I need help Consolidating my Super?

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Q. I have a few superannuation funds which I am trying to consolidate and finding the whole process very frustrating. Any suggestions?

Josie’s Answer - Congratulations on trying to organise your financial life.

As you know having a few super funds probably means that you are paying extra fees, which will only hurt you financially in the future. There may also be a financial planner or two also receiving some commission and probably not giving you any service.

The problem these days is that you need to provide documents which are certified by an acceptable person. Acceptable documents include your driver’s license, passport, birth certificate (plus many others).

Acceptable persons include employees of Australia Post with more than 5 years service (sounds like fun trying to find one of those!), finance company employees or financial planners with more than 5 years service. Others include police officers, judges, solicitors, Justice of the Peace.

As painful as it sounds, my advice is to get this job done anyway. If you can easily source someone who is authorised to certify the documents, I would get a few copies signed.

One transferred, you will only have one fund that needs to be switched in the event you change employers.

The bureaucrats are trying to streamline the process, so hopefully something will be done soon. Nevertheless, I can understand why they need to be diligent.

Super funds need to be treated the same as a bank account – it is your hard earned money. Just imagine the uproar if banks transferred your money, without proper procedures. Good luck.

Don’t forget that the above information is general in nature and not specific to your goals and objectives. It is recommended that you seek personal financial advice specific to your needs.

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