What is a Life Pension?
The RBF Life Pension is a fortnightly pension paid for life to eligible Contributory Scheme members and former members. It is also indexed twice yearly in line with inflation (dependent on the commencement date of the pension).
If your life pension is purchased using funds from the Contributory Scheme you will have a Contributory Scheme Life Pension.
If you are a former scheme member and have a right to purchase a life pension and use funds from another complying superannuation fund (if eligible) you will have an RBF Life Pension.
For more information (including eligibility), please read the
RBF Fact Sheet - Life Pension (PDF 96Kb).
Any member who is planning to retire in the next couple of years should book an appointment now with us to discuss your benefit options, including life pension eligibility. Please call the RBF Enquiry Line on 1800 622 631 to arrange an appointment with one of our Superannuation Consultants. Application forms can be provided once your eligibility has been confirmed.
Will I also be able to claim a Centrelink benefit?
Depending on your personal circumstances, you may be eligible to claim a Centrelink benefit.
For further information please contact Centrelink by telephoning 132 300 or visiting www.servicesaustralia.gov.au.
Declaring your Surviving Partner
If you have a Reversionary RBF Life Pension you have the option of making a Partner Declaration. You are declaring to us who is likely to be your actual surviving partner if you die. A surviving partner is eligible to receive a pension of two-thirds of the pension rate you were paid prior to your death.
If the declaration form is accepted by the Commission, the declared partner's details will be retained by the Commission and considered in the event of your death.
What a declaration does is it makes it easier for your declared Surviving Partner to continue to receive pension payments from RBF, covering the period of time in between when you die and when they are formally determined as your Surviving Partner. They can be paid a Provisional Surviving Partner pension for up to six months after your death. If you don't have a declared partner on file, your pension payments stop when you die and then your partner will not receive any payments until they are determined as your surviving partner.
Once formally determined by the Commission to be the Surviving Partner, then the actual Surviving Partner pension will start and will be paid until your surviving partner dies.
Making a partner declaration doesn't guarantee that this person will be determined to be your Surviving Partner in the future. If the Commission isn't satisfied that the declared Surviving Partner meets the criteria, then a Surviving Partner pension will not be payable and any pension monies already paid will need to be refunded to the Commission.
A partner declaration can be made by completing the
RBF Form - Reversionary Life Pension Partner Declaration Form (PDF 72Kb) and providing some supporting documentation.
You are able to come in to our Hobart or Launceston offices for any help with this form.
Surviving Partner Definition
Surviving partner means the spouse of an RBF member (and includes a person with whom the member was in a significant relationship within the meaning of the Relationships Act 2003), and who was, in the opinion of the Commission, at the time of the RBF member's death:
(a) living with the member on a genuine domestic basis and is receiving significant financial support from the member; or
(b) does not meet the definition in (a) but is living with the member on a genuine domestic basis; or
(c) does not meet the definition in (a) and (b), but for a medical reason or because of the care needed to be provided to the person, would have been living with the member; or
(d) does not meet the definition in (a), (b) or (c) but is receiving significant financial support from the member.
For the purposes of the Relationships Act 2003, a significant relationship is between two adults who:
- have a relationship as a couple; and
- are not married to one another or related by family.
Registered carer means a person with whom the member was in a caring relationship which was subject to a deed
of relationship registered under Part 2 of the
Relationships Act 2003.