Adviser/accountant SMSF marriage still valid

Financialadvisers and accountants may still benefit from establishing alliances with each other in relation to providing advice on self-managed super funds (SMSF) despite the Government’s backflip on the need for accountants to be licensed.

According toMLCadviser business services general manager Greg Miller, while accountants no longer require a Financial Services Reform (FSR) licence to provide advice on SMSFs, he believes both groups can still benefit from striking a partnership.

“There’s still a need for advisers and accountants to get together and talk about how best to deal with the whole issue,” Miller says.

Miller adds that accountants not holding an Australian Financial Services licence post-March 11 will still be prevented from giving SMSF advice on matters such as the amount and type of contributions to be made, the investment strategy and financial products to be held, the amount and type of insurance and how members should deal with benefits on retirement.

Meanwhile, the SMSF Professional’s Association of Australia (SPAA) has slammed the Government’s U-turn, with SPAA director David Ruddiman saying the decision is a major setback to the industry.

“Licensing is an important ingredient in the overall raising of standards. The lack of skills in this highly complex area [SMSF] has already been highlighted by the Australian Taxation Office in its recent ‘benchmarking’ program,” he says.

as it creates an non-level playing field on advice.

“We believe licensing is an important ingredient in the overall raising of standards in the SMSF industry. The lack of skills in this highly complex area has already been clearly highlighted by theAustralian Tax Officeduring its recent ‘benchmarking’ program,” Ruddiman says.