Obtaining advice

Superannuation and retirement planning have become complex issues over time due to ever changing government legislation. More and more individuals are faced with complicated decisions about their financial arrangements and are encouraged to seek the advice of suitably qualified and independent financial advisers.

A financial planning service is offered to all Fund members through an arrangement with Industry Fund Services (AFSL 232514). This service is provided to members by appropriately qualified staff on a fee-for-service basis with no bonuses, commissions or trails being paid to any party. All staff involved in this process are salaried and not entitled to any other financial gain as a result of the recommendations they make. A formal written Statement of Advice (SOA), prepared with the assistance of a Para-planner, will be charged to the member at an hourly rate which is very competitive.

Financial advice limited to uncomplicated superannuation issues such as salary sacrifice, investment choice and account projections will remain free of charge, thereby assisting members in focusing on a rewarding and comfortable retirement.

Financial planning is a detailed process that will support and map your financial future with clear and concise guidelines to follow. The process begins with a meeting involving a detailed investigation of your personal and financial circumstances and your attitude toward investing in the various asset classes with their ability to fluctuate in value and return over a period of time. We will provide you with a suggested list of information/documents to bring to the appointment to assist in this fact finding stage. You will also receive a Financial services guide which informs you of certain basic matters relating to the financial planning services, prior to providing you with a financial service.

Once this detailed analysis has been completed, the financial planner will identify your goals and what you want from the financial plan in order to advise you about your financial arrangements. It is at this stage that the cost of production of the financial plan will be disclosed to you and your approval to proceed will be sought.

The next stage of the process will involve the formulation of your SOA detailing the strategies that will address your financial goals based on the information that you provided.

Once the SOA has been developed, a further meeting will take place to discuss this and make any appropriate alterations. The recommendations included in the SOA will be discussed and your approval sought to proceed with the implementation process. If you wish, after a period of time you may request that the financial planner review your plan to ensure that you are on track to meet your financial goals.

Members can access financial planning services from any one of CSRF’s six offices around Australia. Please note that these financial planning services are not limited to individuals who are approaching retirement, any CSRF member wanting to better structure their superannuation and retirement arrangements can take advantage of this service.

CSRF offers you the option to pay for your financial planning advice by cheque, credit card or deduction from your CSRF superannuation account.

While you may need advice on a number of issues, only the cost of the financial advice that relates to your CSRF membership and related products is eligible to be deducted from your superannuation account. For example, areas of advice for which the cost may be deducted may include:

• contributions to super eg salary sacrifice
• insurance with CSRF
• CSRF member investment choice options
• payments of benefits from CSRF accounts
• tax issues relating to CSRF Superannuation and Allocated Pension Plans
• transition to retirement and retirement planning using CSRF products
• estate planning where there is an impact on your CSRF account
• Centrelink, if the advice relates to your CSRF account.

At the time of determining the cost of your financial plan, our financial planners will inform you if all or part of the fee can be deducted from your CSRF superannuation account.

If you would like to speak to an authorised financial planner, please contact your local CSRF office by calling 1300 658 776.