I am sorry that you ahve had such a hard journey and IVF is a terrible drain on the finances on top of this.
About Super, the important thing is if you want to try it you need to contact APRA Australian Prudential Regulation Authority as there are very strict rules on this.
One of the resons to apply for it is Medical treatment:
Medical treatment
To help pay for medical costs, for you or your dependant, required to:
-- treat a life-threatening illness or injury; and/or
-- alleviate acute or chronic physical pain; and/or
-- alleviate an acute or chronic mental condition
provided that the treatment is not readily available through the public health system and is not covered by any applicable private health insurance and/or Workers’ Compensation.
I just read the That's Life story and I am surprised about it - while there are probably waiting lists, IVF is available for free through the public system in some public hospitals therefore early Release of Super shoudln't be allowed under the APRA rules.
Also there are many unscrupulous operators out there which promise you to get you your super, most of them are illegal and all you're left with is no money and your super account drained as well.
See this from AISC:
Illegal early access
Australians are being warned to steer clear of illegal offers to release their superannuation benefits before retirement.
Avoid illegal schemes that try to get your super money out early, and save yourself from getting cheated and from heavy tax and legal penalties. These schemes are sometimes promoted by word of mouth or shady advertising.
Report to ASIC or the ATO anyone who tries to talk you into getting your preserved benefits early through a self-managed super fund or for a fee.
Avoid illegal schemes deliberately target people experiencing financial difficulties. It’s understandable that people may be attracted to such promotions particularly when they are doing it tough with meeting financial commitments, such as home loan repayments.
In very limited circumstances it may be legally possible to access some of your super early, however, this should really be a last resort because it will leave you with less money in retirement. Look into other options to deal with financial difficulties first such as making an application for a hardship variation on your loans or getting assistance from a free and independent financial counsellor.
Some promoters have also enticed people to roll their super into a self-managed super fund (SMSF) so they can access the money early to pay off their debts. Unless the legal tests for accessing super early are met, this is illegal. ASIC has seen some illegal early release promoters take significant fees of up to 30 per cent before forwarding the rest of the super savings to the client, which they’re not entitled to access anyway.
As well as the risk of losing their hard-earned super savings, victims may suffer severe tax complications as a result of the fraudulent payments involved with early release schemes.
Schemes offering early access to super are illegal and attract significant legal and financial penalties to promoters and clients. If you’re in an SMSF, you are the trustee of your fund and must operate the fund in accordance with the law. Failing to meet this obligation is, in most cases, breaking the law.
If you receive an offer to access your super through an illegal scheme, contact ASIC’s Infoline on 1300 300 630 or the ATO on 13 10 20 to report your concerns.
If you have a friend who is dealing with an adviser who is urging them to access their funds please tell them that:
-- in the past promoters have taken a large proportion of people's funds
-- they may face financial penalties under the Income Tax Assessment Act if they go ahead
-- they should get independent advice from their lawyer, employer or union representative.
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