A surge in Australians withdrawing retirement savings to pay for dental care has been described as a “systemic failure” of the oral-health system, with experts warning the trend will worsen unless governments increase public investment in dental services.
New Australian Taxation Office data show 32,850 people successfully applied to access superannuation for dental work in 2024–25, nearly ten times the number six years earlier.
Withdrawals for dental treatment rose to $817.6 million last financial year from $66.4 million in 2018–19 — an increase of more than 1,200 percent.
Public health researchers and industry bodies say the jump reflects long-standing gaps in public dental care and growing cost-of-living pressures that leave people with few options.
“People are unable to afford the treatment that they require,” Australian Dental Association president Dr Chris Sanzaro told the ABC, citing long public-system waiting lists.
Ankur Singh, chair of Lifespan Oral Health at the University of Sydney, warned that limited access and financial desperation create fertile ground for exploitative practices.
He said some dental providers and intermediaries are pushing patients toward early super withdrawals for costly, sometimes unnecessary procedures.
Regulators have raised alarms. The ATO and the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) have flagged businesses encouraging use of superannuation for “overly expensive or unnecessary medical treatments,” and Treasury says it is monitoring the surge and problematic conduct by some practitioners and intermediaries.
Access to early-release super for medical treatment requires verification by two medical practitioners that the treatment is necessary for issues such as chronic pain. Still, critics say that rule is being stretched in some cases to cover predominantly cosmetic procedures.
The human toll is clear in patients’ stories. Jon Biddell, 66, from Western Sydney, withdrew almost $40,000 in 2022 after responding to a social media advertisement.
He later found the clinic had collapsed and says he was left with incomplete work and diminished retirement savings. “What I have been left with can scarcely be called teeth,” he said, describing pain, social isolation and anger.
By contrast, some patients report life-changing benefits. Anne Harris, 56, from the Hunter region, used $66,450 of her superannuation for implants in 2022. She says the treatment ended years of dental misery and improved her health and confidence.
While most dentists act ethically, Dr Sanzaro said a minority are “pushing the limits,” promoting cosmetic treatments rather than relief from pain.
He and other experts argue a long-term solution is stronger public funding for dentistry to reduce financial pressure on patients and curb predatory practices.
The Assistant Treasurer’s office reiterated that early access to super is intended for “extremely limited circumstances” and that Treasury, along with regulators, is closely watching the rise in medical-related super releases and intermediary conduct.
Public-health specialists say immediate action is needed to prevent the problem from escalating further and to protect both patients’ health and their retirement savings.