New super account does not show up on Tax office info

Question

I have an old super with a fund which we will call FOO, I was generally dissatisfied with their performance and service, so when I started a new job, I change to their preferred super-annuation provider, which we will call BAR.

When I moved to BAR I asked them to consolidate my accounts, and have the account at FOO closed. (Apparently this is the way it is done, normally.)

I went to the tax office website today to submit my return (via the fancy myGov site). After completing it, it suggested I might like to check on my super online. I thought that would be interesting, so did so.

I see the account from FOO is there (which shouldn't be), but the account from BAR is not.

Who should I be contacting about the discrepancy?

• FOO, who should have told the tax office my account was closed
• BAR, who should have told the tax office my account was opened,
• or the tax office?

Answer 1

One thing you didn't mention is how long ago you moved to BAR. If it was recent, it's feasible that the data just hasn't made it through to the ATO yet.

However, having said that, the ATO's general super search is a lost super search. It's meant to show you super that is in your name, but isn't in an account that you control. It's used to claim missing super and transfer it to an active account.

It's possible in these circumstances that your account at FOO has been notified as closed, BAR hasn't yet been notified as open, and the super hasn't yet transferred - which is why it could be coming up as 'lost super'. It's also possible that the transfer of super has happened and the ATO's data just hasn't been updated yet.

You could log in to your account at BAR and see if your super has been transferred. If not, you could call them and ask for an update on the transfer (yes, as you mentioned, this is the way it is done - your new super provider will request a move of your super from your old provider). Or you could wait a bit longer to see if it comes in. Generally, the super world moves a bit slowly - most people don't need it to happen all that fast when they're not going to see the money for decades anyway!

The bottom line is that the best thing to do in this circumstance is to call and ask. The ATO is unlikely to be of much assistance (they'll probably just tell you that's the data they have), so the best route to go down is with the company you now have an active super account with. If you're like me and like to be able to see the status of all your finances, just find out from them how long it might be before everything should be in order and visible in your account.