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The only way you can be certain that the person or organisation you want to become the beneficiary of your superannuation should you die, does actually finish up receiving the proceeds, is to formally name him or her as the beneficiary. If you fail to take this step the fund trustee could, within the law, hand over the proceeds to quite a different person or entity. The laws governing superannuation do place certain restrictions on who can and who can not receive the proceeds of your superannuation should the you die before reaching retirement age, a sum of money that is normally paid into your estate or to a dependant.
A 'dependant' for superannuation purposes can be any of the following:
A spouse is regarded as being a person you have legally married, a de facto partner, as long as the partnership has been formerly registered in an Australian state or territory, or any other person you are not legally married to, but who genuinely lives with you in a relationship as a couple.
Before nominating someone as your beneficiary it will pay you to check out the requirements of your particular superannuation fund so that you are familiar with any specific rules it may have regarding who you can, or can not, successfully nominate. If the beneficiary you nominate is not eligible for any reason, the trustee is not obliged to pay out your fund benefits to that person. The following situations may give you some indication of where you stand regarding nominating someone to receive your superannuation benefits on your death:
In the case where you have no dependants as are defined under superannuation rules you can arrange a brother, sister or even a charity to receive your superannuation proceeds should you happen to die. You can do this by nominating your estate as your preferred beneficiary. By doing this you can determine where the money finishes up by making the necessary provisions in your will.
Whatever you do it will remain important that you review your preferred nominations on a regular basis. This means you reviewing full details of all beneficiaries including their relationship to you along with their address and full names. All these types of details change over time and you should keep your superannuation trustee aware of any changes in this area. By doing this you will make the work of distributing your money by the trustee much easier.
Because it can become rather complex, and it being something you want to get right, you should always seek professional advice when it comes to settling matters concerning your superannuation death proceeds, your will and your individual personal circumstances.
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How do i find out if im a benificiary to someones super that passed 2 years ago. He was always in and out of my life. Said he would always have me listed. Found out he passed overseas