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Fees education

Understanding your super fees

Transparent and competitive fees and costs

We work hard to give your super the best chance to grow. And, just like all super funds, we charge fees and costs to look after and invest your super.

To get the most from investing with us, it pays to know the benefits of being an MLC Super member.

 

Active Investment Management

 

Strong Performance1

 

Award-winning super2

Our super fees explained simply

When it comes to choosing the right super fund to support your retirement goals, it helps to know what you’re paying for.

Watch this short video to learn more about the main types of fees and costs associated with our MLC MasterKey Business Super, MLC MasterKey Personal Super and MLC MasterKey Super & Pension Fundamentals products.

Fees and costs – let’s break it down further

We aim to clearly outline our fees, from administration to investments, to ensure transparency in all we do, so there are no unexpected surprises for members.

The below section shows a breakdown of the fees and costs you may be charged. Please refer to the Product Disclosure Statement relevant to your product for more details.

  • Administration fees and costs relate to the administration of your account and the operation costs of running the MLC Super Fund. They are made up of administration fees charged to your account and other administration costs paid from fund reserves.

    Administration fees for MLC super and pension products have three components.

    From 1st October 2024 our administration fees and costs will be as follows:

    1. A fixed fee: this fee is deducted monthly from your account regardless of your account balance and equates to $78 pa, or $1.50 per week.
    2. A percentage administration fee:
      -  Super:
      this fee is charged monthly based on your account balance invested in each super investment option at 0.15% pa.
      -  Pension: this fee is charged monthly based on your account balance invested in each pension investment option at 0.10% pa.
    3. The Trustee Levy: this fee is charged monthly at 0.02% pa of your total account balance.

    Other administration fees and costs:

    As part of the fee changes from 1 October 2024, we’ll be deducting an amount from the general reserve (estimated at 0.05% pa of fund assets).

    These fees and costs are not charged to your account. However, they reduce the level of the reserve remaining available to the trustee to use for the benefit of members generally. It is made up of:

    1. Estimated administration fees which are expected to be met from the MLC Super Fund general reserve; and
    2. Administration costs which were met from the MLC Super Fund general reserve during the financial year to 30 June 2024 and were not covered by the Trustee Levy paid into the reserve in that year.

    If you are an MLC MasterKey Business Super member, your employer may have negotiated a discount on your fixed fee and/or percentage administration fee, depending on the size of your employer’s plan, or your employer may pay some or all of your fees. To view your fees, log into your account and navigate to the Statements and Documents section.

    You can also view the fees and costs deducted from your account on your annual statement. You can also find out more about our fees and costs in the letter we sent you regarding the fee changes effective 1 October 2024.

     

  • Investment fees and costs include investment fees charged by us, which cover the costs of investing the underlying assets, and certain costs incurred by underlying investment managers and management costs associated with derivatives.

    These costs include performance fees which are fees paid to investment managers when their performance exceeds a specified level. Different performance fees may apply to different investment managers and performance fees vary depending on each investment manager's performance.

    The total investment fees and costs you pay will depend on the investment option/s you’re invested in. This is because each investment option may have different investment fees and costs, depending on the asset allocation and investment managers used.

    If you’re unsure where your super is invested, log into your account or get in touch on 132 652.

    You won’t see these fees and costs as direct charges to your account. They’re reflected in the daily unit price of each investment option and will reduce the net return on your investment.

    Investment fees and costs may vary from year to year. Past investment fees and costs therefore aren't a reliable indicator of future investment fees and costs.

     

  • When assets in an investment option are bought or sold, costs such as brokerage, stamp duty, settlement costs and buy-sell spreads (when transacting in certain underlying investment products) are incurred at the time investments are purchased or sold. These are known as gross transaction costs.

    Some or all of the gross transaction costs may be recovered by a buy-sell spread charged to members. Buy-sell spreads are fees charged to transacting members to recover transaction costs incurred in relation to the sale and purchase of the fund assets. They are charged whenever there's a transaction on a member’s account, such as a contribution, withdrawal, rollover or investment switch.

    The buy-sell spreads may change daily and in certain circumstances, increase or decrease significantly. View the current buy-sell spreads of an investment option.

    You won’t see these costs as direct charges to your account. They’re reflected in the daily unit price of each investment option and will reduce the net return on your investment.

     

  • Insurance fees

    If you have insurance cover through your super, you’ll pay insurance fees for that cover. They’re deducted from your super account. How much you pay may depend on the cover you have, your age, gender and occupation.

    Insurance fees, for MLC Super Fundamentals members, consist of an insurance premium charged by the insurer. If you’re an MLC MasterKey Business or Personal Super member, insurance fees consist of an insurance premium charged by the insurer and may also include an insurance fee charged by us to cover the cost of administering insurance including underwriting, policy renewal and claims processing.

    You can log into your account to view your insurance cover and monthly insurance fees.

    Adviser Service Fee

    If you wish to consult a financial adviser, you may pay a fee for the services you receive and choose how to pay for these services. You can consent to us deducting an Adviser Service Fee from your account to pay for advice solely in relation to your super and/or pension account. Your financial adviser cannot change the Adviser Service Fee without your consent. You don’t need to consult with a financial adviser to use our services.

    For more information on other fees and costs that may apply, please refer to the Product Disclosure Statement relevant to your product. You should read all the important information about fees and other costs because it is important to understand their impact on your investment.

    The ASIC super calculator can be used to calculate the effect of fees and costs on account balances.

     

It’s about more than just fees

The growth of your super balance depends on a range of factors, not just fees. The performance of your super fund can make a big difference to your balance.

We’re proud to say that MLC’s MySuper Growth Portfolio – where the majority of our members1 are invested - returned a strong 9.8%2 per annum for the 12 months to 30 June 2024. View our latest returns

Note: past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance.

1 This option is only available to MLC MasterKey Business and Personal Super members.

2 Returns are net of investment fees and tax considerations and do not include administration fees and costs. For details of relevant fees and costs, refer to the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and Fee Brochure.

Active investment management

Investment fees for MLC investment options go towards the services provided by MLC Asset Management, our investment experts and the underlying specialist investment managers that they select.

They invest in a range of assets across the globe, giving our members’ super the best opportunity to grow over the long-term and use an investment approach to structure portfolios with the aim of delivering more reliable returns in many potential market environments.

Some lower-cost investment options are passively managed whereas others balance active and passive management. The aim is to keep costs low while achieving returns similar to the market.

Find out more about MLC Asset Management’s investment philosophy that guides how they manage our members’ money, their investment process and the investment managers used in the MLC investment options.

Did you know?

The amount of investment fees and costs you pay can vary depending on the asset class, investment style, or strategy.

 

The total investment fee you pay will depend on the investment option you’re invested in (e.g. growth, conservative, cash etc.). This is because each investment option incurs different transactional and operational costs, depending on the asset allocation and investment managers used.

 

Options investing in defensive assets will generally have a lower investment fee than those investing in growth assets. This difference in investment fees across asset classes is driven by numerous factors including the risk and complexity of the asset class, the liquidity of the underlying investments, and the number and type of underlying jurisdictions invested in.

Generally, you can find the fees and costs for a super product in their Product Disclosure Statement (PDS).


 

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  • 1 SuperRatings Fund Crediting Rate Survey, SR50 MySuper Index to 30/06/2024. The MLC MySuper Growth Portfolio investment option outperformed the median returns of options surveyed over 3 and 5 years. Returns are calculated net of investment fees, tax and implicit asset-based administration fees. Explicit fees such as fixed dollar administration fees, exit fees, contribution fees and switching fees are excluded. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. Ratings are only one factor to be taken into account when choosing a super fund.

    2 Awards and ratings are only one factor to consider when choosing a super fund. For more details on MLC Super's awards and ratings, visit mlc.com.au/awards

    This communication is issued by NULIS Nominees (Australia) Limited (NULIS) (ABN 80 008 515 633, AFSL 236465. NULIS is the trustee of the MLC Super Fund ABN 70 732 426 024. NULIS is a member of the Insignia Financial group of companies, comprising Insignia Financial Ltd (ABN 49 100 103 722), and its related bodies corporate (Insignia Financial Group). MLC MasterKey Business Super and MLC MasterKey Super and Pension Fundamentals are part of the MLC Super Fund.

    The information in this communication is general in nature and does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. Because of that, before acting on this information, you should consider its appropriateness, having regard to your objectives, financial situation and needs, plus consider the relevant Product Disclosure Statement (PDS). We recommend you obtain financial advice tailored to your own personal circumstances. A copy of the relevant PDS is available on the website at mlc.com.au or by calling us on 132 652.

    While care has been taken in the preparation of this communication, neither NULIS nor any member of the Insignia Financial Group accept responsibility for any loss or liability incurred by you in respect of any error, omission or misrepresentation in the information in this communication.