Disclaimer

What this site does

LifeScope sets out how retirement and social-security rules work in New Zealand, Australia and the United States, and models what a set of figures you enter yourself would produce under those rules. Both halves are general: the guides describe the rules as they are published, and the model does arithmetic on numbers you supply.

What this site does not do

It does not know your circumstances, and it does not take them into account. It cannot tell you what to do with your money, whether a particular decision suits you, or what any provider, fund or product is worth. Nothing here is a recommendation, and nothing here is personal financial advice within the meaning of the Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013 (New Zealand), the Corporations Act 2001 (Australia), or the equivalent law wherever you are reading it.

LifeScope is not a registered financial adviser, tax agent, or legal practitioner in any country, and does not hold a licence to give advice in any of them.

How accurate is it?

Every figure, rate, threshold and date in a guide comes from a named, dated source. We use the legislation itself where we can, and otherwise the government agency that administers it. Each guide lists its sources and shows the date it was last checked. Where we could not find a published figure, the guide says so rather than estimating one.

That is a standard, not a guarantee. Rules change, agencies revise their guidance, and a guide can fall out of date between reviews. Before you rely on anything here, open the source we have linked and check it still says what we say it says.

The model simplifies. Real tax and benefit systems contain rules it does not carry, and projecting decades forward requires assumptions about returns, inflation and exchange rates that nobody can know in advance. Its output is one scenario, not a forecast.

Where the responsibility sits

Decisions about your own money are yours. For advice that accounts for your circumstances, speak to a licensed financial adviser in the country whose rules apply to you; for tax, a registered tax agent or accountant; for entitlements, the agency that administers the payment: Work and Income or Inland Revenue in New Zealand, Services Australia or the Australian Taxation Office in Australia, the Social Security Administration or the IRS in the United States.

To the extent the law allows, LifeScope accepts no liability for any loss arising from reliance on this site.

Something wrong?

If a figure here does not match its source, or a rule has changed and we have not caught it, tell us and we will correct it. Accuracy is the whole product.