Australian Defence Force (ADF) Transition & Retirement Advice

Get planning for YOUR and YOUR families ideal life after transitioning from the ADF

If you’re looking for an ADF financial planner who understands the unique conditions of service in the Australian Defence Force, CT Wealth provides specialist financial advice for Army, Navy and Air Force members.

We help serving members, transitioning personnel and veterans make informed financial decisions around superannuation, transition planning, DVA entitlements and retirement, with advice delivered on a genuine fee‑for‑service basis.

CTWealth helps members of the Australian Defence Force (Australian Army, Royal Australian Navy and Royal Australian Air Force) plan a confident transition out of Defence. Our financial advice focuses on clarity, structure and practical next steps as you move from military to civilian life.

Cameron Teague is a Certified Financial Planner® with extensive experience assisting ADF members at all stages of transition, including administrative separations, medical discharges and planned retirements.

Our financial planning advice is not about us. It is about YOU. It is about YOUR family. It is about YOUR ideal life.

CTWealth operates on a genuine fee-for-service basis with no commissions or percentage-based investment fees. This structure aligns with Defence requirements and ensures advice is free from product conflicts.

“The team at CTWealth are the most approachable people that I have come to know.

Cameron and his team has gone above and beyond with helping me with my financial situation,
with out there help and guidance I would have given up on trying to be financially stable.

I would recommend CTWealth to anyone that is looking for financial advice.

Again thank you Cameron and his team
for a outstanding and professional job
they have done for me.”

Cliften Donges

ADF Transition Financial Planning Case Study

After 15 years of ADF service, Jason has decided to transition into a civilian role.

The motivation for Jason and his partner Fiona was so they can help settle down their young family and utilise his acquired ADF skills in the civilian sector coupled with the increased salaries available to him in civilian life.

We met with Jason and Fiona to go through the first of two Transition meetings where we had the opportunity to help them understand the following issues:

MSBS – On exit from the ADF Jason’s MSBS will move to preserved mode

This means that his Member and Ancillary will continue to be invested in his chosen invested option.
His Employer benefit will be increased each year to keep pace with the Consumer Price Index (CPI).
We discussed the likely MSBS Lifetime Pension in today’s dollars that will be available to Jason at age 60. This helps to identify any gap that needs to be filled between now and then to achieve a comfortable retirement at 60.
The inbuilt prospective insurance will cease, including invalidity and life.

New Job – New employer Default super fund

We discuss the need to replace the lost Life and Invalidity cover with the civilian version.
Life Insurance – Fixed and Unitised Cover.
TPD Insurance – a fixed level of cover paid as a lump sum vs the MSBS version of an Invalidity Pension.
Income Protection Cover – cover that provides a replacement to lost income through illness or injury.
TPD and Income protection are a replacement to Invalidity.
Investment options available including the default option of their new fund and how this compares to MSBS.
The impact of additional contributions via Salary Sacrifice.
We are able to model this live in the meeting on a 72-inch TV to show the long term impact on both extra contributions and also the difference in outcome from having a good performing fund vs a poorly performing fund. A 1% difference over a long period of time can have significant impacts.
We also discuss Fiona’s super and use the ATO’s YourSuper website to check how it performs.

Buying a new home

We were able to run cashflow modelling assuming different loan and interest rate amounts to help with how much can be borrowed, including the new Civilian income to purchase a property.
We were able to discuss DOHAS with regard to the new property.

Cashflow and Asset modelling

Given the capacity of the software we have available in our office we were able to run a number of different modelling scenarios for both Jason and Fiona so they could see.
How much they could probably afford to borrow given different interest rates.
How long it would take to pay out there mortgage.
How much super Jason is likely to build up in his new role to work alongside his MSBS Pension at retirement.
How much super Fiona is likely to have at retirement using a number of future work assumptions.

Given their Life Stage, Jason and Fiona did not require comprehensive advice at this stage, they just needed to understand the basics of how everything was going to come together. General and Factual advice took care of this.

Given the new fund Jason went into we were able to direct him to that funds resources where simple advice relating to his new fund, is available at no cost to Jason or Fiona.

We have scheduled a second meeting for twelve month’s time to see how the issues discussed have been managed.

If personal advice had been identified as being needed, we would have provided a quote for this however in this case, as is often the case, Jason and Fiona just needed someone to take the time to talk them through the number of questions that they had about a lot of simple issues.

The ADF Transition Centre programme allowed them to get clarity on these and move forward into their next stage with confidence.

* Please note the client’s names in this case study have been substituted to Jason and Fiona.

Why Use a Specialist ADF Transition Financial Planner

Leaving Defence involves financial issues that are very different from civilian employment. A specialist ADF transition financial planner understands Defence-specific systems, benefits and risks that can easily be overlooked.

Key areas where specialist advice matters include Defence superannuation schemes (DFRDB, MSBS and ADF Super), the loss of military allowances, changes to tax treatment, replacement of in-service insurance, and the interaction between civilian income and potential DVA benefits.

“I am so grateful for Cameron and his team service.

I appreciate the clear communication, fast response
and total professionalism of the whole team.

Cameron take the time to make sure you understand what is being advised
and adding extra touches like checking later in the year, really surprised me
and show the extra mile the teams is willing to go”

Troy Dorosz

ADF-Funded Financial Advice – $1,000 Contribution

To help ADF members deal with this transition we provide a service that involves a meeting prior to exit to explain the issues that need to be considered and then we conduct a follow up meeting 12 months after exit to ensure the process have been completed with all issues considered.

There are a number of factual advice issues that we will discuss in these meetings along with general advice.

The fees of this transition program is $1000 and covers the two meetings.

You may be eligible to access $1,000 towards professional financial advice through the Defence Force Transition Program. Talk to your transition coach for more information and approval.

If personal advice is required, this will be identified and quoted on separately. If any personal advice is identified to be limited in nature it may be covered as part of your new funds normal fees and we will direct you to take advantage of these benefits where required and available.

What ADF Transition Financial Advice Covers

ADF transition financial advice typically includes:

Superannuation decisions when leaving Defence, including preservation, rollover and beneficiary planning
Cashflow and budgeting for your first 12–24 months post-service
Tax considerations when moving from military to civilian income
Insurance review and replacement planning after leaving ADF Cover
Debt management and emergency fund planning
Goal setting for employment, retraining, housing and long-term wealth building

Our ADF Transition Advice Process

Our ADF transition advice process is designed to align with Defence transition timelines and funding requirements.

Initial consultation to confirm eligibility for ADF funding and clarify transition priorities
ADF transition financial planning meeting providing structured general advice
Follow-up review after separation to ensure decisions remain appropriate and implemented correctly

Why CTWealth

It is not about us. It is about you. It is about your family. It is about your ideal life.

We are a listed adviser with the ADF Financial Services Consumer Centre and have assisted Army, Navy and Air Force members across Australia transition confidently into civilian life.

“Cameron is so welcoming and provided such peace of mind to me about my future options.
Loved the way he prioritised what makes me happy in the intervening years
– not all about the dollars!!

Definitely worth the visit. See you in 3 years Cam!”

Kellie Gallegos

ADF Mid Career Transition

Are you planning on transitioning out of the ADF mid career? It is an integral time to get financial guidance.

In helping members with this transition, here at CTWealth we find more often than not, this type of transition does not require personal advice but rather an understanding of the factual issues and considerations that you will face, along with general advice and perhaps scaled advice from your new super fund.

These issues may include, but not be limited to:

Choices on what to do with your current superannuation fund, whether it be MSBS or ADF Super.
Understanding the benefits that are going to be lost on exit from the ADF. This includes the inbuilt insurance cover that will change. This is treated differently between the MSBS and the ADF. The insurance issue is a very important one for members with either a current or planned family, where the need to continue providing protection is paramount.
How your super will be invested post exit and up to your accessibility age. The MSBS has components that are treated differently to each other on exit and this needs to be understood.
At claim time what are your options going to be and how this compares to your new super options, ie Guaranteed Indexed Lifetime Pension vs a market linked pension.
At what age will you be able to access your preserved military super.
Can you continue to contribute to your current super account on exit.
What investment options you currently have and understanding the best option for you.
Finding the best super fund for your new Civilian role and the impact on retirement from not getting this right.
Discussing your new employer default fund and any attached benefits vs electing choice of fund and missing out on default benefits.
If you know your new employer default fund, we will discuss this in our meeting also.

These issues may include, but not be limited to:

Choices on what to do with your current superannuation fund, whether it be MSBS or ADF Super.
Understanding the benefits that are going to be lost on exit from the ADF. This includes the inbuilt insurance cover that will change. This is treated differently between the MSBS and the ADF. The insurance issue is a very important one for members with either a current or planned family, where the need to continue providing protection is paramount.
How your super will be invested post exit and up to your accessibility age. The MSBS has components that are treated differently to each other on exit and this needs to be understood.
At claim time what are your options going to be and how this compares to your new super options, ie Guaranteed Indexed Lifetime Pension vs a market linked pension.
At what age will you be able to access your preserved military super.
Can you continue to contribute to your current super account on exit.
What investment options you currently have and understanding the best option for you.
Finding the best super fund for your new Civilian role and the impact on retirement from not getting this right.
Discussing your new employer default fund and any attached benefits vs electing choice of fund and missing out on default benefits.
If you know your new employer default fund, we will discuss this in our meeting also.

“All the Staff at CTWealth have been fantastic
and have followed through at every stage
working directly with DVA on my behalf
to submit and finalised all the documents required
for a successful outcome.

Special thanks to Kym for caring!”

Hutch ‘O

ADF Transition Program

There are a number of factual advice issues that we will discuss in these meetings along with general advice.

The cost of this transition program is $1000 and covers the two meetings.

You may be eligible to access $1,000 towards professional financial advice through the Defence Force Transition Program. Talk to your transition coach for more information and approval.

ADF Transition: Super Fund & Insurance Options

If you are moving on to civilian employment, you may decide to rollover your eligible benefits to another complying super fund. We will advise whether an industry super fund or a retail super fund are best for you based on their profits, investment choices, costs and your need for advice.

Personal insurance is another important consideration. ADF members have statutory death and invalidity cover through ADF Cover, MSBS or DFRDB which provides benefits to you or your family if you become ill, injured or pass away. You also have comprehensive compensation and rehabilitation cover.

This insurance cover will cease when you leave the ADF. If you wish to maintain cover after you leave the service, we will assist you to source personal insurance. It is important that policies are in place before your termination date. Death/life Insurance, total permanent disability (TPD) cover, and income protection should be considered.

If you open an industry or retail super fund you will have a basic level of death, TPD and income protection coverage within super. We will evaluate if you wish to increase your level of cover to suit your needs.

If you are moving onto Army Reserves, it is important to understand that most policies outside the ADF have war and war-like exclusions.