Third-party authorities with Vanguard Super

Form details

TPA form: 'Add or remove third-party authority', VSFORM26_092022, https://fund-docs.vanguard.com/Vanguard_Super-Give_third-party_authority.pdf. Info-only — nominee 'will only receive information about your account – they won't be able to make changes or take action'. Requires member number, DOB, full member details; up to 2 representatives per form; wet signature required ('Please use BLACK pen to sign'), completed in blue/black pen CAPITALS — no electronic signing provision. No ID certification required for the TPA form. VALIDITY: 3 years (note internal inconsistency: page 1 says 3 years 'from the date this form is signed', the declaration says 'from the date Vanguard Super processes this form'). A new nomination 'replaces any previous third party authority requests'. Adviser nomination form (TransitionSmart/SpendSmart): https://fund-docs.vanguard.com/AU-Vanguard_Super_nominate_a_financial_adviser.pdf — requires Vanguard Adviser number, AFSL number and adviser ARN (adviser must pre-register for Vanguard Adviser Portal); consent has NO expiry ('will remain in effect until I notify Vanguard Australia that I wish to revoke it'); optional permission for adviser withdrawals up to $250,000 per transaction (bank statement proof of ownership required).

Where and how to lodge

TPA form: (1) member uploads into Vanguard Online via secure message, or (2) mail to Vanguard Super, Reply Paid 93158, Collins St East VIC 8003 (street/PO address on form: Vanguard Super, PO Box 18031, Collins St East VIC 8003). NO email, NO fax lodgement published — an adviser cannot email a TPA in; it goes through the member's own login or the post. Adviser nomination form adds a third channel: the adviser can upload it into Vanguard Adviser Portal via secure message. No published data on which channel processes fastest (unverified); secure-message upload is the only non-postal route.

Published turnaround

No published turnaround/service standard for third-party authority processing or information requests — unverified. Form says only 'We'll process your request and confirm this in writing.' Complaints: written response within 45 days for super complaints (per Vanguard complaint handling docs/FSG).

Watch-outs

(1) TPA auto-expires after 3 years — SuperChase should diarise re-papering; the expiry clock wording is ambiguous (signed date vs processed date) so track the earlier. (2) A new TPA nomination replaces ALL previous third-party authorities — lodging one for the adviser can silently knock off the client's solicitor/accountant. (3) TPA is strictly read-only. (4) Wet signature in black pen; no adviser email channel — lodgement rides on the member's Vanguard Online login or reply-paid mail, both slow points. (5) Adviser nomination supersedes any TPA on file. (6) Portal registration is licensee-gated — self-licensed or unregistered licensees can't use the fast path. (7) No adviser-community turnaround complaints found in public sources — Vanguard Super's TPA pain profile is effectively undocumented (unverified).

If they go quiet

Email complaints@super.vanguard.com.au; phone 1300 655 101; secure message via Vanguard Online; insurance-in-super complaints may also go to insurer AIA at au.customerresolutions@aia.com. Policy doc: https://fund-docs.vanguard.com/Vanguard_Super-Complaints_handling_policy.pdf. Adviser-side (non-super/FAS) complaints: adviserservices@vanguard.com.au / Vanguard Investments Australia, GPO Box 1837, Melbourne VIC 3001 / 1300 655 205. Response commitment: written response within 45 days for superannuation complaints (complex complaints may take longer with notification). Escalation: AFCA.

Under s1017C of the Corporations Act, a trustee must make reasonable efforts to comply with an information request within one month. If Vanguard Super exceeds its own published standard, a formal internal-dispute-resolution complaint starts a 45-calendar-day clock under ASIC Regulatory Guide 271 — with AFCA as the next stop.