Super tax changes for high balances will support a fairer system

Super Consumers Australia welcomes the government’s announcement of its proposed changes to taxation of super for people with high super balances.

“This clarifies that the proposed changes will only affect a very small percentage of people with very high balances. Our modelling shows that the average person, with the support of the age pension, only needs $258,000 in super to maintain their standard of living in retirement. Those people won’t be affected by these changes,” says Xavier O’Halloran, Director of Super Consumers Australia.

“The tax reforms announced today will begin to redress the imbalance that has seen some struggle to get by in retirement while others, with the assistance of generous tax concessions, have been able to save far in excess of what they need to be financially secure.”

“Everybody agrees that the objective of the super system is fundamentally about delivering retirement incomes. These changes will go a long way towards ensuring that the system is better directed towards the retirement income needs of the majority of people.”

“Providing financial security is at the core of the properly functioning retirement system. We know the group of people facing the highest financial stress in retirement are those who are renting or have been forced to retire early. The debate can now shift to how the government can be targeted in supporting those with the greatest need.”