SMSF policy changes put pressure onto trust deed updates
Following a period of significant change for self-managed superannuation fund (SMSF) policy, trustees and their advisers should remember to review trust deeds, weathdigital technical manager, Rob Lavery, has warned.
“Each significant change to the superannuation rules is a trigger for trustees, and their advisers, to review the SMSF’s trust deed,” Lavery said. “The hard part is that, at the moment, change is coming in tranches, not in one big hit.”
He pointed to changes in contribution caps in 2017 and downsizer contributions this year as examples of the segmented change.
Laws had also been drafted to implement a 2018 budget proposal to allow an exemption from the work test from the beginning of next financial year, which Lavery said look to allow 56-71 year-olds with superannuation balances of less than $300,000 a financial year in which they could make voluntary contributions to super provided they met the work test the preceding year.
“Many SMSFs will be up to date with all these changes but this isn’t a universal state. All SMSF trustees and their advisers should be actively reviewing the fund’s deed to ensure it reflects current laws and won’t prevent members from executing crucial strategies,” Lavery said.
Recommended for you
The corporate regulator’s crackdown on SMSF auditor misconduct continued in the third quarter, with ASIC taking action against 11 auditors who were all referred by the Australian Taxation Office.
A Perth adviser who stole over $1 million from his clients has received a jail sentence in Perth District Court today, with the judge reprimanding his lack of remorse for the crime.
Financial advisers are being urged to expand their skills with specialist SMSF training as the volume of assets held in SMSFs reaches $876 billion.
The firm has announced revenue growth of almost 30 per cent to $33.7 million in its annual results and will be seeking to reach $100 million by 2030, doubling its previous target.
