Pension Age Increases
When can you have your super?
According to AMP a Wealth Management company with capital of $521 million at the end of 2020, you can access your super when you are 55, if you were born before 1 July 1960. This increased by 1 year each year to end the recorded increases with the preservation age (age you can access your super) at 60 years of age if you were born after 1 July 1964.
These yearly increases were similarly changed for the age requirement to receive the aged pension, assuming financial criteria is met of course. Being born before 1 July 1952 would not have been too fantastic, because you had to wait at least 38 years for the Fresh Prince of Belair to begin. On the plus side however you could access the age pension when you were 65 years young. Although the servicesaustralia.gov.au website says “It’ll increase by 6 months every 2 years until the Age Pension age is 67 on July 1 2023” It was actually increasing by half a year every year and a half, resulting in the following age requirements:
Before 1 July 1952 - 65 pension age
1 July 1952 to 31 December 1953 - 65.5 pension age
1 Jan 1954 to 30 June 1955 - 66 pension age
1 July 1955 to 31 Dec 1956 - 66.5 pension age
From 1 Jan 1957 - 67 pension age
Should pension age increases continue?
Hypothetically if these increases were to continue can you work out your eligible age?
Using Excel if you fill one cell with the number ‘67’ and the cell below =(the cell with 67)+0.5 then drag those down the column for as long as you like. On the next row fill the date the pension age reached 67 which will be 01/07/2023, ensure the cell data format is ‘short date’, then in the cell below ‘=(cell above)+548 and fill the cells down. You will not get a perfect sheet due to leap years, but feel free to change the data to ensure each column either shows the 1st of July or the 31st of December.
The sheet you created may be something you will wish you didn’t do, or something you may find hilarious. If you were born in April 1993 like me this continual increase would result in your pension age being 85 and a half.
Born 1970 - pension age 74
Born 1980 - 79
Born 1990 - 85
Born 2000 - 89
These ages are also impacted by what month you were born in, it is not helpful to be born on the 1st of July or the the 1st of January.
So in summary, go through grandma’s CD collection and hang on to the past pension age dreams.
