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Future Planning

All people, including older LGBTI people, have the right to determine how they want to live. To ensure that these rights are respected and upheld it is important to plan for the future to help you live the happiest most fulfilled life possible that aligns with your values and wishes.

Enduring Powers of Attorney 

When a person is healthy and living their lives with full decision-making capacity it can be easy to live a life that aligns with your values and desires. An Enduring Power of Attorney (known as an Advanced Personal Plan in the Northern Territory) allows you to identify who you would like to manage your financial affairs on your behalf. If there is no Enduring Power of Attorney in place when a person is believed to have insufficient capacity to manage these affairs, a Civil and Administrative Tribunal will appoint an administrator or guardian who may not make decisions according to their values or wishes and may not even know what those values and wishes are.

In Victoria, Queensland, the Northern Territory, and the ACT, the appointed decision-maker can also make decisions about health and lifestyle. In New South Wales, Western Australia and Tasmania a separate decision-maker, known as an Enduring Guardian can be appointed for health and lifestyle matters. Click here for more information on Powers of Attorney.

Advanced Care Directive

Most people have strong views about how we want to be treated if we became seriously ill. You can set out your views in an Advanced Care Directive (known as an Advanced Health Directive in Western Australia). It will ensure that health providers know what matters most to you in the way you’re treated. Click here for more information on Advanced Care Directives for LGBTI older people: https://www.advancecareplanning.org.au/LGBTIQ

Wills

When a person dies, we want to be able to determine who they leave their assets to. For many older LGBTI people this may be partners, ex-partners and chosen family members.

A will is a legal document that allows you to lay out how you would like your assets distributed after your death.

Without a will, your state or territory government will try to find a close relative, and this is most likely to be a person related by biology or law, rather than your chosen family. If no relative can be found, your estate may go to the government.

A solicitor can write up a will for you based on your instructions, or a government body known as the Public Trustee can help you. Click here for more information on Public Trustees.

Superannuation 

If you have superannuation, you also need to sign a “binding nomination” to make sure any remaining funds go to the person of your choice. When a superannuation account is opened, there is by default no death benefit nomination, which means that even for a legal next of kin, it can be a lengthy and stressful process to gain access to your superannuation funds.

More information