M A Y 2 0 1 5

BOCSUPER

1

As your super could end up being your biggest financial asset, it’s worth spending time to understand your options so you can make the most of your money. It doesn’t matter if you have just joined BOC, left BOC, recently started a family or are nearing retirement – talking to a financial adviser and understanding your options can give you confidence to make informed choices.

Did you know that as a BOC Super member you have access to FREE financial advice about your BOC Super account at your fingertips. Call the BOC Super Helpline on 1300 136 829.

Questions about your BOC Super account can usually be answered simply and quickly. However, if your financial requirements are complex, you can choose to pay for tailored advice. You can even use your BOC Super account to pay for superannuation advice.

Seeking financial advice sooner rather than later could make a difference of tens of thousands of dollars to your super balance over time. See our new videos to learn more.

BOC Super Simulator popular

Many members have already taken advantage of the FREE BOC Super Retirement Simulator* available when you log into your account at www.bocsuper.com.au. The Simulator is an excellent planning tool which lets you:

z Project your superannuation balance over time, and

z Test different scenarios, for example to see how much income you may have in retirement (including the Age Pension) or how long your money may last.

If you haven’t used the Simulator yet, why not give it a try? Remember, you can also discuss your Simulator results with a financial adviser over the phone or face to face FREE of charge. Call the BOC Super Helpline on 1300 136 829 for more details. You can learn more about the Simulator by watching our video.* Please note that the BOC Super Simulator is not currently compatible with mobile

devices or for BOC Pension accounts. The Simulator is presently available for BOC Employee, Spouse and Retained Members.

All financial advice is provided by Authorised Representatives and Representatives of Mercer Financial Advice (Australia) Pty Ltd, ABN 76 153 168 293, Australian Financial Services Licence 411766 (Mercer). BOC Super does not provide, recommend or endorse these financial advice services and does not accept any liability for loss or damage caused by or related to the services. You should consider the terms and conditions that apply to the services. BOC Super does not receive any commissions from Mercer as a result of members using its financial advice services. BOC does pay fees to Mercer for the provision of financial advice services, which are included in the fees paid to Mercer for administering the Fund. You are responsible for any fees related to comprehensive advice.

Do you understand your options?

New videos make super easier to understandHave you wanted to learn more about your super but didn’t know where to start? We understand that super can be a challenging topic.

BOC Super has prepared some short videos to help you better understand some important aspects of your super.

These videos feature Allan Murphy, BOC’s General Manager Superannuation, explaining topics such as investments, consolidating your super, retirement planning, getting advice and insurance.

Allan Murphy, General Manager Superannuation, BOC Limited

2

How do I know how much has been contributed?

To see how you are tracking against the contribution limits, you can sign into your account online at www.bocsuper.com.au.

When tracking your contributions, you should be aware of a couple of things:

z Only contributions which have been received by BOC Super are shown. BOC Limited’s contributions may not be received until a month after the date of the payroll run.

z BOC Limited employees need to take account of the Notional Concessional contributions paid by BOC Limited to cover your BOC Super administration and insurance fees. Please note, the figure you will see online under ‘Annual contribution caps’ will be a year-to-date figure. To get an idea of your notional contribution amount for the full financial year, refer to your last annual member statement, i.e. your 2014/15 notional contribution amount will be shown on your 30 June 2014 member statement. This was sent to you in September 2014 and is available for downloading when you sign into your account at www.bocsuper.com.au.

What are concessional contributions?

Concessional contributions generally include:

z employer contributions. Please note that super contributions generally must be paid on bonuses, as well as regular income,

z salary sacrifice (before-tax) contributions deducted from your pay (and taxed at 15% rather than your marginal tax rate), and

z the Notional Concessional Contribution amount calculated to cover your administration and insurance fees which are paid direct by BOC Limited for BOC employees. (The average notional amount per employee is $1,500 but the amount that applies to your account may be more or less than this. The amount for you is specified on your last annual member statement.)

If you are a Defined Benefit member of BOC Super and approaching the maximum cap you may wish to contact Allan Murphy, BOC’s General Manager Superannuation, as arrangements are more complex for defined benefit accounts.

What is the concessional contributions cap?

The concessional contributions caps for this financial year and 2015/16 are below.

Concessional contributions

What is the annual cap?

$30,000 if under age 50*

$35,000 if aged 50 or over*

What tax applies if I am within the cap?

15% contributions tax**

What tax applies to the extra if I exceed the cap?

Your marginal tax rate, less the 15% contributions tax already deducted by the Fund, plus an interest charge

* Age as at 30 June 2015 (in relation to the 2014/15 year) or at 30 June 2016 (in relation to the 2015/16 year).

** Note: if your relevant income is over $300,000 you may receive an additional tax assessment from the ATO. Contact the BOC Super Helpline for details.

What if I exceed the concessional contributions cap?

If you exceed your annual cap, you are able to withdraw up to 85% of any excess concessional contributions. If you choose to do so, the contributions you withdraw will be paid by BOC Super to the ATO, where they will first be used to meet any outstanding tax liabilities you might have (including the tax on excess contributions) with the remainder then paid back to you. Otherwise, you can pay any additional excess contributions tax from your BOC Super account. The ATO will send you a form to enable you to elect which option you want to take.

Check your super contributionsAs the end of the financial year approaches, it is worth checking how your super contributions are tracking.

The government has annual limits on the amount of super that can receive low tax treatment. Amounts over the low-tax limits are taxed at higher rates. There is a limit on the amount of concessional (before-tax) contributions that can be made to super before the higher tax rates apply. The limit is $30,000 or $35,000 a year, depending on your age as shown in the table below.

3

More flexibility with BOC Super Pensions BOC Super has introduced some new features to give Pension members greater flexibility and control over their retirement income. If you are an Account-Based Pension or Transition to Retirement Pension member, you can choose:

z The way your pension is drawn down from your investment options

z To request automatic annual increases to your pension income, and

z To use our online facility to make lump sum withdrawals.

We recently wrote to all Pension members providing more information on these changes.

Update your details easily if you have multiple accounts

Some members may have more than one account with BOC Super. For example you may be an employee with a pension. There is now an easy way to go online and update your contact details in one go rather than having to do each account separately. Just sign into one of your online accounts, select ‘personal details’ and update your current details. Don’t forget to save your changes by ticking the ‘apply your updates’ box and confirm your changes once you are done.

New thresholds for co-contributionsThe ATO has updated the thresholds to qualify for the Government’s co-contribution.

If you make super contributions from your after-tax salary and earn less than $49,488 in 2014/2015, the Government will pay an extra contribution (called a ‘co-contribution’) of up to $0.50 for every $1.00 contribution that you make to your super fund. The maximum co-contribution payment is currently $500 for members earning less than $34,488 per year who make contributions of $1,000 or more. The maximum co-contribution payment of $500 reduces for every dollar of a member’s income above $34,488 per year and phases out completely for those with an annual income of $49,488 or more.

For 2015/16, the $34,488 figure increases to $35,454, and the $49,488 figure increases to $50,454.

If you qualify for the co-contribution, the Australian Taxation Office automatically pays it to your BOC Super account after processing your annual tax return.

BOC Super’s feesThe Company pays the Fund’s ongoing administration costs for all current BOC employee members but some transaction costs are passed on to these members. Administration fees are charged to non-employee members. (The Product Disclosure Statements on the website contain full details on the fees that apply.) These fees are linked to the charges of the administrator, Mercer, and are adjusted each 1 July.

The fees to apply from 1 July 2015 are:

OLD NEWAdministration fee* $114.36 p.a. plus a

percentage-based fee of 0.2% p.a. of your account balance (up to a maximum account balance of $500,000)

$117.72 p.a. plus a percentage-based fee of 0.2% p.a. of your account balance (up to a maximum account balance of $500,000)

Switching fee (your first switch in any financial year is free)

$57.47 per switch $59.13 per switch

Exit fee (when a benefit is paid out of BOC Super)

$165.19 per withdrawal $169.98 per withdrawal

Family Law splitting fee (split equally between the two parties)

$715.48 per split $736.22 per split

* Note, paid by the Company in respect of employee members.

INVESTMENT RETURNS – SUPER MEMBERS

Investment option 9 months to 31 March 2015

12 months to 31 March 2015

3 years to 31 March 2015

Super members (net of fees

and tax)

Super members (net of fees

and tax)

Peer fund* Super members (net of fees

and tax)

Peer fund*

Cash 1.9% 2.6% 2.3% 3.1% 2.7%

Low Growth 6.6% 8.7% 8.5% 7.9% 7.4%

High Growth# 11.1% 13.6% 13.2% 13.5% 12.0%

Aggressive Growth 14.0% 16.8% 16.1% 15.7% 15.4%# This is also the option for MySuper members.

INVESTMENT RETURNS – PENSION MEMBERS

Investment option 9 months to 31 March 2015

12 months to 31 March 2015

3 years to 31 March 2015

Pension members (net of fees,

no tax)

Pension members (net of fees,

no tax)

Peer fund* Pension members (net of fees,

no tax)

Peer fund*

Cash 2.2% 3.1% 2.8% 3.6% 3.3%

Conservative 7.5% 9.8% 9.3% 9.1% 8.4%

Moderate 12.3% 15.1% 15.0% 14.6% 13.6%

Aggressive 15.5% 18.4% 18.5% 17.8% 17.1%

* Peer fund performance data is the median from the SuperRatings survey. The SuperRatings category with similar asset allocation to each of the BOC Fund options is used for both super and pension investments.

More information Ring the BOC Super Helpline in Melbourne from 8am to 7pm Monday to Friday:

Phone: 1300 136 829(+61 3 8687 1804 if calling from overseas)Fax: 03 9245 5827www.bocsuper.com.au

All correspondence to:BOC SuperGPO Box 4303Melbourne VIC 3001

DisclaimerThis newsletter has been prepared for the general information of members of BOC Super. It does not take into account any person’s individual personal circumstances, financial objectives, financial situation or needs. It is not a substitute for investment or financial advice. The Trustee recommends that you consult a licensed or appropriately authorised financial adviser before acting on any of the information contained in this newsletter or making investment decisions for your future. Nothing in this newsletter is intended to convey any guarantees as to the future investment performance of any asset or class of assets. While the Trustee has taken all due care and diligence in the preparation of this newsletter, it reserves the right to correct any errors or omissions. If there are any inconsistencies between the terms of the BOC Super trust deed and this newsletter, the terms of the trust deed prevail.

Issued by BOC Superannuation Pty Ltd, ABN 83 080 598 821, AFS Licence No. 287131, as Trustee of the BOC Gases Superannuation Fund, ABN 49 620 344 668, MySuper Authorisation number 49620344668116.

4

Investment updateNew BOC Super Investment Committee Chairman Bruce Currie reports there has been a good start to 2015 with all member options delivering positive absolute returns. Due to continued strong performance by growth assets, the High Growth option returned 11.1% over the nine months to 31 March 2015. In a relative sense, the High Growth option also continues to perform well when compared to peers.

Looking ahead, uneven recovery across the developed economies and the uncertainty of when interest rates will rise could create volatility in the markets. Central bank policies have pushed investors into risk assets and as a result a number of asset classes appear highly valued. In the current context, the BOC portfolios are well diversified across asset classes, and the Trustee remains focused on carefully positioning the portfolio in an unpredictable environment.

See the tables below for details of how all the investment options have performed. Remember that past performance is not necessarily a guide to the future.

Bruce Currie, Chairman of BOC Super’s Investment Committee