Review of retirement income stream regulation

The Government's superannuation election commitments include reviewing:

• the regulatory barriers restricting the availability of relevant and appropriate income stream products in the Australian market; and
• the minimum payment amounts for account-based pensions, to assess their appropriateness in light of current financial market conditions.

Given their interactions, this discussion paper Review of retirement income stream regulation forms the basis for consultation on both reviews.

In addition, on 14 December 2013, the Government announced it would not proceed with the previous government's unlegislated measure to facilitate the provision of deferred lifetime annuities and that it would instead consider the proposal as part of the review of the regulatory arrangements for retirement income streams. This paper also provides a basis for consultation on extending concessional tax treatment to deferred lifetime annuities.

The Government welcomes views on this discussion paper, and written submissions will be accepted until 5 September 2014.