When a deferred member dies

In the event of the death of a deferred scheme member, the member's spouse, de facto partner or legal representative should contact the administrator, Mercer on 1300 130 094.

Once Mercer is notified of the death of a scheme member, a letter is issued to the member's spouse, de facto partner or legal representative advising of the documents that are required to assess a spouse or de facto partner's eligibility.

Pension benefits are payable to the eligible spouse or de facto partner of a deceased member with a deferred benefit in SSS.

The benefit payable will be determined in respect of whether the deceased member passes away prior to their normal retirement age (see Death of a scheme member with a deferred benefit) or after, that is the deceased member was receiving a scheme pension (see Death of a scheme member after pension commencement). However, if the scheme member elected to receive their immediate withdrawal benefit, any spouse or de facto partner and children's benefits are forfeited.

Who is an eligible spouse or de facto partner for pension benefit purposes?

An eligible spouse or de factor partner is:

• the widow or widower of the deceased, or

• a person (whether of the same or a different gender) in a registered relationship or interstate registered relationship with the deceased within the meaning of the Relationship Register Act 2010, or

• a person (whether of the same or a different gender) who was in a de facto relationship with the member, within the meaning of the Interpretation Act 1987.

Where claims are made by more than one person, the Trustee will decide the appropriate distribution of benefits.

Commuting or exchanging a spouse pension

In the case of an eligible spouse who survives a member, an option to exchange (commute) all or part of a spouse pension entitlement to a lump sum is available at specific timeframes.

A spouse pension member can only ever make one application to commute their pension.

Payment of pension to children or legal personal representatives

In certain circumstances, a pension may also be payable to eligible children of a deceased contributor or pension member. See Child pensions or refer to SSS Fact Sheet 12: Child pensions.

Where a spouse or de factor partner or child benefit is not payable, the legal personal representative of the deceased member may apply for a lump sum benefit that is payable from the scheme.