The Assistant Treasurer on Fri 21.2.2014, released 3 reports from the Inspector-General of Taxation (IGT), Mr Ali Noroozi. They cover: the ATO’s compliance approach to individual taxpayers – use of data matching. The IGT said data matching was generally positively received where the ATO uses it to assist taxpayers, such as in pre-filling their income…
The ACNC Commissioner on Tue 18.2.2014, announced she will exercise her discretion to accept financial reports submitted to State and Territory governments in place of ACNC Annual Financial Reports for the 2014 reporting period. The announcement means that when charities complete their 2014 Annual Information Statements with the ACNC, they will be able to electronically…
The Tax Office has released its SMSF News – edition 29 (dated 26 February 2014) with details on recent SMSF issues, including: Contribution reserves: reporting contributions – the Tax Office says that contributions paid into a “contributions reserve” or “suspense account” should be reported to the ATO (via the SMSF annual return) for the financial year in…
Speaking at the SPAA National Conference on 21 February 2014, ASIC Commissioner Greg Tanzer said ASIC’s SMSF taskforce will introduce 2 new focus areas for 2014 – they include: One-stop shops for SMSF services – Mr Tanzer said the taskforce will appoint a small project team to explore the trend of “one-stop shops” offering a range of…
ASIC has confirmed that it is not proposing to prescribe a mandatory minimum account balance for the establishment of self-managed superannuation fund (SMSFs). Speaking at the SMSF Professionals’ Association of Australia (SPAA) National Conference, ASIC Commissioner Greg Tanzer, said the account balance is just one factor ASIC considers when reviewing advice to set up an…
Speaking at the SPAA National Conference on 21 February 2014, Acting ATO Second Commissioner Alison Lendon said the SMSF sector was in “good shape” but noted there was a small minority of funds and professionals that do the wrong thing. Some emerging areas of concern were noted – these included: illegal early release; fraud; not reporting correctly…
ATO Deputy Commissioner Superannuation, Alison Lendon, has noted the Government’s proposed legislation giving the ATO new powers to address non-compliance by SMSF trustees. If the legislation is adopted, administrative penalties will apply to breaches of super law from 1 July 2014. This means SMSF trustees will be personally liable for penalties between $850 and $10,200 depending on…
The SMSF Professionals’ Association of Australia (SPAA) will introduce best practice guidelines on the complex area of limited recourse borrowing arrangements (LRBAs) to assist lenders and advisers. Speaking at the SPAA National Conference on Wed 19.2.2014, CEO Andrea Slattery, said SPAA is working closely with a wide range of stakeholders on LRBAs and will be…
Speaking at the SMSF Professionals’ Association of Australia National Conference Q&A session on Wed 19.2.2014, the Assistant Treasurer was asked whether he had addressed an issue concerning the Australian super fund definition and the inability for people when they travel overseas to be able to be able to contribute to their SMSF while they are…
More work is required to reform the penalties faced by self-managed super funds (SMSFs), according to Peter Burgess, Head of Policy & Technical at AMP SMSF. Speaking at the SPAA National Conference on Wed 19.2.2014, Mr Burgess welcomed the Government’s decision to proceed with the proposal to give the Tax Office more flexible powers to…