If you’re worried about not being able to afford urgent dental treatments, and you don’t qualify for public health funds, it may be possible to use your superannuation (super) fund to cover the costs. This arrangement is known as ‘Compassionate Release of Superannuation’ and provides a lump sum to help cover necessary dental or medical expenses.
Whether or not you’re eligible to pay dental costs with superannuation depends on the type of treatment you’re having, your personal circumstances and the terms of your super fund. Read more below or contact our team at Swish Dental to find out more.
What dental services are eligible?
Superannuation funds can be accessed for dental treatments that address underlying pain, discomfort or other distress. For example, if a decayed, damaged or misaligned tooth is causing pain, making it difficult to eat, or at risk of leading to more complex problems, these would be grounds to consider releasing super funds early. Purely cosmetic treatments such as teeth whitening or veneers are not likely to be eligible.
There is no minimum or maximum limit on the amount of super you can use towards dental costs. Early release of super funds is also dependent on your ability to afford the treatment and whether you have health insurance that would cover it. Super funds may also be used to help a partner or family member to afford their dental costs.
How does it work?
If you want to pay your dental costs out of your super fund, you first need certification from two dental practitioners or your dentist and another medical practitioner.
At Swish Dental, we work with SuperCare to make the application process simple:
Step 1: Our dentists will make a referral and you’ll be contacted by SuperCare within 24 hours to discuss your eligibility. This doesn’t involve any credit checks or means testing.
Step 2: If you’re eligible, you’ll sign the SuperCare service agreement and pay a service fee.
Step 3: Your application will be assessed and usually approved by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) within 10 working days.
Step 4: Once approved, your super funds will be released to your nominated bank account in a further 7–10 working days as a lump sum.
Step 5: You use the funds to pay your out-of-pocket dental costs, with no other fees to pay.
Should I use my super to pay for a dental treatment?
It’s your decision whether or not you should use super funds to pay dental bills, and you should consider talking to a financial advisor if you’re not sure how it could affect you. There are no penalties for accessing your super early, but it means you’ll have less savings for the future, which could affect your retirement.
On the other hand, avoiding or delaying urgent dental treatment when you need it could mean living with pain or discomfort or increasing your oral health and overall health risks. An alternative could be a payment plan to help break down the cost into a series of regular instalments.
To find out more about no approval, no fee options for accessing super funds for dental treatments, contact our team in Everton Park on (07) 3355 1422 or in Mitchelton on (07) 3354 3341, or contact us online.