Fees and Other Costs*
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Consumer advisory warning
Did you know?
Small differences in both investment performance and fees and costs can have a substantial impact on your long-term returns.
For example, total annual fees and costs of 2% of your fund balance rather than 1% could reduce your final return by up to 20% over a 30 year period (for example, reduce it from $100,000 to $80,000). You should consider whether features such as superior investment performance or the provision of better member services justify higher fees and costs. You may be able to negotiate to pay lower contribution fees and management costs where applicable. Ask the fund or your financial adviser.
To find out more
If you would like to find out more, or see the impact of the fees based on your own circumstances, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) website has a superannuation calculator to help you check out different fee options.
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This section shows fees and other costs you may be charged. These fees and costs may be deducted from your account, from
the returns on your investment or from the fund assets as a whole. Taxation costs are detailed on page 22 of the PDS. You should
read all the information about fees and costs as it is important to understand their impact on your investment.
| Type of fee or cost |
Amount |
How and when paid |
| Fees when your money moves in and out of the fund |
Establishment Fee:
The fee to open your investment |
NIL |
N/A |
Contribution Fee:
The fee on each amount contributed
to your investment - either by you or
your employer |
NIL |
N/A |
Withdrawal Fee:
The fee on each amount you take
out of your investment |
NIL |
N/A |
Termination Fee:
The fee to close your investment |
NIL |
N/A |
| Management Costs |
Administration Fee:
The cost for the general administration
of your account.
Members with balances under $50 and
Limited Information Members** are
not charged any administration fee. |
$14 for members
with balances $50
and over |
The cost is charged annually and deducted from your
account balance on 30 June or the date you exit the fund if prior to June 30. |
Responsible Entity Operational Costs:***
This covers costs incurred by the
Responsible Entity in operating the Fund.
It includes member protection costs, costs
associated with reuniting members with their
lost or unclaimed super and Responsible Entity operational costs. |
0.5% - 2%
($5 - $20 per $1,000) |
Deducted from gross fund returns prior to setting crediting rates. |
Investment Costs:***
Fees and costs involved in investing the
assets of the fund. They include fees paid to
investment managers, custodians,
asset consultants and bank fees. |
0.5% - 1.0%
($5 - $10 per $1,000) |
Deducted from gross fund returns prior to setting crediting rates. |
| Service Fees |
Investment Switching Fee:
Fee charged for changing investment options. |
NIL |
N/A |
Family Law - Request for Information Fee:
Fee for the provision of information relating
to the proposed splitting of an account. |
$100 |
A payment by cheque of $100 is required for each
request for information for Family Law purposed. |
Family Law - Splitting Fee:
Fee for splitting an account following a family
law order or agreement. |
$69 |
Apportioned across the existing member's account
and the split account after splitting is completed. |
*The Federal Government introduced fee disclosure reforms that apply to most superannuation funds. As part of these reforms, funds must include in their Product Disclosure Statement a standardised Fees and Costs section. Most of the information contained in the following section is prescribed by the Federal Government and cannot be altered. The fund is unable to negotiate lower contribution fees and management costs as described in the consumer advisory warning box above.
** Limited Information Members are members whose identity cannot be verified on the basis of the information currently held by AUSfund.
***These costs are estimated amounts based on the indirect cost ratio for the fund, which is the ratio of the fund's management costs that are not deducted directly from a member's or product holder's account, to the fund's total average net assets for the financial year ending June 30 2010. These costs may vary without prior notice or without members' consent.
Example of annual fees and costs for AUSfund members with balances $50 and over
This table gives an example of how the fees and costs in AUSfund can affect your super investment over a one year period.
You should use this table to compare this product with other ERFs or super products.
| Applicable from 1 February 2011 |
| Example - The Balanced Investment Option (note: AUSfund only has one investment option) |
Balance of $50,000 with total contributions of $5,000 during the year |
| Contribution fees |
NIL |
For every $5,000 you put in, you will be charged $0.00. |
|
PLUS
Management Costs:
Administration Fee
plus
Responsible Entity operation cost
plus
Investment Management costs
|
$14
plus
0.5% - 2%
($250 - $1,000)
plus
0.5% - 1.0%
($250 - $500)
|
For every $50,000 you have in the fund you will be charged $500 - $1,500 each year plus $14 in administration fees, regardless of your
balance. |
EQUALS
Cost of fund |
|
If you put in $5,000 during a year and your balance was $50,000,
then for that year you will be charged fees of $514 - $1,514. |
Additional explanation of fees and costs
- The Family Law Act allows the superannuation of married couples, who are separated or divorced, to be divided. A Family Law enquiry fee is the fee for a request for information about your investment and can be made by yourself, your spouse, or any other person/s considering entering into a superannuation agreement with you. For more details on Family Law processes, please contact AUSfund on 1300 361 798.
- Family Law splitting fee is the fee charged when an investment is split into two investments as provided under the Family Law
legislation. We have provided an explanation of the taxes you are charged in relation to super on page 22 of the PDS.
- AUSfund is committed to maintaining low fees for members. AUSfund’s Trust Deed allows us to increase or alter our fees
(except for Government charges) and we will notify you at least 30 days in advance of any increase in fees or charges. AUSfund does not pay fees to financial advisers.
Protecting your account
AUSfund specialises in looking after small, lost or inactive super accounts and so in accordance with superannuation law all our members’ accounts are ‘member protected’.
Under the member protection rules, administration fees (not including government taxes and investment management fees) cannot be greater than the return credited in any financial year. So, for AUSfund, that means your account must earn at least the amount of your administration fee in investment returns each year before we can deduct the full administration fee. This protects your account from being eaten away by fees. There is one exception to member protection rules; AUSfund may declare a bad investment period in a financial year where the total earnings on our investments are less than the total administration costs we would charge for looking after our members’ accounts. In a bad investment period, AUSfund is permitted to deduct a proportionate amount from members’ accounts to cover the administration costs.
Member protection does not apply to accounts with balances under $50 or Limited Information Members (members whose identity cannot be verified on the basis of information currently held by AUSfund), as no administration fee is deducted from such accounts and no returns are applied. If member protection costs cannot be covered by the administration fees we charge, the extra cost will be taken from our reserve account or taken from the investment returns of the fund. The cost of member protection varies from year-to-year. |
