"myGov.com – let the user beware" Article by Steve Marsten

Recently clients have been asking about myGov.com. This is an Australian Government initiative to provide a fast and simple way to access various government services and more importantly, provide access to your personal history for such services as Medicare; Centrelink; Australian Tax Office; Child Support; The National Disability Insurance Scheme; eHealth Record and the Department of Veterans’ Affairs.

It has some pro’s and con’s. Firstly, I like the idea that it is the easiest way to find out how many old superfund accounts you have open. An account that I thought I had closed had over $3,000 still sitting in it. Also it gives me fairly up to date information about my taxes including PAYG payment summaries - assuming of course the employer has lodged them on time. It’s handy to confirm your HELP, HECS and SFSS debts as well as get your Tax File number.

It allows the taxpayer to set up their own payment plan with the ATO should they find themselves in difficulty paying off the debt. Of course there are limitations – namely only debts below $25,000.

The other appealing point is it gives the taxpayer the ability to roll their superfunds into one fund. Again this is fast and expedient. Now there are some downsides to the expediency – that is, some people will change their super without consideration to the information that is not showing such as the fees within each fund and are there any fees for the switches?

Even more of a surprise is it allows you to cease a Life Insurance policy (when consolidating your super) without considering the implications of such an action. It is so difficult to acquire quality Life Insurance these days thus nobody should cancel a life policy until they have an alternative arrangement in place. The decision could be devastating to the taxpayer and his or her family.

Our advice is to seek professional guidance so that you are fully informed of the ramifications before you push the button. At Sothertons we aim to educate our clients to make better quality financial decisions. Phone 4972 1300 to talk to Steve or Tina.