Working past 65. More years working, more years’ compounding

Life expectancy has stretched, work has become more flexible, and the numbers increasingly favour those who keep earning a little longer before retiring permanently. Increased super contributions and compounding Every extra year in the paid workforce is another year of employer contributions for your super, another year for that balance to compound, and another year you are not having to draw down from your super. The superannuation guarantee rate now sits at 12% of ordinary time earnings, meaning a $90,000 salary generates over $10,800 a year in employer contributions alone.¹  Add voluntary contributions and the concessional cap of $32,500 for 2026–27, and a few extra working years can genuinely reshape your retirement balance, not just top it up.

• Remember compounding works hardest on your largest balance, later in your career.
• There’s no upper age limit on receiving super guarantee contributions, provided you’re still working.
• Extra years also mean fewer years drawing down your balance, so the maths compounds in your favour twice over.

Making part-time work pay Many pre-retirees don’t want a hard stop. They want fewer days and less pressure. If you’re already on the Age Pension, the Work Bonus lets you earn up to $300 a fortnight from employment or self-employment without it touching your pension, with unused amounts banking up to $11,800.² That’s a meaningful cushion for anyone easing back rather than stopping outright. Where an adviser adds real value

• Modelling whether continuing to work outperforms an earlier retirement, based on your actual numbers, not assumptions.
• Timing your Age Pension claim against your income and assets to avoid an unnecessary nil or reduced assessment.
• Coordinating part-time income with the Work Bonus and any account-based pension already in place.
• Reviewing whether extra contributions now make sense given your total super balance and the $2.1 million transfer balance cap.³

The extra years don’t have to feel like a sentence. Structured well, they can be some of the most financially rewarding of your working life. The information contained in this article is general information only. It is not intended to be a recommendation, offer, advice or invitation to purchase, sell or otherwise deal in securities or other investments. Before making any decision in respect to a financial product, you should seek advice from an appropriately qualified professional.  We believe that the information contained in this document is accurate. However, we are not specifically licensed to provide tax or legal advice and any information that may relate to you should be confirmed with your tax or legal adviser. [1] Super guarantee | Australian Taxation Office [2] Work Bonus – Services Australia [3] Transfer balance cap | Australian Taxation Office