Life expectancy has stretched, work has become more flexible, and the numbers increasingly favour those who keep earning a little longer before retiring permanently.

Increased super contributions and compounding

Every extra year in the paid workforce is another year of employer contributions for your super, another year for that balance to compound, and another year you are not having to draw down from your super.

The superannuation guarantee rate now sits at 12% of ordinary time earnings, meaning a $90,000 salary generates over $10,800 a year in employer contributions alone.¹  Add voluntary contributions and the concessional cap of $32,500 for 2026–27, and a few extra working years can genuinely reshape your retirement balance, not just top it up.

• Remember compounding works hardest on your largest balance, later in your career.
• There’s no upper age limit on receiving super guarantee contributions, provided you’re still working.
• Extra years also mean fewer years drawing down your balance, so the maths compounds in your favour twice over.

Making part-time work pay

Many pre-retirees don’t want a hard stop. They want fewer days and less pressure. If you’re already on the Age Pension, the Work Bonus lets you earn up to $300 a fortnight from employment or self-employment without it touching your pension, with unused amounts banking up to $11,800.²

That’s a meaningful cushion for anyone easing back rather than stopping outright.

Where an adviser adds real value

• Modelling whether continuing to work outperforms an earlier retirement, based on your actual numbers, not assumptions.
• Timing your Age Pension claim against your income and assets to avoid an unnecessary nil or reduced assessment.
• Coordinating part-time income with the Work Bonus and any account-based pension already in place.
• Reviewing whether extra contributions now make sense given your total super balance and the $2.1 million transfer balance cap.³

The extra years don’t have to feel like a sentence. Structured well, they can be some of the most financially rewarding of your working life.

The information contained in this article is general information only. It is not intended to be a recommendation, offer, advice or invitation to purchase, sell or otherwise deal in securities or other investments. Before making any decision in respect to a financial product, you should seek advice from an appropriately qualified professional.  We believe that the information contained in this document is accurate. However, we are not specifically licensed to provide tax or legal advice and any information that may relate to you should be confirmed with your tax or legal adviser.

[1] Super guarantee | Australian Taxation Office
[2] Work Bonus – Services Australia
[3] Transfer balance cap | Australian Taxation Office

There’s a myth that retirement happens on a single Friday afternoon: you clean out your desk, hand back the swipe card, and wake up Monday with nowhere in particular to be.

For plenty of people, that’s a jarring way to end a career.

A transition to retirement income stream (TRIS) strategy offers something gentler: a dress rehearsal before diving in head-first.

TRIS pensions explained

Once you reach your preservation age, now a flat 60 for every Australian, you can open a TRIS pension using part of your super, even while you’re still working full-time. Unlike a standard account-based pension, you don’t need to have retired or turned 65. You simply need to have reached the age of 60¹

• You can draw between 4% and 10% of your account balance each year.
• Lump sums generally aren’t available as this is a non-commutable income stream.
• At 65, or once you meet a full condition of release, it automatically converts into a regular account-based pension with no restrictions.

Phasing down work gradually

This is where TRIS earns its name. For example, you could reduce your working week from five days to three and use the pension payments to fill the gap in your pay packet. You keep your income steady, keep your super growing through ongoing employer contributions, and give yourself room to figure out what retirement feels like, without burning the bridge back to full-time work.

Tax benefits and contribution strategies

The more common use, and often the more powerful one, is the “salary sacrifice swap.” You redirect part of your pre-tax salary into super, taxed at just 15%² rather than your marginal tax rate, and top up your take-home pay with tax-free TRIS pension payments (assuming you’re 60 or over, all payments are tax-free in your hands). This can help leave you with similar income and a noticeably larger super balance.

Two things worth knowing before you start:

• Earnings inside a TRIS account are still taxed at up to 15%, unlike the 0% enjoyed in full retirement phase unless you have $3 million or more held in the superannuation environment.
• The concessional contributions cap is $32,500 for the 2026–27 Financial Year, and salary sacrifice amounts count toward it. If certain requirements are met, you may be able to carry forward unused caps from the previous five years and make a larger contribution in a single year.

Where an adviser can help

TTR strategies look simple on paper and get complicated fast in practice. We help clients:

• Model whether the salary-sacrifice swap beats simply staying in accumulation.
• Coordinate TRIS with Centrelink assets and income tests, which treat it differently to accumulation super.
• Watch and manage total super balance against the $3 million Division 296 threshold before adding to it.
• Plan the eventual switch to a full account-based pension so nothing is left to guesswork.

If work still gives you purpose but your Fridays could use a little more breathing room, this might be worth a conversation. 

The information contained in this article is general information only. It is not intended to be a recommendation, offer, advice or invitation to purchase, sell or otherwise deal in securities or other investments. Before making any decision in respect to a financial product, you should seek advice from an appropriately qualified professional.  We believe that the information contained in this document is accurate. However, we are not specifically licensed to provide tax or legal advice and any information that may relate to you should be confirmed with your tax or legal adviser.

[1] Retirement withdrawal – lump sum or income stream | Australian Taxation Office
[2] Concessional contributions are subject to additional tax of 15% if your income together with these contributions exceed $250,000.

Your retirement isn’t the finish line for your investments; it’s a gear change. For most Australians, the vehicle that makes this shift possible is the account-based pension (ABP). Understanding how it works is the first step to making it work harder for you

How account-based pensions work
An ABP is created when you move some or all your superannuation into a linked account that pays you a regular income. You choose the payment frequency (monthly, quarterly or annually) and, subject to meeting minimum requirements, how much you receive in each payment. Account-based pensions are generally available from age 60. Your capital stays invested, so your balance can keep growing even as you draw it down.

Minimum drawdown requirements
The government sets a minimum withdrawal each year, based on your age on 1 July, rising as you get older, starting at 4% under age 65 and increasing progressively to a maximum of 14% from age 95. Miss the minimum and the consequences are real, as the pension may be treated as ceasing for tax purposes, potentially costing the fund’s tax-exempt earnings status.¹

Age	Minimum withdrawal (as a percentage)
Under 65	4%
65–74	5%
75–79	6%
80–84	7%
85–89	9%
90–94	11%
95 and over	14%

There’s no maximum for a standard ABP, only transition to retirement income stream pensions are capped at 10%

Tax advantages of pension phase
This is where the strategy really pays off. Once in retirement pension phase, investment earnings are taxed at 0% unless you have $3 million and more invested in superannuation environment, and for anyone 60 or over, payments are tax-free.²

Key threshold to watch in 2026–27
The general transfer balance cap, the ceiling on how much you can move into this tax-free environment, rose from $2.0 million to $2.1 million on 1 July 2026.³

Where an adviser adds value

• Sequencing which assets fund your pension to manage longevity and market risk.
• Timing pension commencement and contributions around the $2.1 million general transfer balance cap.
• Structuring drawdowns above the minimum for recontribution or debt strategies.
• Coordinating the superannuation pension with Age Pension eligibility and Division 296 exposure for larger balances when you have $3 million or more invested in superannuation.

Getting the structure right now shapes your income for decades. Let’s talk through what it means for you.

The information contained in this article is general information only. It is not intended to be a recommendation, offer, advice or invitation to purchase, sell or otherwise deal in securities or other investments. Before making any decision in respect to a financial product, you should seek advice from an appropriately qualified professional.  We believe that the information contained in this document is accurate. However, we are not specifically licensed to provide tax or legal advice and any information that may relate to you should be confirmed with your tax or legal adviser.

 

[1] Payments from super | Australian Taxation Office
[2] Retirement withdrawal – lump sum or income stream | Australian Taxation Office
[3] Transfer balance cap | Australian Taxation Office

 

Ask a dozen people why they haven’t started investing, paid off their credit card, or topped up their super, and you’ll get a dozen different answers. But they usually trace back to the same thing: how they feel about money, not what they know about it. Behavioural finance calls this your “money personality,” and understanding yours can often be the missing piece between having a good plan and sticking to one.

The common money types

Most frameworks group behaviours into a few recognisable patterns ¹ :

• The Saver. Disciplined and future-focused but can be so risk-averse that cash sits idle and loses ground to inflation instead of growing.
• The Spender. Lives for today, finds real joy in money, but can struggle to build a buffer for tomorrow.
• The Avoider. Leaves statements unopened and decisions unmade; often the costliest pattern, since inaction compounds just as much as action does.
• The Investor/Explorer. Comfortable with risk and markets but can chase opportunities without a coherent long-term structure.

Why personality shapes financial success

These types are not character flaws; they are often habits formed early in life. If left unchecked, they can quietly shape decisions: the Saver may avoid growth assets in their super, the Avoider may miss a co-contribution deadline, and the Spender may never build an emergency fund.

Strategies that work with your type, not against it

• Automate what discipline can’t be relied on, for example contributions, transfers, rebalancing.
• Set guardrails, not restrictions, for higher-risk types.
• Build in regular, low-effort check-ins for Avoiders.

Where an adviser adds real value

This is where advice earns its keep. Industry research consistently finds behavioural coaching, keeping clients invested through volatility and steering them past emotional decisions, is the single largest component of the value an adviser adds, ahead of asset allocation and tax-effective structuring.²

We can’t change your personality, but we can build a plan that works with it.

Ready to find your type? Book a meeting and let’s talk about what’s really driving your money decisions and help get you back on track.

The information contained in this article is general information only. It is not intended to be a recommendation, offer, advice or invitation to purchase, sell or otherwise deal in securities or other investments. Before making any decision in respect to a financial product, you should seek advice from an appropriately qualified professional.  We believe that the information contained in this document is accurate. However, we are not specifically licensed to provide tax or legal advice and any information that may relate to you should be confirmed with your tax or legal adviser.

[1] What is your money personality?
[2] Where advisers add most value. Hint: it’s not investing – Professional Planner

A redundancy notice rarely arrives at a convenient time. But the financial decisions made in the first few weeks, such as what to do with the payout, whether to touch super, how to bridge the income gap, often matter more than the redundancy itself. Here are a few tips on how to navigate it with a clear head.

Emergency strategies when income stops

• • • Triage your cash flow first. List essential expenses (mortgage/rent, utilities, insurance) versus discretionary (or optional) expenses and pause the latter immediately.
    • Understand your redundancy payment’s tax treatment. For 2026/27, a genuine redundancy payment is tax-free up to $13,598 plus $6,801 per completed year of service; anything above that is taxed as an Employment Termination Payment (ETP), generally at concessional rates up to the $270,000 ETP cap.¹
    • Check Centrelink support early, noting redundancy pay can trigger a waiting period before JobSeeker Payment begins. Redundancy payouts can trigger an Income Maintenance Period, where Centrelink delays payments for the number of weeks your payout covers, calculated by dividing your total lump sum by your normal weekly wage.²
  • Review income protection cover. Most policies won’t pay out for redundancy itself, but it’s worth checking with your insurer.

Accessing super early (if eligible)³

Redundancy alone does not give you access to your super early unless you have reached age 60 or met certain other requirements. This is one of the most common misconceptions we hear. Early release generally requires:

• Severe financial hardship. You must have received an eligible income support payment continuously for 26 weeks, and can then withdraw between $1,000 and $10,000, once every 12 months.⁴  The ATO does not process “Severe Financial Hardship” applications. Instead, you must apply directly to your superannuation fund, which holds strict criteria.
• Compassionate grounds (medical, mortgage default, funeral costs) via a separate ATO application.⁵
• Reaching preservation age (currently age 60) and meeting a standard retirement condition of release.

Retraining and upskilling investments

• Redundancy can be an opportunity to redirect part of a tax-free payout into a course, certification or training that lifts future earning capacity.
• Government-subsidised training places and Fee-Free TAFE options are worth checking before self-funding.
• Weigh HECS-HELP loans against paying upfront if cash flow allows.

Why reach out for financial advice

We can help you sequence these decisions correctly, making the most of the tax treatment of your payout, avoiding an unnecessary or costly early super withdrawal, and rebuilding an income plan so a redundancy doesn’t derail retirement savings.

This is exactly the kind of “behavioural coaching” and structuring that industry research⁶ shows drives the bulk of an adviser’s measurable value during periods of financial disruption.⁷

Faced or facing redundancy?

Book a review before you make any big decisions, as timing and sequencing can genuinely change the outcome.

The information contained in this article is general information only. It is not intended to be a recommendation, offer, advice or invitation to purchase, sell or otherwise deal in securities or other investments. Before making any decision in respect to a financial product, you should seek advice from an appropriately qualified professional.  We believe that the information contained in this document is accurate. However, we are not specifically licensed to provide tax or legal advice and any information that may relate to you should be confirmed with your tax or legal adviser.

[1] Leaving your job | Australian Taxation Office
[2] Income maintenance period – Services Australia
[3] Early access to super | Australian Taxation Office
[4] When you can access your super early | Australian Taxation Office
[5] When you can access your super early | Australian Taxation Office
[6] Value of a Financial Adviser
[7] Where advisers add most value. Hint: it’s not investing – Professional Planner

 

She manages a lot. Work, family, probably someone else’s schedule before her own. And underneath all of it, a quiet financial worry she hasn’t quite found the time to deal with.

That feeling is real. And it’s far more common than most women let on.

Australian women report higher financial stress than men across every single spending category, according to the National Australia Bank’s Household Financial Stress Index[1]. The gaps are largest in retirement funding, healthcare costs, discretionary spending, and the ability to pull together $2,000 in an emergency. Meanwhile, the proportion of Australians struggling to cope on their income has doubled from 17.1% in November 2020 to 34.6% in January 2024[2], with women consistently worse off.

A 2025 Liptember Foundation study[3] of over 7,000 Australian women found that financial pressure is one of the leading triggers for depression and anxiety, with 1 in 2 women experiencing mental health issues, and almost 1 in 4 struggling with a severe issue[4]. Financial stress and poor mental health feed each other. Stress makes decisions harder; harder decisions make the stress worse. It’s a cycle that isolation makes worse[5].

Why your position is harder than it looks on paper

The gender pay gap is real. For every dollar men earn, women average 88.8 cents, which compounds to a significant shortfall across a working lifetime[6]. But that weekly shortfall is only part of the picture.

Every year a woman steps back from full-time work to raise kids, care for a parent, or support someone through illness, her super balance takes a hit that compounds quietly in the background. By their early 60s, Australian women have roughly $51,000 less in superannuation than men at the same age. That gap happened because the superannuation system was built around uninterrupted, full-time careers, and most women’s working lives simply don’t look like that.

The silence doesn’t help
There’s often a layer of shame sitting on top of financial stress. Women often feel a sense that this should have been sorted out by now, and that asking for help means admitting that they’ve failed somewhere. It doesn’t. It means that they are paying attention.

Women want to talk about money, but they’re just not sure it’s safe to do so[7]. And when that conversation doesn’t happen, the stress compounds silently.

The appetite is there. What’s often missing is a clear, practical starting point.

What you can do

Those who finally decide to look clearly at their financial position almost always find that the reality is better than the fear suggested. Not perfect. Sometimes there are gaps that need addressing, but it is manageable. And much less frightening when it’s laid out plainly rather than just felt vaguely in the middle of the night

The first move isn’t a spreadsheet; it’s permission. Permission to say, “I don’t fully know where I stand, and I’d like to.”

From there, the conversation is straightforward. What do you have right now: your super balance, what it’s invested in, any savings or assets outside super, and what Age Pension you might be entitled to. Then we work out what your life needs to look like in retirement, in today’s dollars, and we do the numbers.

If you’re still in the workforce, there’s also good news on the horizon. From July 2025, superannuation will be paid on government-funded Paid Parental Leave, meaningfully closing the gap for women who take time out to care for children. It’s a genuine step forward.

Unfortunately, legislation moves slowly, and your retirement doesn’t wait for it. The most useful thing you can do right now is understand your own position, clearly and without judgement.

If financial worry has become background noise you’ve learned to live with, it doesn’t have to stay that way. That’s exactly the kind of conversation we’re here for.

 

 

The information contained in this article is general information only. It is not intended to be a recommendation, offer, advice or invitation to purchase, sell or otherwise deal in securities or other investments. Before making any decision in respect to a financial product, you should seek advice from an appropriately qualified professional.  We believe that the information contained in this document is accurate. However, we are not specifically licensed to provide tax or legal advice and any information that may relate to you should be confirmed with your tax or legal adviser.

 

[1] NAB Australian Wellbeing Survey – Q4 2025

[2] Financial stress is on the rise in Australia. Here’s what to do if money worries are affecting your mental health | Evening Report

^[3] https://assets.pc.gov.au/2025-09/sub164-mental-health-review.pdf

[4] Creeping rates of poor mental health show depressed, anxious state is ‘new normal’ for half of Australian women | The George Institute for Global Health

[5] Financial stress and mental health – Mental health – AIHW

[6] Australia’s gender pay gap narrows but gender-segregated industries persist, WGEA finds – ABC News

[7] Why Aussies are ditching wellness trends for wealth in 2026 | Money magazine