The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has voiced concern about health practitioners and third-party facilitators using predatory practices to get individuals to inappropriately access their super for financial gain.
The ATO’s statement follows new data that shows the value of superannuation released early on compassionate grounds has increased by 2% to over AU$1.4 billion. This is despite the number of approved applications decreasing by 5%.
ATO Deputy Commissioner Ben Kelly said, “compassionate release of super should only be considered as a last resort, where all other options of paying for the eligible expenses have been exhausted”.
The ATO has been working with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra) to ensure applications to pay for health-related expenses are appropriate and do not take advantage of vulnerable people.
“We are concerned by predatory sales tactics that use social media and internet advertising to attract patients for high-cost treatments they do not need or cannot afford,” said Ahpra CEO Justin Untersteiner.
“A concerning trend we’re seeing are business arrangements that target and pressure people to access their super to pay for certain procedures,” Mr Kelly said.
“These arrangements include short online consultations and the use of templates designed to streamline the process for people to access their super.”
This year, the ATO increased its compliance activities, targeting individuals, health practitioners, and third-party facilitators who promote these schemes. Over 160 reviews and audits of potentially false or misleading statements made in applications or medical reports, undertaken since 1 July 2025, had resulted in penalties imposed of over $1.5 million.
To reiterate the required professional standards, Ahpra and the National Boards have issued compassionate release of superannuation guidance for practitioners.1 More recently, Ahpra and the National Boards have issued conflict of interest guidance.2
References
- Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency and National Boards. Compassionate release of super. Available at: ahpra.gov.au/Resources/Compassionate-release-of-super [accessed Oct 2026].
- Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency and National Boards. Managing financial or commercial conflicts of interest. Available at: ahpra.gov.au/Resources/Managing-financial-or-commercial-conflicts-of-interest [accessed Oct 2026].
