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Understanding your member statement

You will soon receive your superannuation member statement for the 2024/25 financial year. Here’s a quick guide to help you interpret what it tells you about your super.

By Son Nguyen - 4 min  read

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A little about Son

Son is a Senior Product Specialist for the Russell Investments Master Trust. With over a decade of experience in the financial services industry, he specialises in all things superannuation and is committed to making sure that members understand the various aspects of their super and retirement journey. One of his specialist responsibilities is the delivery of annual statements.

Article updated October 2025

Your super benefit statement is a key source of information about your account, outlining details of your super, insurance and investments, including its performance over the year.

It’s worth noting that not all benefit statements look exactly the same. Depending on a member’s account type and contributions, such as defined benefit, employer-paid, choice, etc. their statement could look different. However, there are key components that are common to all.

Your statement uses charts and tables to make it easy to read. It also explains some technical concepts, such as binding and non-binding nominations for death benefits, and the methods used to produce your retirement estimate.

You may notice it also includes super terminology you probably don’t use every day. Some of these terms may be new to you, or you may want a refresher on what they mean. We prepared this glossary to help you interpret your statement.

Term

What it means

Administration fees

Fees you pay towards the general costs related to the administration of the fund

Administration fees and costs

Flat dollar fees charged for holding your account

Administration fees and costs (%)

Fees that are calculated as a percentage of your super account balance

Basic death and TPD insurance fee

The fee for insurance, which would pay out as a death benefit or total and permanent disablement benefit

Basic income protection cover insurance fee

The fee for income protection insurance, which would pay out as a total and temporary disablement benefit

Beneficiaries

These are the people you have nominated to receive payments from your insurance policy and superannuation if you die

Benefit on death

The total amount to be paid on your death, being the Benefit (see above) plus any insured amount

Benefit on total and permanent disablement

The total amount to be paid out if you were to become totally and permanently disabled based on the definitions in your account, being the Benefit (see above) plus any insured amount

Benefit on total and temporary disablement

The insurance benefit you would receive from an income protection or salary continuance insurance policy you hold through your super account

Benefit within your super fund

Your total account balance as of the statement end date

Concessional contributions

SG payments from your employer plus pre-tax payments that have been made into your super account, such as salary sacrifice amounts

Contribution tax

Generally, 15 per cent of your contributions to super, paid to the Australian Taxation Office

Death benefit

See ‘Benefit on death’ above

Employer contributions

Superannuation guarantee payments you have received from your employer. The total should match the total shown on your pay slips you receive from work.

Estimated lump sum benefit at age 67

A projection of how much you might have in your account by the time you reach retirement age, based on a series of assumptions that are outlined later in your member statement

Inception date

The date the investment option was first started

Insurance fees

The fees you pay for insurance policies you hold within your fund. Insurance policies can pay a lump sum if you die or are no longer able to work, or a replacement income if you are temporarily incapacitated.

Investment choice

You may have selected one investment option or several, like in the example below. You can also contact us if you would like to speak with someone about which investments might best suit your circumstances.

Net investment earnings

The amount in dollar terms that the investments in your fund have contributed to your closing account balance. Over time, your superannuation fund is expected to increase in value through investment earnings. However, your account may experience investment losses in any individual year. You will find more detail on your investment earnings in the next section of the member statement.

Non-concessional contributions

Any after-tax payments you made into your super account

Portfolios

The name of the investment option. You can read more about each of these investment options here.

Preserved amount

If you are still accumulating superannuation, this amount will most likely be the same as your current account balance. As your statement will note, this money must remain invested in superannuation until you reach age 60 and meet other release criteria, such as having retired.

Restricted non-preserved amount

You may have non-preserved super if you, or your employer, made voluntary contributions before July 1, 1999, or if you are aged 65 or over. If you are still employed by the company that opened your account, you may not access this amount until you leave work with that company.

Rollovers

Your superannuation account balance that has been moved from another super fund

Super guarantee contribution

Payments made into your superannuation account by your employer

Total and permanent disablement benefit

See ‘Benefit on total and permanent disablement’ above

Total and temporary disablement benefit

See ‘Benefit on total and temporary disablement’ above

Transaction history

A record of all transactions on your super account for the statement period

Unrestricted non-preserved amount

An amount that you can withdraw at any time as a lump sum or via a pension. Usually, you will only have this type of benefit if you have retired or if you are aged 65 or over and have kept your money within your super fund.

Withdrawals

Amounts you have taken out of your super fund

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Issued by Total Risk Management Pty Limited ABN 62 008 644 353, AFSL 238790 (TRM) as trustee of Russell Investments Master Trust ABN 89 384 753 567. Nationwide Super and Resource Super are Divisions of the Russell Investments Master Trust. The Product Disclosure Statement (‘PDS’), the Target Market Determinations and the Financial Services Guide can be obtained by phoning 1800 555 667 or by visiting russellinvestments.com.au, or for Nationwide Super by phoning 1800 025 241 or visiting nationwidesuper.com.au, or for Resource Super by phoning 1800 824 227 or by visiting resourcesuper.com.au. Any potential investor should consider the latest PDS in deciding whether to acquire, or to continue to hold, an investment in any Russell Investments product. Russell Investments Financial Solutions Pty Ltd ABN 84 010 799 041, AFSL 229850 (RIFS) is the provider of MyTracker and the financial product advice provided by GoalTracker Plus. General financial product advice is provided by RIFS or MUFG Retire360 Pty Limited (Retire360) ABN 36 105 811 836, AFSL 258145. Limited personal financial product advice is provided by Retire360 with the exception of GoalTracker Plus advice, which is provided by RIFS.Russell Investments Employee Benefits Pty Ltd (70 099 865 013) (RIEB) is the provider of the Super Tracker Mobile App.

This communication provides general information only and has not been prepared having regard to your objectives, financial situation or needs. Please note, errors may occur on occasion and if they do we will rectify them. If you identify an error, please let us know and we will rectify it. Before making an investment decision, you need to consider whether this information is appropriate to your objectives, financial situation and needs. If you'd like personal advice, we can refer you to the appropriate person. This information has been compiled from sources considered to be reliable but is not guaranteed. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. To the extent permitted by law, no liability is accepted for any loss or damage as a result of reliance on this information. This material does not constitute professional advice or opinion and is not intended to be used as the basis for making an investment decision. This work is copyright 2025. Apart from any use permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced by any process, nor may any other exclusive right be exercised, without the permission of Russell Investments.


Russell Investments' ownership is composed of a majority stake held by funds managed by TA Associates Management, L.P., with a significant minority stake held by funds managed by Reverence Capital Partners, L.P. Certain of Russell Investments' employees and Hamilton Lane Advisors, LLC also hold minority, non-controlling, ownership stakes.

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