smsfs

A Sydney-based AFSL holder has agreed to close some of its digital advisory offerings after ASIC made approaches to it with concerns over the quality of advice distributed by the robo tools. The online robo tools concerned were providing automated financial product advice using algorithms and technology with no flesh-and-blood advisers involved. The areas of

Once one of your clients starts a pension, there is a legislated minimum amount required to be paid out each year. There is no maximum amount other than the balance of their super account, unless it is a transition to retirement pension that is not in retirement phase, in which case the maximum amount is

The latest statistical report from APRA has been released (here’s a link to download it), which of course mainly focuses on the APRA-regulated superannuation funds in the retail and industry sectors. But the APRA statistics also make passing mention of ATO-regulated funds, the SMSF sector, which from June 2018 to June 2019 grew in total

The ATO’s deputy commissioner, superannuation and employer obligations, James O’Halloran, recently spoke at the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia’s (ASFA) 2019 National Policy Roadshow. O’Halloran offered many revealing insights into ATO activity and planning regarding its superannuation policy and frameworks (see the full text of his speech here), but among these items he referenced

The ATO has stated its intention to write to about 18,000 SMSF trustees and their auditors near the end of August where its records indicate that the concerned fund may not be adhering to the investment risk requirements as set out in the SIS regulations. The trigger for the ATO is where it finds that

Since event-based reporting started for SMSFs from 1 July 2018, the ATO says that for the larger part, SMSF trustees have mostly adjusted to the new requirements. Now that an entire income year under the transfer balance account report (TBAR) regime has been completed, some teething problems have emerged, which were to be expected. A

An initiative launched by the ATO over March and April this year involved a mass mail-out to SMSF auditors that listed the funds that had reported each auditor’s SAN (SMSF auditor number) on the fund’s 2017 annual return. Each auditor was asked to verify that they had indeed conducted an audit of the funds listed

In a speech given earlier this year, the ATO’s Assistant Commissioner for Superannuation, Dana Fleming, focused on the risk areas that the ATO had identified as being of most concern — and as being most in need of action. Each year the ATO analyses its data to identify the key risk areas that then form

  The Financial Adviser Standards and Ethics Authority (FASEA) has released the legislative instrument and explanatory statement for its examination standard. The legislative instrument was informed through consultation received in 26 submissions during the legislative instrument final consultation process for this standard in December 2018 and January 2019. Under the final standard, FASEA has reduced

  Whether or not the trustee of a complying superannuation fund can accept member contributions for those aged between 65 and 75 depends on the member satisfying the “work test”. The work test requires a member to have been gainfully employed for at least 40 hours in a period of not more than 30 consecutive