How to claim a benefit from CIRT
Types of benefit payments
Redundancy
To make a redundancy claim from CIRT, you need to submit a completed application for payment of benefit form. When submitting your claim, please ensure that all details on this form are completed in full and returned to the Administrator with the required certified supporting documentation via the Member Portal or by email or post.
To process your claim, the fund requires a Certificate of Employment to be completed by your previous employers. If you have been provided with this form, it should be returned with your application. If you do not supply a Certificate of Employment, the administrator will request it from the employers directly.
This payment will be tax free up to the genuine redundancy limit set by the Australian Taxation Office and based on the number of year’s continuous service with the employer. If other employers have contribution to CIRT on your behalf and you were not redundant with these employers, tax will be payable on these contributions as per withdrawal from industry.
Non genuine redundancies (e.g. end of fixed term contract or termination of casual employment due to shortage of work), cannot be processed as genuine redundancies and may be processed as an Employment Termination Payment (ETP) payment with applicable tax withheld.
Retirement
When retiring on or after your preservation age, members will be eligible to claim the funds held in their CIRT account. Tax is payable on these benefits and will be withheld when the claim is processed.
To claim a retirement benefit from CIRT, you will need to submit a completed application for payment of benefit form and return to the Administrator with the required certified supporting documentation via the Member Portal or by email or post.
Death or Total and Permanent Disability
If death occurs, your nominated beneficiaries may claim the balance of your CIRT account. If you become totally and permanently disabled, you may claim the balance of your CIRT account.
Tax may be payable on these benefits and will be withheld as required when the claim is processed.
To claim a death benefit or Total and Permanent Disability benefit, the beneficiary or member must submit a completed application for payment of benefit form and return to the Administrator with the required certified supporting documentation via the Member Portal or by email or post.
Severe financial hardship
If you are suffering severe financial hardship and your most recent employment has been terminated other than as a result of redundancy, you should submit details to the Trustee. Each case will be individually considered by the Trustee, who will exercise their discretion as to whether a benefit can be paid under the circumstances.
Financial hardship claims are processed as Employment Termination Payments (ETP) and tax is withheld at the applicable rate.
If you are claiming based on severe financial hardship, you must contact the Fund’s Administrator for the forms to complete. You may be asked to supply supporting documentation of hardship e.g. overdue bills, loan statements, credit card statements, bank account statements etc. Once completed and returned with all necessary documentation, the case will be presented to the Trustee at the next board meeting. Please note that board meetings are held on a quarterly basis.
An application for payment of benefit form can be submitted via the Member Portal or by email or post.
Resignation / Leaving the industry
If an employee resigns, he/she cannot claim what is held in the fund until 50 consecutive weeks of no contributions have been credited to their account. After that time, they are deemed to have ‘left the industry’. The date of payment is one year from the resignation date less two weeks. All payments made to employees who have not been made redundant are fully taxable.
Payments claimed within 12 months of the date employment ceased are paid as an Employment Termination Payment (ETP) and the applicable tax is withheld. Payments claimed more than 12 months from the date employment ceased are deemed to be a Late Termination Payment (LTP) and are tax at the top marginal tax rate plus Medicare Levy.
If eligible, an application for payment of benefit form can be submitted via the Member Portal or by email or post.
Withdrawal fee
A $40 Withdrawal fee is deducted from the member’s account on benefit payment. If there are insufficient funds in the member’s account, the fee will be funded from the Fund Reserves.