Claiming financial hardship with you super

You may be eligible for the early release of your superannuation under financial hardship if you meet either of the following:

1. Have been receiving an eligible Commonwealth income support payment (from either Centrelink or the Department of Veterans’ Affairs) for a continuous period of 26 weeks.

OR

2. You have reached your preservation age (56-60 years old) plus 39 weeks, you are not gainfully employed and have been in receipt of a Commonwealth income support payment for a period of no less than 39 cumulative weeks since reaching your preservation age. You may withdraw part or all of your superannuation.

We recommend you contact Centrelink or the Department of Veterans Affairs as soon as possible to:

• Confirm your eligibility
• Ask for your Customer Reference number (CRN) which you need for your application
• Request a Q230 or Q251 letter confirming you’ve received income support payments for the required period.

The Q230 and Q251 letters are only valid for 21 days and must be received by us prior to that date.

Once you have this information, download the Mercer Financial Hardship factsheet and application form, complete the form and return it to:

Mercer Super Trust
GPO BOX 4303
Melbourne VIC 3001

If you have any questions or need assistance in completing the application form, please call us on 1800 682 525.

Alternatively, if you are meeting with a financial counsellor we recommend taking the application form to your appointment so they can provide advice and guidance.

Financial Counselling Australia 

Phone: 1800 007 007

Financial counsellors provide a free, independent and confidential service.

1800 RESPECT 

Phone: 1800 737 732

A free 24 hour, sexual assault, family and domestic violence counselling line - for anyone who has experienced, or is at risk of, family and domestic violence and/or sexual assault 

Lifeline

Phone: (24 hours) 13 11 14

Providing anyone experiencing a personal crisis with access to 24 hour crisis support and suicide prevention services.

Kids Help Line 

Phone: (24 Hours) 1800 551 800

Assists people aged up to 25 who are exposed to violence as adults as well as staff who have concerns about the safety of their children.

Relationships Australia 

Phone: 1300 364 277

A leading provider of relationship support services for individuals, families and communities. 

Mens Line 

Phone: (24 hours) 1300 789 978

Counselling and resources for men in crisis.

Mens Referral Service 

Phone: (24 hours) 1300 766 491

Telephone counselling for men dealing with family violence matters.

We understand many situations are urgent and will process your claim as quickly as possible.

To avoid any delays please ensure you supply the required information. If you have any questions about the application form or what information you may need to provide please call the helpline on 1800 682 525. Once your claim has been processed you will be contacted with confirmation of the payment approval.

Please ask your parent to complete a statutory declaration, stating the bill is in their name, however it is payable by you. 

If you are in the final stages of the application and expecting to be paid imminently, please contact the helpline on 1800 682 525 and request that an email be sent to you detailing the anticipated payment date.

Alternatively, we can contact the real estate on your behalf if you give us authority to do so. 

Mercer will have to review your application and if this bill forms a large part of it, we may need to request a more recently dated bill from your creditor.

Often if you explain this to the creditor they are understanding and will be able to issue a more current dated bill for you

By Superannuation law, you can only make one withdrawal from your super fund because of severe financial hardship in any 12 month period.

If you are facing financial difficulty and are not eligible for a release of benefits under financial hardship grounds we recommend calling Financial Counselling Australia on 1800 007 007 for free advice.

By Superannuation law, a super fund can only release one payment in any 12 month period up to a maximum of $10,000 (before tax is deducted).

The minimum amount is normally $1,000, or your total benefit if it is less than $1,000 (before tax is deducted)

Yes, in most cases tax is applied to the payment. More information is available by contacting the Australian Taxation Office (ATO).

Under Superannuation law, your superannuation fund can only release one payment in any 12 month period.