NEW Australian Taxation Office (ATO) data shows that there is over $20.8 billion in lost and unclaimed super across Australia.

Today the ATO has published the amount of lost and unclaimed super by postcode to help people find their superannuation they have lost touch with.

Assistant Commissioner Graham Whyte said that last year over 540,000 active, lost and unclaimed super accounts worth more than $4.4 billion was consolidated using ATO online via myGov.

“Often people lose touch with their fund by simply changing jobs or moving home. It’s important to know that this doesn’t mean it’s lost forever, getting back in touch is easier than you think," Mr Whyte said.

"In addition, new legislation means that for the first time, we can now start reuniting Australians with their super, without them needing to take any action. We will let them know when we have done this."

The new law also requires super funds to report and pay ‘inactive low balance accounts’ to the ATO. This includes accounts that have not received a contribution for 16 months and have a balance below $6,000.

“In total, we’ve received over 2.3 million inactive low balance accounts from super funds, valued at approximately $2.16 billion," Mr Whyte said.

“We are now working to reunite Australians with these amounts by either transferring it into an active super account, or directly into their bank account where the amount is less than $200 or the member is aged over 65 years.

“So far, we have reunited just over 841,000 accounts worth nearly $1.38 billion. This includes approximately 684,000 accounts worth $1.22 billion that have been transferred into an individual’s active super account and approximately 157,000 accounts worth $161 million directly to individuals’ bank accounts. We will be continuing this work throughout November and into the future. We will let you know after we have reunited you with your super.

“We expect more than one million people will receive a direct payment," Mr Whyte said.

“With the ATO now able to reunite these inactive low balance accounts and previously unclaimed accounts, we’ve already started to see some incredible examples of people receiving meaningful boosts to their retirement savings.

“One woman aged 68 will be directly paid over $1.5 million that was unclaimed and she’d lost touch with.

“Another woman was previously reunited with over $600,000 of unclaimed super after losing her home in a bushfire. As she was over 65, we were able to pay that money directly to her and she is now able to use this money to rebuild her life.

“In this case, it wasn’t until the woman reached out to us that she realised she had so much super. That’s why it’s great that we can now start proactively reuniting people with their super that they might not know about.

“Anyone who thinks they may get a direct payment should make sure their bank account details are up to date by logging in to ATO online via MyGov.

 “Even if you won’t be eligible for a direct payment, it’s important to do your future a favour by engaging with your super now.

 “While it’s great that this new legislation means we can now proactively reunite Australians with their super, there are instances where we cannot reconnect you with your super.

“That’s why I recommend using ATO online to check that you aren’t missing out on any lost or unclaimed super that’s being held by us or your super fund ," Mr Whyte said.

For information on how to manage super and view all personal super accounts including lost and unclaimed super, visit ato.gov.au/checkyoursuper

To find out how much lost super is in a postcode and to see other superannuation statistics, visit ato.gov.au/lostsuper

Top 10 postcodes ranked by number of lost and unclaimed super account values as at 30 June 2019

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THE Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) will appear before the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services at a public hearing in Sydney on Tuesday, November 19, 2019.

The committee will hold two hearings. First, the committee will review the performance and operations of the corporate regulator, following on from the first ASIC oversight hearing on Friday, September 13, 2019.

Second, ASIC will give evidence to the committee for its inquiry into the regulation of auditing in Australia.

Public hearing details
Date:  Tuesday, 19 November 2019
Time:  9am to 12pm (ASIC Oversight), 1pm to 4.30pm (Regulation of auditing)
Location: Portside Room, Portside Centre Sydney, Level 5, 207 Kent St, Sydney NSW 2000.

The hearing will be broadcast live at aph.gov.au/live.

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THE Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit will hold its first public hearing in Canberra on Friday, November 15, 2019 as part of the Inquiry into the Efficiency and Effectiveness of a number of government programs and initiatives as contained in the below Auditor-General’s Reports:

• No. 25 (2018-19) Efficiency of the Processing of Applications for Citizenship by Conferral

• No. 29 (2018–19) Efficiency of the Investigation of Transport Accidents and Safety Occurrences

• No. 38 (2018–19) Application of Cost Recovery Principles

No. 42 (2018-19) Management of Small Business Tax Debt

No. 44 (2018–19) Effectiveness of the Export Finance and Insurance Corporation

No. 45 (2018–19) Coordination and Targeting of Domestic Violence Funding and Actions

No. 51 (2019–19) Farm Management Deposits Scheme

The public hearing program and further information about the inquiry is available on the committee’s website.

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THE Queensland Resources Council (QRC) has welcomed the Australian Government’s announcement of new finance pathways for critical minerals projects, along with a special project facilitation office.

QRC chief executive Ian Macfarlane will join Resources Minister Matt Canavan’s Australian critical minerals delegation to Washington next week to further develop the US-Australia trading partnership.

“Queensland will be at the forefront of the development of Australia’s critical minerals,” Mr Macfarlane said.

“This emerging part of the resources sector will play a strategic role for Australia in terms of defence industries, manufacturing, trade and regional development.

“Our rich resources state of Queensland has significant reserves of key critical minerals including battery-related minerals," he said.

“We have 13 percent of Australia’s economic demonstrated resources of copper, 3 percent of nickel, 6 percent of zinc, 18 percent of graphite, along with 70 percent of molybdenum and significant identified deposits of cobalt, rhenium, scandium, tantalum, niobium, lithium, rare earths and vanadium.

“What’s more, the resources are identified thanks in large part to the $100 million Exploring for the Future program, which will make the area between Tennant Creek and Mount Isa one of the best mapped parts of Earth," Mr Macfarlane said.

“New investments will also mean new jobs and opportunities for regional Queensland. Our resources sector is already a powerhouse of the Queensland economy, making up one in every five dollars and one in every seven jobs.

“New investments in critical minerals will add to the jobs and possibilities in our world-leading coal, gas and metals sectors. QRC is particularly focussed on ensuring the best planning and development of the critical minerals supply chain," he said.

“This should include investments in transport infrastructure, as well as opportunities for processing and value adding of critical minerals within Queensland.

“QRC welcomes the opportunity to further discuss these issues and ways to strengthen global markets for Queensland commodities during the Australian trade delegation to the United States," Mr Macfarlane said.

“QRC also looks forward to working with the Queensland Government on the development of the North West Minerals Province, which will be a hub for the state’s critical minerals industry.”

www.qrc.org.au

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