Due to the significant changes the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) is implementing from 1 July this year, major banks have tightened their lending requirements, making alternatives such as bank loans more difficult to obtain and this could reduce the investment capacity of trustees. Westpac has just announced changes...
The ATO confirmed that it will extend its lodgement due date for 2015-2016 Annual Returns. This is due to the struggles that SMSF professional community is facing to get their clients compliant with the superannuation reforms that will take effect this coming 1 July. The ATO...
Before we proceed to discuss the new proposal of the government for TRIS, let us define first what is Transition to Retirement Income Streams (TRIS). The transition to retirement measure allows people who have reached their preservation age to have access to their superannuation benefits without...
Self-managed super funds (SMSFs) are required to pay ATO a supervisory levy on an annual basis. They are required to pay the levy with their SMSF annual return and the amount payable is stated on the return. The purpose is to fund the regulatory cost of...
In recent years, on-time lodgement has been the main focus of ATO and with the delayed lodgement, it often shows a sign of deeper issues within an SMSF. A group of SMSF members have been contacted recently for failing to meet the lodgement requirements according to...
Due to changes on SMSF licencing, increasing specialisation and rising automation, accountants are forced to remove themselves from a space in providing SMSF services according to one major software company. Not every accountant is equipped to give SMSF advice even in larger practices. Therefore, accounting firms...