Retiring overseas at 55 to 59: going early, before super and the Age Pension

The order of decisions for you

Going early, you have time on your side and probably your health too, but your own money has to carry you for longer before the Age Pension can help. This is the order we’d work through.

1. Know the years you have to fund. From now to 67 the plan runs on wages, savings, rent from a home and, from 60, possibly super. Write each year down and you’ll see how hard the plan leans on your own money. Our guide to the gap years before the Age Pension sets them out.
2. Pick the way you want to try first. That could be a winter away, a long stay, a trial year or two bases. The Age Pension’s 6, 12 and 26-week travel rules don’t apply to you yet because you aren’t on it, so you’re freer to test a longer stay.
3. Price health cover at the age you are now. Smartraveller says your age and health affect the cost and type of policy you need. Ask an insurer what it costs at your age today and what happens at renewal as you get older. When you buy, Smartraveller says to declare everything upfront, or you may void the policy.
4. Check the visa for the length of stay. Smartraveller says Malaysia gives Australians a 90-day visa on arrival in most cases. Vietnam needs an eVisa before you go, for up to 90 days. Portugal is in the Schengen area: 90 days in any 180 without a visa.
5. Know the house rules before anyone decides. If you rent it out, the rent is income. If you sell while you’re a foreign resident for tax, the ATO says you generally lose the main residence exemption from capital gains tax. A trial gives you time to find out first. A registered tax agent and a licensed financial adviser can explain what applies to you.
6. Shortlist two or three places. These suit a first long stay at your age:
   • Penang: 90 days on arrival covers a long first visit, at about A$2,540 a month for a couple (our estimate).
   • Da Nang: about A$2,470 a month for a couple (our estimate), so savings stretch further over the years before 67.
   • The Algarve: Portugal’s D7 visa depends on income rather than age, and Portugal has a social security agreement with Australia.
7. Plan how you get back to the Age Pension. Services Australia says you can submit your claim in the 13 weeks before you reach Age Pension age. You generally need to be living in Australia, and physically here, on the day you claim. Portugal is an agreement country, so different rules apply there. Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines are not agreement countries.

A worked example

An example, not a real person.

Sue and Ray are 57 and 58. They own their home in Adelaide, Ray still does some contract work, and they’d like to try a year in Da Nang before they decide anything.

	Per month	For one year
A month in Da Nang for a couple, rent included (our estimate)	about A$2,470	about A$29,640
For comparison: ASFA “comfortable” for a couple in Australia	about A$6,580	A$78,998

How we worked out our estimate: Numbeo’s living costs for one person (without rent), plus a one-bedroom city-centre rent, plus 30% for eating out, local trips and extras. For a couple we multiplied living costs by 1.8. We converted at the Reserve Bank of Australia’s average exchange rate for the 12 months to September 2026 (A$1 = 18,160 dong, for example). Health insurance isn’t included. Numbeo’s Da Nang page was last updated 19 October 2026. The ASFA figure is for homeowners aged 65 to 84 (June quarter 2026), so at Sue and Ray’s age treat it as a rough guide.

When they mapped it out, this is what they found:

• Nine years to fill. Ray turns 67 in nine years and there’s no Age Pension before then, so the year in Da Nang has to come from Ray’s contract income, their savings and any rent from the house.
• Super is off the table for now. Neither has reached 60, their preservation age. They plan to take the when and how of super to a licensed financial adviser.
• The visa is short. Vietnam’s eVisa runs up to 90 days, so a year means planning several visas or trips out.
• The house. Renting it out would bring in income, and that income is taxed. Whether they’d be foreign residents for tax during the trial year is a question for a registered tax agent.

They chose to book three months first, not twelve, and to leave the house decision until they’re back.

What to ask a professional

• Licensed financial adviser: “When can I get to my super, and do the rules change if I’m living overseas when I turn 60?” “How long would my savings last at about A$2,470 a month, plus a buffer?”
• Registered tax agent: “Would I be a foreign resident for tax during a trial year overseas?” “How would rent from my home be taxed?” “What happens to the main residence exemption if I sell while I’m overseas?”
• Insurance broker: “Which insurers will cover me for a long stay in this country at my age, and what happens to the cover and premium as I get older?”
• The country’s embassy or a licensed visa agent there: “Which visa fits a stay of this length at my age, and what money do I have to show?”

Book a free planning session on Zoom. Once we know your situation, we can tell you which of these people to start with.