Changes
to Family Law legislation that began on December 28 last year
mean that in the event of marriage breakdown, superannuation can
be treated as an asset and be split between the parties to the
marriage in much the same way as other property.
Both parties can agree to adjust the division of other property
to compensate for superannuation imbalances, they can agree on
a division of superannuation assets themselves, or they can have
the Family Law Court determine the division of superannuation
interests as part of the property settlement.
Changes are being made to the MSBS and DFRDB scheme rules that
will allow a member’s superannuation entitlements to be split,
by setting up a new account for the non-member spouse.
Under the proposed arrangements, the member’s entitlements
will be adjusted by an amount that corresponds to that transferred
to the former spouse. Each account will then operate independently
according to the prevailing scheme rules.
A Bill to effect these changes was introduced into Parliament
in December. Timing for the passage of the Bill is uncertain,
but it is expected it will be passed some time this year.
In the meantime, generic valuation provisions in the Family Law
(Superannuation) legislation will apply to property settlements
agreed after December 28, 2002.
Members should be aware that when the Parliament agrees to the
above changes, and the associated regulations and rules are approved,
members might be able to revisit the agreement using the scheme
specific arrangements as an alternative. This is on the proviso
that no benefits have been paid in the interim.
As individual circumstances differ from member to member it is
strongly recommended legal advice be sought from a qualified family
law practitioner in relation to the treatment of superannuation
in the event of marriage breakdown.
Further details can be obtained by contacting the military superannuation
contact centre on 132366. Further information will be available
shortly on the DFRDB and MSBS web sites.
