As retirement costs rise, Beam makes super payments super easy.

Over the past 20 years, the cost of a comfortable retirement has gone up by a staggering 75%.¹ Many of your employees will be wondering what that means for their life after work – but there are things you can do to help them boost their confidence and plan ahead. Starting with using a platform that lightens the workload of paying super.

A couple now needs $73,031 a year to live comfortably

For a single person, it’s $51,814. These figures come from the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA), who created the Retirement Standard 2 decades ago to give people a clear picture of how far their savings could go in retirement.

It means that a single person stopping work at 67 now needs $595,000 in their super funds at retirement, while couple need $690,000.

Even if they expect a more modest lifestyle, the budget is still almost double what it was 20 years ago. Rising prices, longer life expectancies and a growing list of what we consider essentials – such as private health insurance² – all contribute to the bigger bottom line.

And since we’re living longer³, we’re also living more ambitiously with travel, action and adventure considered for retirement plans: much more expensive than relaxing and reconnecting with the family.

Beam makes it easy to look after your employees’ super payments

One of the best ways to support your teams with their super planning is to make sure they know payments will land in their account without a hitch. That’s what Beam is built for.

It’s a supertech solution that makes paying super a seamless part of your payroll process. Beam works by integrating with payroll software partners to track and calculate super due as you pay wages. When you’re ready to pay your contributions, Beam lets you do this from your payroll software.

It’s a one-stop-shop, with no limits on employees, super providers, transactions or payment frequency. Plus, if there’s an error with one payment, Beam can hold it back so the rest of the batch isn’t held up.

And with over 79,000 employers using Beam – not to mention powering one of Australia’s largest super funds – you can rest easy knowing it’s certified to international standards and fully ATO compliant.

In a nutshell, that means:

You can also nudge your people to make more of their super

With all the admin time you save by using Beam, there’s more to invest in raising financial literacy levels in your teams.

If you want an easy way to support your employees getting more engaged with their super, check out these resources from ART:

• Consolidating their super accounts
  Consolidation can be a quick and easy way to simplify super and potentially save on fees. ⁴
• Salary sacrificing to their super
  Paying money into super from before-tax salary may mean less income tax while growing retirement savings.
• Making voluntary contributions
  Even small amounts from after-tax pay each week or month may make a big difference to their savings
• Topping up a spouse’s super
  Contributing to a spouse’s super could attract a tax offset of up to $540. (Eligibility and conditions apply.)

The changing picture of retirement costs

Important information

1. ASFA media release, Superannuation peak body: Retirement costs finally fall, just in time for Christmas, accessed 10 December 2024
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2. National Seniors Australia, media release, Private health insurance premiums go up again, accessed 11 December 2024. ↩︎
3. Australian Bureau of Statistics, Life expectancy report, accessed 11 December 2024. ↩︎
4. Before you consolidate, think about whether it’s right for you. You could lose access to benefits such as insurance or pension options, and you need to consider tax implications. ↩︎

This is general information. It’s not based on the specific objectives, financial situation or needs of your business. So think about those things and read the Product Disclosure Statement before you make any decision about our products. Contact us or your payroll provider for a Product Disclosure Statement (PDS).

Beam is issued by Precision Administration Services Pty Ltd (Precision) (ABN 47 098 977 667, AFSL 246 604). Precision is wholly owned by Australian Retirement Trust Pty Ltd (ABN 88 010 720 840, AFSL 228 975), trustee of Australian Retirement Trust (ABN 60 905 115 063).

Before making a decision on a superannuation fund make sure you read the relevant Product Disclosure Statement and Target Market Determination.

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