ABOUT US

There are several cryonics facilities overseas, but these are geographically remote from Australia: in USA, Russia, China and Switzerland. Southern Cryonics fills the need for a cryonics facility in our local region:

• In Australia, our remoteness from overseas facilities complicates the transportation process, with long flights and multiple opportunities for administrative delays.
• Because delays can compromise the controlled temperature conditions that are required after perfusion with cryoprotectants, an overseas suspension is more risky than a local suspension.
• A different legal system and an inconsistent application of laws, especially to foreigners, can cause further uncertainties.
• Payments, either by life insurance policy or lump sum, are subject to exchange rate risks. And high transportation charges add to the total cost.

Cryonics Association of Australasia

Cryonics Services Australia – FAQ

CryoPath

Founding Member. If someone joined before 31 March 2020, they made a non-refundable commitment of $50,000 to Southern Cryonics. The offer of Founding Membership was for initial investment in the project and is no longer available.

Full Member. If someone joined between 31 March 2020 and 6 July 2021, they made a non-refundable commitment of $70,000. The offer of Full Membership was for initial investment in the project and is no longer available.

The Constitution describes the entitlements for Founding and Full Members, i.e. very briefly that they will be entitled to one free suspension for themself OR anyone of their choosing, at the facility, after the operational commencement date (1 March 2024). (Note that suspension does not include preparatory SST procedures.) Founding and Full Members have voting rights.

Subscriber. Now that Southern Cryonics is operational, membership is open to clients. Becoming a Subscriber requires the full suspension fee (usually funded through life insurance) plus a yearly subscription fee. A Subscriber does not have voting rights like Members.

Associate Member. A Subscriber becomes an Associate Member automatically (subject to Board approval) after 5 continuous years as a Subscriber after the Facility Commencement Date (see the Constitution). An Associate Member has voting rights.

You must be a Subscriber or Associate Member to have a Suspension Agreement, which describes your entitlements.

Yes. The Cryonic Suspension Agreement is your contract with Southern Cryonics. Our Sign Up process outlines the documents needed before you can be suspended with Southern Cryonics.

When you are on our books as a Subscriber:

• The cost of your suspension is significantly lower than for a non-Subscriber.
• All your relevant documentation can be signed and filed in readiness, enabling us to react quickly if you need a suspension. Otherwise, a waiting period applies while we obtain signatures on all the agreements, consents, etc. that are required for your suspension.
• You have access to cryonics-specific policies with major Australian life insurance providers.
• And if you are not insurable, you have access to our advice on other suitable methods of finance.
• You have ready access to CryoPath, whom we can engage on your behalf for Standby, Stabilisation and Transportation. This makes your suspension as timely and effective as possible.
• You can help steer the direction of Southern Cryonics as an Associate Member after 5 years as a Subscriber.
• You are on our mailing list and receive updates of our activities.

The Subscription Fee covers you for one calendar year (or part thereof in the first year). We will send you a renewal reminder in January each year, allowing a grace period because of the holidays. So you may renew at any time before the deadline, which is:

15 February

Our clients are provided with a keyring tag (53 mm long) showing our Emergency Number. Some clients prefer instead to have a personalised bracelet or pendant made at their own expense. As a Member or Subscriber with fully signed documentation and funding, we encourage you to give this number to your representative and ask them to notify us when you are within three days of expected legal death.

Important: this number must only be used for such cases and is not intended for routine enquiries or in case of illness. For the latter, your first call should be 000.

Advise us of your SST provider well before suspension. Note that your deceased body must be delivered to the Southern Cryonics facility to be suspended. This requires SST arrangements. For Subscribers and Associate Members, this is usually covered by your Cryonic Suspension Agreement. For Founding and Full Members, please contact Southern Cryonics re any arrangements you wish to make. See Funding FAQ.

Provide health status updates to us, especially if your health is deteriorating. If you have arranged for us to liaise with an SST provider on your behalf, these updates help us to organise the necessary logistics in advance so we can minimise any delays that could compromise the quality of your suspension. Details may be provided at your discretion, otherwise a general health status:

• Excellent: No problems at present.
• Very good: Starting to experience some issues, but no major problems at present.
• Good: Successfully managing some issues which are not debilitating.
• Fair: Have some issues which are expected to worsen in the long term but are manageable at present.
• Acute: Have debilitating issues that could escalate at any time.
• Chronic: Under care for serious issues that are currently life threatening.

Call our Emergency Number when you are within a few days of expected death. Or ask your trusted representative to take on this responsibility if you have become incapacitated. On receiving an emergency call, we will need to confirm your SST arrangements before proceeding, so having these arrangements on our records will avoid delays.

To ensure that your wishes regarding cryonic suspension are effectively communicated, your Will should:

• Nominate the person to whom you wish to transfer your interment right. This can be Southern Cryonics.
• Include a legally sound expression of your desire to be cryonically preserved immediately after your death.
• Include a definition of Cryonic Suspension: the low-temperature preservation of your body after legal death, with the expectation that future medical technologies may enable revival. 
• Clearly specify your intention to undergo the cryonic preservation process.
• Mention any arrangements you’ve made with a cryonics organization, including the organization’s name (e.g., Southern Cryonics) and any membership details.
• Include instructions for the executor to to cooperate with your chosen cryonics organization to fulfill your intention, and to facilitate payment through whatever means you have specifically earmarked for this purpose.

Note however that a Will deals mainly with your assets, rather than with what happens to your body after death. In Australia, that authority almost always lies with your next-of-kin (or sometimes with the executor). By signing the Next of Kin Agreement, this person confirms that they will fully support your cryonic suspension.

Yes, under certain conditions. SST procedures are costed separately from the Cryonic Suspension Fee as an additional expense. However, for Subscribers and Associate Members, we are able to accept various payment terms on behalf of the SST provider to cover SST procedures, under the following conditions:

• The SST provider must be one with whom Southern Cryonics has an established relationship, e.g. CryoPath.
• The payment terms must be acceptable to Southern Cryonics and documented in your Cryonic Suspension Agreement.
• Because SST costs vary depending on your location and on supplier prices at the time they are incurred, payment will be based on an estimate, and any unused balance will be returned to your estate or nominated representative.

Our insurance broker deals with major Australian life insurance organisations and has experience sourcing suitable policies for cryonics. We can put you in touch after you become a Subscriber.

Your policy can cover both the Southern Cryonics suspension fee and your pre-suspension needs (SST). The amount of cover can be set depending on your SST requirements.

Yes, if it meets the conditions necessary to ensure payment to us at the time of your suspension:

• The policy must be for yourself.
• The beneficiary must be named as Stasis Systems Australia Ltd (ACN 158 203 448).
• The amount for this beneficiary must cover the fees defined in your Cryonic Suspension Agreement.
• The policy should be indexed to cover increases in SST costs over time.

You will need to provide documentary evidence of the policy. Note that Australian superannuation providers do not allow a company to be named as a beneficiary of their life insurance policies.

For a young person without invested funds and/or accumulated assets, life insurance is an affordable way to fund a cryonic suspension in the short to medium term. With Southern Cryonics nominated as the beneficiary for the required amount and a signed Cryonic Suspension Agreement, life insurance can provide funding for your suspension in the case of unexpected death while you are still relatively young (subject to the regulations of the provider). These are the years when you may not otherwise be able to save the necessary funds for a cryonic suspension.

Payment through your life insurance is made automatically upon your death (subject to the regulations of the provider). So your cryonic suspension is not jeopardized by your potential incapacitation and resulting inability to make payment at that time through other methods, or by the lack of a representative to make payment for you.

Our insurance broker is unable to source a life insurance policy for a NZ resident. However, you may be able to find a provider. If not, some of our NZ clients consider relocating to Australia to solve the problem of life insurance.

Being based in Australia can also simplify the logistics of our SST provider (CryoPath) reaching you in time to stabilize your body for an optimal cryonic suspension in the event of your sudden death.

Australian life insurance is generally affordable until the age of about 65 or 70 if you are in good health, insurable, and a permanent resident. Factors that can adversely affect this are:

• Health history. If you have any previous significant health concerns (cancer, heart attacks, etc.), this may lead to loadings or exclusions.

• Family history. If you have a significant family history of a particular health condition, this may lead to loadings or exclusions.

• Smoker/non-smoker status. If you are a smoker, this will almost double the cost.

• Dangerous roles. If you work with hazardous materials, or at heights, for example, a dangerous role may lead to loadings or exclusions.

• Premium structure. Stepped versus level structure of your premiums will have differing costs.

• Premium frequency. If you pay annually, you will save approximately one month’s premium.

We understand that some Subscribers and Associate Members cannot obtain life insurance because of ill health, or that life insurance is unaffordable in their later years. So we can offer alternative payment terms as follows. These funding methods allow you to retain control of your funds until payment is made at the time of your suspension.

As with life insurance, the following funding methods can cover both the Southern Cryonics suspension fee and your pre-suspension needs (SST). Note that if using any of these methods when your suspension is not imminent, allowance should be made for SST cost pressures over time, either through interest accrued or topping-up.

• Pre-payment via a joint bank account, in the future, prior to your suspension. This would be a Westpac account set up by yourself with Southern Cryonics as the second party. Note that if you use another bank, this will incur additional fees for registration and verification of Southern Cryonics with them. Note also that full payment is required for any work to proceed and sufficient time before your death is needed, usually a few days. This option suits clients who (1) wish to avoid the possible complications inherent in the processing of a Will, and (2) could be incapacitated at the time payment is required, and (3) do not wish to entrust payment responsibility to a representative.

• Pre-payment via a lump sum, in the future, prior to your suspension. Note that full payment is required for any work to proceed and sufficient time before your death is needed, usually a few days. If you were incapacitated at this time, you might have a trusted representative who could arrange this for you. This option suits clients who wish to avoid the uncertainty and possible complications inherent in the processing of a Will.

• Pre-payment from your Superannuation balance, in the future, prior to suspension. This is similar to the previous option. Note that full payment is required for any work to proceed and sufficient time before your death is needed, usually a few days. This option suits clients who expect to have a sufficient superannuation balance when they reach their Preservation Age.

• Payment through your Will. At our discretion, we may accept payment terms from certain clients who can demonstrate the availability of unencumbered assets and the capacity to make payment through their Will within an acceptable timeframe. Please note:
  • This funding method requires a Premium Subscribership that contributes to your estimated SST expenses (refundable upon payment from your Will), because SST costs are incurred at the time of suspension and so must be prepaid.
  • There can be many complications with Wills, and you would not be able to mitigate these after your death. Your suspension could be seriously jeopardised. We would need to assess your situation to determine the likelihood of a good outcome.

Yes.

Yes. This is done by submitting a new Cryonic Suspension Agreement. You would need to notify us of your intended change, and we can then send you a new Agreement for electronic signing. Such a change in funding method might be warranted because life insurance premiums have become too expensive with advancing age. You might wish to reduce your insured sum and complement your life insurance with pre-payment, or switch to full pre-payment. Or you might need to switch to payment through your Will.

For all funding methods, including life insurance and the alternative funding options described above, payment is made at the time of suspension (or within an acceptable timeframe thereafter in the case of a payment via your Will). Note that if you use a pre-payment funding method, full payment must be made prior to your suspension with sufficient time allowed for us to initiate our services, usually about three days. Otherwise, your suspension would be delayed until payment is made, and this could seriously jeopardize its success.

The multiple funding methods we offer are designed to cater for the varying circumstances of our clients in a cost effective manner. We do not usually offer term payment plans, as they would be significantly more expensive for you, due to the overheads required for us to manage them. Instead, we suggest that the same goal is achieved through your use of a bank account to make periodic deposits and manage your investment until payment is needed. This allows you to maintain control of your funds while still relatively young and to use them if necessary as your circumstances change.

This does not preclude pre-payment via instalments at the time of suspension. In this case, instalments are often needed to comply with bank transfer limits, and the instalments would be made in close succession rather than on a term basis.

Yes. The pre-payment may be made in the future, prior to your suspension, by your trusted representative. This caters for the event of your unexpected incapacity. Ideally, your representative would make the payment at least three days before your expected passing to allow for our initiation of your SST. Note however, that this option carries some risk, as your representative might not follow through at a time when they are ministering to you at your bedside. Or they might not fully understand the tight timeframe, or exactly what to do, or how to cater for the bank’s transfer limits. Your suspension could be seriously jeopardised.

If you wish to have a separate bank account in your own name, perhaps dedicated solely for your cryonic funding, you can provide third-party access for your trusted representative. When necessary, your representative can make the payment.

SST procedures require specialist expertise, and are provided by another organisation on a pay-as-you-go basis at the time of your actual suspension. So they are currently unknown, can only be estimated, and must be costed separately from the Cryonic Suspension Fee.

No, the entitlements of Founding Members and Full Members do not include any extra services. SST procedures are performed by another organisation on a pay-as-you-go basis at the time of your actual suspension, varying with location. So they are currently unknown and can only be estimated. They must be funded separately as an extra service and pre-paid. This can be done at any time prior to suspension, and we can advise on options to accomplish it efficiently. The unused balance of your pre-payment will be returned to your estate or nominated representative.

There are two possibilities for a Southern Cryonics client who needs a suspension while living or travelling outside of Australia.

If your SST funding (e.g. life insurance or pre-payment) is sufficient to cover the cost of engaging an international provider of SST services, the current possibility would be to have your SST performed overseas, and then be brought back to Australia for suspension here. This would depend on the availability of SST services in the overseas location. In USA and Europe, it is quite straightforward. In both those locations, there is excellent SST capability. In other countries, arrangements could be made, but the services would most likely not be as rapid as what could be done in USA and Europe.

Note that the same issue would apply, no matter which cryonics organisation you had a suspension agreement with. 

A second possibility may become available in the future, namely that many countries with cryonics operations will have reciprocal relationships with us in Australia. As well as ourselves, other cryonics organisations have expressed interest in implementing this type of reciprocal arrangement for their travelling members.

Generally, yes. Our funds are invested prudently to provide a modest return above inflation over the long term, intended to consistently maintain a current funding level that will cover both storage care and revival.

However, we have no way of knowing what the revival component of the fee will be when a procedure becomes available, and therefore we cannot know whether we would have funds available to cover it for all Members. We assume that, like all fees for medical procedures, it will tend to reduce over time. So, if an initial fee for a safe revival is too high, we would need to wait until the fee was lower or an alternative affordable procedure became available.

Some of our clients are using a separate long-term Trust to cover any additional fee (if applicable) above the funds that Southern Cryonics would have available at the time.  This could allow those clients to be revived earlier rather than waiting. We have a sister organization that provides different types of Trusts, ranging from pooled Trusts (the cheapest) to individual Trusts (the most expensive to setup).  

Yes. Pet suspension is available for both Subscribers and Non-Subscribers. For pet suspensions, there is no requirement to become a Subscriber and no additional yearly fee for an existing Subscriber.

The cost to suspend a pet varies according to weight. Please contact us for a quote.

Conditions:

• Pets larger than a human cannot be accommodated.
• Pet suspensions must be prepaid via a lump sum.
• SST is not included in the quoted price.
• It is the owner’s responsibility to arrange SST for the pet. We can give info on options.
• All legs of the pet must be placed alongside the body in a compact manner to minimise the space required.