Nominating a beneficiary
Put your super in the right hands!
Who will receive your super savings if you pass away?
This might seem a confronting question, but by answering it now, you can minimise stress for your loved ones in future and give them certainty.
What is a Death Benefit?
Your death benefit is the total sum of your super balance plus any insurance benefit you have.
Who receives my super when I die?
If you die before you’re eligible to receive your super, the Crescent Wealth Super Fund trustee must determine who to pay your super balance and any insurance benefits (if applicable) to, having regard to superannuation laws.
If you don’t nominate any beneficiaries or you make a preferred nomination (also known as a non-binding nomination), the trustee will exercise discretion and pay your death benefit to eligible beneficiaries – which could be your legal personal representative and/or any, one or more of your dependants.
Whom can I nominate?
You can nominate one or more of the following:
- Your legal personal representative (e.g. the executor of your will or the administrator of your estate)
- Your dependant/s, which may be your spouse, children, inter-dependents (i.e. someone who lives with you and shares a close personal relationship where one or both of you provide financial and domestic support and personal care of the other) or other financial dependants (such as someone who relies on you financially at the time of your death)
Preferred nomination vs binding nomination
Preferred
A preferred nomination (also known as a non-binding nomination) only guides the trustee on whom to pay your benefits to. It is not legally binding.
This means that while the trustee will consider your nomination, ultimately, the trustee has the final say and will still need to exercise discretion regarding relevant laws – especially if you’ve nominated a person who is not your dependant or legal personal representative at the date of death.
Binding
A valid and effective binding nomination is a formal written direction where the trustee is usually legally bound to pay your death benefits according to your instructions.
A valid, binding death benefit nomination (i.e. signed and witnessed following relevant laws) expires after three years. You must submit a new binding nomination form every three years if you wish to maintain your nomination. If you don’t renew, the nomination automatically becomes a preferred nomination.
It’s also essential to ensure you only nominate eligible beneficiaries (i.e. legal personal representative and/or dependant/s) and update your nominated beneficiaries if and when your personal circumstances change (e.g. marriage or divorce). Whether a person is your dependant or not, is assessed on the date of your death.
How can I make, change or cancel my nomination?
Preferred nomination
You can set up or change your non-binding nomination, by logging onto your Member Portal, or by calling us on 1300 926 626, Monday to Fridays, 8am-6pm AEST.Binding nomination
You can set up or change your binding nomination by completing a valid Binding death benefit nomination form. Once completed, it should be posted to the fund.You’ll need to submit a new binding nomination form every three years if you wish to maintain your nomination.
If you don’t renew, the nomination automatically becomes a preferred nomination.
More information & FAQs
Two people have an inter-dependency relationship if:
- they have a close personal relationship;
- they live together;
- one or each of them provides the other with financial support; and
- one or each of them provides the other with domestic support and personal care.
An inter-dependency relationship will also exist between two people if they have a close personal relationship but do not meet the other criteria as listed above (2, 3 and 4) because either or both of them suffer from a physical, intellectual or psychiatric disability.
This definition may include parent-child relationships and sibling relationships that don’t otherwise fall within the definition of a dependant if the trustee is satisfied that criteria in the law is satisfied.
Two people don’t have an inter-dependency relationship if one of them provides domestic support and personal care to the other and is paid for this or works on behalf of another person/organisation such as a government agency, a body corporate, or a benevolent or charitable organisation.
It is important to note that, when a death claim is made, an assessment of whether or not a beneficiary you have nominated qualifies as your interdependent will be made as at the date of death.
When determining whether an inter-dependency relationship exists, the trustee will consider a number of matters specified in relevant laws (eg duration of relationship, degree of commitment to a shared life and emotional support, whether the relationship is one of mere convenience etc).
Yes. However, they must be an eligible beneficiary (ie legal personal representative or dependant) as described above.
There are nuances regarding this, so, we recommend you speak to your Islamic and/or legal advisor about how to achieve this.
Your benefit will form part of your estate and be distributed in accordance with your will (if you have one), or in accordance with the laws of intestacy that govern people who die without a will.
For a preferred nomination, you can do this via your member portal.
For a binding nomination, you can complete the binding death benefit nomination form found on our forms web page and sending it to the trustee.
Please note: You will need to re-adjust the percentages from your existing nomination, such that the allocation adds up to 100%.
You should ensure your existing nominations and any new person you add to your nominations is a legal personal representative or dependant.
A valid binding death benefit nomination will remain in effect even if your personal circumstances change. If there’s a significant change to your personal circumstances (eg marriage, divorce, the death of a nominated dependant, the birth of a child) it’s important you amend your binding nomination to ensure that it continues to reflect your wishes.
You can amend your existing binding death benefit nomination by making a new binding death nomination, or cancel your existing binding death benefit nomination at any time by properly completing a the binding death benefit nomination form found on our forms web page and sending it to the trustee.
If you have made a preferred nomination, it is also important to update it to reflect changes in your circumstances so that the trustee has the most up-to-date guide about your wishes.
The trustee will exercise discretion and pay your death benefit to eligible beneficiaries – which could be your legal representative and/or any one or more of your dependants. An invalid or ineffective binding nomination (including a binding nomination that has expired) may be taken into account by the trustee when exercising this discretion.
When deciding who to nominate, consider your personal circumstances. You should be aware that the tax treatment of your benefits may differ depending on who receives your benefits.
For taxation and financial advice, taking into account your circumstances, you should consult an appropriately qualified advisor.