[ Medical Power of Attorney] A Medical Power of Attorney allows you to appoint a person to make only medical decisions on your behalf if you become unable to do so yourself.
Points to Consider:
You need to keep your nominations up to date so that they reflect your wishes. You will need to engage your nominated PoAs as part of the process in reviewing your PoAs. Powers of Attorney depend on the state or territory you are in; they can refer to just financial powers, or they might include broader guardianship powers. You may need to check with your local Public Trustee. You should carefully consider who to appoint to be your Power of Attorney, because this person will be responsible for important decisions made on your behalf. You may be able to nominate more than one person to act jointly, or jointly and severally. Once your paperwork is in order, it will help your executor and family if you list the legal documents you have and where they are kept. Records of personal information as well as asset details, ownership etc can be helpful also.
39. Purchase a Funeral Bond We recommend that you prepay your funeral expenses through a Funeral Bond. We recommend that you fund the $XXX bond from your <Source of Funds>. This will leave a balance of $X in this account / investment. Benefits:
You will reduce the financial burden on your family by funding your funeral. Upon your death, the investment can be redeemed to pay funeral costs. If the expenses are less than the balance of your investment, the remainder is available for your estate. Centrelink and the Department of Veteran Affairs do not include the value of Funeral Bonds in assessable assets up to a specified limit. This limit is currently $14,000 per bond and is reviewed on 1 July each year. Interest is added to the investment so that your balance will grow. The interest is added tax-free to boost returns. The total value can grow over the $14,000 limit and will be fully exempt, provided you did not invest more than the allowable threshold. [Increased Centrelink benefit] This will result in your pension increasing from $XXX per fortnight to $YYY per fortnight giving you an annual saving of $ZZZ. This allows you to give direction as to where and what type of funeral you will have.
Points to Consider:
A jointly owned funeral bond is assessed as one bond, rather than two to represent each life. The increase in your pension payment may be minimal compared to the loss of the lump sum to purchase the funeral bond. It is important that you have adequate cash reserves for unexpected expenditure that may arise. You will need to notify Centrelink of the purchase of the Funeral Bond If you invest more than the $14,000 threshold, the whole investment is assessable.
40. Implement a Testamentary Trust We recommend that you seek legal advice to establish a testamentary trust as part of your Will and broader Estate Plan. You will need to map out how you would like the allocation of inheritance to be distributed and who the beneficiaries of the Trust will be. Benefits:
A Testamentary trust will allow you to nominate the distribution of assets and income from your Estate. Testamentary trusts provide more protection of assets than if your beneficiaries were to receive them as individuals. Income can be split to minimise tax to beneficiaries.
Points to Consider:
There will be costs associated with establishing a Testamentary trust. Please review these in light of the benefits before proceeding. Your circumstances may change and impact the effectiveness of the Trust. Please ensure that you review your Estate Plan regularly so that it reflects your current financial position and desired beneficiaries.
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