Benefits provided by taking out insurance—inactive accounts
68AAA Benefits provided by taking out insurance—inactive accounts
Each trustee of a regulated superannuation fund must ensure that a benefit is not provided by the fund to, or in respect of, a member of the fund under a choice product or MySuper product held by the member by taking out or maintaining insurance if:
the member’s account is inactive in relation to that product for a continuous period of 16 months; and
the member has not elected under subsection (2) that the benefit will be provided to, or in respect of, the member under the product by taking out or maintaining insurance, even if the member’s account is inactive in relation to that product for a continuous period of 16 months.
This section does not apply in relation to regulated superannuation funds with no more than 6 members (see section 68AAD).
Each trustee of the regulated superannuation fund must ensure that each member of the fund who holds a choice product or MySuper product offered by the fund may elect, in writing, that a benefit specified in the election is to be provided to, or in respect of, the member under the product by taking out or maintaining insurance, even if the member’s account is inactive in relation to that product for a continuous period of 16 months.
A member’s election:
that:
is given under subsection (2); or
because of a previous application of this subsection, is taken to have been given under subsection (2);
to the trustee of a regulated superannuation fund (the original fund); and
that is in force immediately before the transfer of the benefits of the member from the original fund to another regulated superannuation fund (the successor fund);
continues in force (and may be dealt with) as if it had been given under subsection (2) to the trustee of the successor fund, if:
the successor fund confers on the member equivalent rights to the rights the member had under the original fund in respect of the benefits; and
before the transfer, the trustee of the successor fund had agreed with the trustee of the original fund that the successor fund will confer such equivalent rights on the member.
For the purposes of this section, a member of a regulated superannuation fund has an account that is inactive in relation to a choice product or MySuper product for a period if the trustee, or trustees of the fund, have not received an amount in respect of the member that relates to that product during that period.
The prohibition in subsection (1) ceases to apply to benefits provided to, or in respect of, a member of the fund under a choice product or MySuper product held by the member if the trustee, or trustees of the fund, receive an amount in respect of the member that relates to that product after the account has been inactive in relation to the product for 16 months.
However, the prohibition in subsection (1) applies again if the member’s account is again inactive in relation to the product for a period of 16 months.
This section does not apply to:
a defined benefit member; or
an ADF Super member (within the meaning of the Australian Defence Force Superannuation Act 2015) who is:
a member of the Permanent Forces (within the meaning of that Act); or
a continuous full‑time Reservist (within the meaning of that Act); or
a person who would be an ADF Super member covered by paragraph (b) of this subsection apart from the fact that the regulated superannuation fund is or was, for the purposes of Part 3A of the Superannuation Guarantee (Administration) Act 1992, a chosen fund for contributions for the person’s superannuation by the Commonwealth; or
a member to whom the employer‑sponsor contribution exception applies (see section 68AAE).
Nothing in this section affects a right of a member of a regulated superannuation fund if:
the right relates to insurance cover; and
in compliance with this section, an insurance premium in relation to the member for that insurance cover ceases to be paid; and
the right exists because of insurance premiums paid in relation to the member before insurance premiums cease to be paid as mentioned in paragraph (b).
Nothing in this section affects a right of a member of a regulated superannuation fund if:
the right is a right to insurance cover for a fixed term, subject only to the payment of insurance premiums; and
that fixed term begins before the time at which a trustee of the fund is required under subsection (1) to ensure that a benefit is not provided to, or in respect of, the member under a choice product or MySuper product held by the member by taking out or maintaining insurance.
This Act’s bill:Second reading speech
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