asset classes, the rest of your payment will be drawn from across your other asset classes.

You may also need to make changes to your Mix Your plan to make sure the percentage held in each asset class remains the same over time. Find out more about How Mix Your plan works.

For more details, please see Investment options - RI Term Allocated Pension.

Need more help with your investment plan?

• Find out more about choosing the right investment mix for you
• Find out more about How Mix Your plan works
• Call your Member Services Centre on 13 43 72

To change your investment plan, download the Investment choice, RI Term Allocated Pension form.

1 Mix Your plan Fixed Interest invests in Investment Grade Bonds. These are bonds with a credit quality which is considered to have a relatively low level of default risk by an independent bond-rating agency.

Fees and other costs

Please note: we no longer charge service fees for transactions, such as Family Law splitting and full or partial withdrawals, effective 15 December 2018.

For more information on these changes, read our article: We’ve removed our service fees.

We may make changes to the fees we charge

From time to time, we might need to change our fees to make sure the structure and level of fees is appropriate, including any extra costs from government taxes or statutory charges.

We’ll always let you know about any changes through our website or your member statement. If the change is an increase in fees or charges, we’ll give you at least 30 days’ notice.

Fees are charged in different ways

Below is a general guide to the fees and costs for an RI Term Allocated Pension account.

1 If your account balance is less than $6,000 at the end of the financial year, certain fees and costs charged to you in relation to administration and investment are capped at 3% of the account balance. Any amount charged in excess of that cap must be refunded.
2 Investment fees and costs includes an amount of 0.00% p.a. to 0.06% p.a for performance fees. Please note, the transaction costs percentage is also included in the investment fees and costs percentage shown in the table.

Your income options

Your pension account is market-linked. This means it generates an annual income which changes depending on the performance of your investment plan and the term of your pension.

When you opened your RI Term Allocated Pension account, you decided how long your income would last by choosing a term within Commonwealth Government limits.

You can’t make lump-sum withdrawals from your account (except under special circumstances) or change the length of your term, but you can:

• Choose to be paid monthly, quarterly or annually 
  You can change how often you’re paid at any stage. Please call us on 13 43 72 for a copy of the payment variation form.
• Choose your investment plan 
While you can’t change your term, your investment plan could make a difference to how much you earn each year and over the term of your pension. You can choose which plan or type of assets your pension is invested in based on different levels of expected risk and return.

Learn more about your investment options or find your investment style.

How your income is calculated

At the start of each financial year, we work out your annual income by dividing your account balance on 1 July by the Pension Payment Factor. This is the rate that corresponds with the number of years remaining in your pension term. When your pension reaches the end of its term, we’ll pay you any balance remaining in your account.

If you have any questions about how your RI Term Allocated Pension works, please call us on 13 43 72.

RI Term Allocated Pension and tax

If you already have a RI Term Allocated Pension account, you can save on tax in the following ways:

• Your regular income from your pension is tax free if you’re 60 or over
• Investment earnings in your pension account are tax-exempt

These benefits are also available with our RI Allocated Pension, which is currently open to new members.

Here’s a summary of how tax applies to your RI Term Allocated Pension account.

Different parts of your pension are taxed differently

Your RI Term Allocated Pension account may include two different parts or 'components'. Each part is taxed differently, depending on where the funds come from. You might have:

1. A tax-free component
   The tax-free part of your super benefit that was transferred to your pension account. You don’t pay tax on this amount. For example, it would include personal contributions made to your super, that you didn’t claim as a tax deduction. If you transferred from West State Super or Gold State Super, it would also include any part of your benefit that was taxed at 47% because your balance was above the untaxed plan cap.
2. A taxable component
   The taxable part of your super benefit that was transferred to your RI Term Allocated Pension account. For example, it would include employer and salary sacrifice contributions.

To find out more about the tax components of your account, please call your Member Services Centre on 13 43 72.

Your regular income is drawn from both components

If your pension account has a tax-free and taxable component, your regular income payments will include a proportional amount drawn from each component, based on the total value of your pension.

Here's an example of how income payments are taxed according to the components of your account.

For more information about how your RI Term Allocated Pension is taxed, please call your Member Services Centre on 13 43 72.

Important documents