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• Retirement options
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Generally, you can access your super when you turn age 60 and leave your employer, or slightly earlier if you were born before 1 July 1964. However, working for a few extra years, even part time, can make a big difference to your retirement lifestyle.

Giving yourself more time

If you’re not on track to meet your retirement savings goal, one option is to retire later. This means you:

• have more time to save for retirement
• postpone drawing on your super, giving your money more time to grow
• may be eligible for the government’s mature age tax offset once you’re age 55, worth $500 pa. See the Australian Taxation Office's mature age worker tax offset overview  for details.

 

Take a look

If you earn $100,000 pa and have $400,000 in super at age 60, you can expect an annual retirement income of $28,520 pa. By delaying your retirement until age 65, you’ll end up retiring with $498,370 in super, providing an annual retirement income of $34,751 pa.

Source: MoneySmart Superannuation Calculator

Retirement trends

If you decide to retire later, you won’t be alone. While the current average retirement age for recent retirees is 61 years¹, this is expected to rise, especially as the government is increasing the pension age to 67.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics¹, 41% of full-time Australian workers plan to switch to part-time work before they retire and more money for retirement isn’t the only motivation. For many, part-time work is a way of keeping their minds active, giving their lives structure and purpose and gaining contact with other people. To top it off, a recent US study² found people who retire early don’t live as long as those who keep working past age 60.