Category: Retirement Information

Financial Planning
Insights & Advice

Expert insights, practical strategies, and market updates to help you make informed financial decisions for your future.

Which Retirement Plan Is Best in Australia

Can I Retire at 55 in Australia? Your Complete Early Retirement Guide

Yes, you can retire at 55 in Australia. There is no law that prevents you from stopping work at any age. The challenge is that for most Australians (anyone born after 30 June 1964), you cannot access your superannuation until age 60, and the Age Pension does not begin until 67.

Retiring at 55 creates two income gaps you must fund independently: a 5-year gap before super access, and a 7-year gap before pension eligibility.

Most Australians who retire successfully at 55 need a total of $1.2 to $1.8 million in combined assets across super and non-super savings, depending on lifestyle, home ownership, and spending targets.

The specific number depends on how the money is structured across the three retirement phases: the gap years (55 to 59), super access (60 to 66), and pension-supported retirement (67 and beyond).

This guide covers when you can actually access your super, how much super is generally required to retire at 55, how to fund the gap years, and how to build a three-phase plan that lasts 35 or more years.

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Legal Loopholes for Super & Age Pension

Phil and I explored effective “legal loopholes” from clarifying deeming rates to explaining why drawings from an account-based pension are generally not assessed as income by Centrelink, and including practical options such as structured gifting to avoid the five-year deprivation rule.

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Can I still work part-time and receive the Age Pension? Yes — learn how the Work Bonus, income test, and limits work so you can earn without losing benefits.

Can I Still Work Part-Time and Receive the Age Pension? (2026 Guide)

Yes, you can work part-time and still receive the Age Pension in Australia. Not only is it allowed, the government actively encourages it through the Work Bonus scheme. A single pensioner can earn up to $518 per fortnight in employment income before the pension starts reducing at all ($300 Work Bonus exemption plus $218 income free area). Above that, the pension reduces at 50 cents per dollar. Working part-time does not disqualify you from the pension. It simply affects how much you receive.

This guide covers exactly how the Work Bonus, income test, and Work Bonus bank all interact for pensioners who choose to keep working. All figures are current as at 20 March 2026 from Services Australia.

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How can I increase my super before retirement?

Should I Use an Estate Planner or Financial Adviser for Retirement? (2026 Guide)

Should you use an estate planner or a financial adviser for retirement? For most Australians approaching retirement, the honest answer is both. They cover different ground, and treating them as an either/or usually leaves gaps that only surface later, often after a death, a divorce, or a health event when it is too late to fix cleanly.

The short version: a financial adviser (also called a financial planner) helps you build, manage, and draw down wealth while you are alive. An estate planner, usually a solicitor, handles what happens to that wealth when you are not. They are not competing services. For anyone with super, property, or a family situation that is even slightly complex, both matter, and ideally they are aware of each other’s work.

Here is how they differ, where they overlap, and what to prioritise at each stage.

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