• Ask for a transfer document from each of your overseas funds.
• Contact the ATO and ask them to calculate your 'assessable amount' for tax purposes.
• Complete your section of the transfer document(s) and send it to us.
• We’ll complete our sections and return the transfer document(s) to you.
• Check and finalise any outstanding information and send the transfer document(s) to your overseas fund(s).
• If there are no issues, your overseas fund(s) will transfer your money to us.
• We’ll get in touch with you to confirm how you want to pay any tax owed on the money transferred.
• We’ll transfer the funds to iQ Super account.

A transfer to an Australian super fund from the United Kingdom (UK) can be considered an unauthorised payment, which attract a penalty of up to 55% of your balance.

To avoid this penalty, you need to transfer to a fund that has Qualifying Recognised Overseas Pension Scheme status. Due to UK legislative changes, Russell Investments no longer has this status.

If the transfer of your overseas pension payments is completed within six months of you becoming an Australian tax resident, you do not need to pay tax on it.

If you have been a resident for more than six months, you need to pay tax on the growth component of your pension.

Here’s the formula:

[(payment day entitlement - {accumulated entitlement + additional contributions}) x resident days/total days] + previously exempt amounts

Here’s what the formula terms mean:

• Payment day entitlement = the amount you are entitled to at the time of the transfer before any deductions have been made
• Accumulated entitlement = generally the amount payable by the overseas fund the day before you became an Australian resident for tax purposes
• Additional contributions = employer or personal contributions made after you became an Australian tax resident
• Resident days = the number of days you have been an Australian tax resident in your current period of residence
• Total days = the number of days from the first time you became an Australian tax resident until the date of payment
• Previously exempt amounts = this relates to amounts assessable under the Foreign Investment Fund rules. Check with your tax specialist, if this applies to you.

• You can choose to have us pay tax on the growth component of your pension at 15% by completing the relevant ATO form. This won’t count towards any contribution limit, because it's considered normal growth within a super fund, not a contribution.

• Or, you can pay the tax yourself at your marginal tax rate by including the assessable amount as income in your tax return. This will count towards your after-tax (non-concessional) contribution limit.

• If you receive an amount that you are not entitled to, such as a top-up payment from your overseas employer, we’ll tax this amount at 15%. Such amounts count towards your before-tax (concessional) contribution limit, so it’s important to let us know to make sure we tax and report it, correctly.

• Don’t forget to check any international tax implications for any transfer in line with your personal circumstances.

• Any amounts you salary sacrifice or that come from your employer also count towards your concessional contribution limit. If you exceed your concessional (before-tax) contribution limit, a penalty tax will apply.

  What’s more, the amount contributed above your concessional (before-tax) contribution limit will count towards your non-concessional (after-tax) contribution limit for that year. This may result in you also exceeding that limit and incurring another 46.5% tax on the amount.

• The ATO has more information on the tax treatment of transfers from foreign super funds.