MarkJP

I’ve no interest in getting into an argument and I agree with you that there should be an official way of revoking residency or transferring your pension overseas. You spent a lot of time and money getting the permanent residency so that you could get the exact same rights as an Australian and that’s what you’ve gotten, for better or worse.

Unfortunately there’s no a la carte residency where we can choose the best bits of each countries laws so we have to just accept that some things won’t work out the way we wanted. I’m going to have the exact same issues as you when I return home but I accepted this when I signed up for it.

It is still your money; it’s still there and you still have complete control over where it’s invested. Any pension you build up in the UK will be the same, you won’t be able to access it until retirement.

To be honest I think the “sarcy, judgemental” responses are more to do with your attitude that this country owes you something than your question itself. Yes the UK allows you to transfer pension overseas which is a good thing but it is one of the more advanced in this area. Australia does not allow it and never has. However given the amount of people coming and going in Oz in recent decades I can see this changing in the future.

You can’t expect immigration to just take your word for it that you’re leaving permanently. The fact is, when you have permanent residency you can return to the country at any time. If a temporary resident wants to leave the country then they’re happy to give them a refund as they couldn’t care less if they blow it all, they’re not going to be retiring in Australia, therefore it’s none of the Australian governments concern.

If you though took a refund and went back to the UK and spent it all, you could still go back to retire in Australia and live off state benefits. I’m not saying this is your intention at all but it may be for some people and that is what they are looking to avoid.

You can’t compare your situation with your husband’s cousins as he was on a TEMPORARY visa. You chose to get a PERMANENT visa which puts you in the same boat as any other Australian. The clue is in the name. Pretty much every civilised country has similar rules regarding pensions. Usually after a couple of years it’s inaccessible until retirement. Yes you’ve worked for this money but you’re going to get a benefit from it (tax-free) when you retire. If you don’t keep track of it then that’s your own problem.

It’s not a money making scam. If anything the Government are losing money on Super with all the tax breaks etc. The reason you can’t transfer to a UK pension is because they are very different systems in terms of tax relief so it’s not like for like.

Having said all that, there are I believe ways of accessing your Super if you are prepared to relinquish your PR. I think it involves submitting a case to the Tax commissioner and then you need your Super fund to comply too. It’s pretty complicated but if you’ve a large sum it may be worth getting professional legal advice on it.