Event based reporting for SMSFs – are you ready?

Date: 6 June 2017

The ATO is proposing to introduce event based reporting for all SMSFs from 1 July 2017. This means that funds will have to report certain events to the ATO in “real time”.

Under the proposed reporting requirements, some events like a commutation of a pension would be required to be reported within 10 business days after the end of the month in which that commutation occurs. The commencement of pensions would need to be reported within 28 days of the end of the quarter.

“This will be a major change for superannuation funds that are currently only required to report annually. The more frequent reporting requirements will place an unfair burden on the trustees of small funds and SMSFs and their advisors.” said The Tax Institute’s Senior Tax Counsel, Professor Robert Deutsch.

“This is going to put a huge amount of pressure on tax agents and the trustees of small funds and SMSFs.”

"Superannuation reporting requirements should be annual but the ATO is unlikely to accept this approach. At worst, reporting should be no more frequent than quarterly."

It seems highly unlikely that the ATO will move away from event based reporting. Consequently, The Tax Institute and other industry bodies continue to liaise with the ATO in an attempt to ensure that there will be sufficient time for agents and funds to prepare themselves before these changes commence.

Professor Deutsch said, “At the end of the day, the ATO appears set on event based reporting and it will only be a matter of time before it’s introduced for all funds. It is critical that the ATO provides a long transitional period to allow SMSFs and their advisors to become accustomed to the new system.”

ENDS

For more information, please contact: Stephanie Conway, Media Relations Contact: 02 8223 0011

The Tax Institute is Australia’s leading professional association and educator in tax. Its 12,000 members include tax agents, accountants and lawyers as well as tax practitioners in corporations, government and academia. The Tax Institute supports the tax profession through education and professional development and works to continually improve tax law and its administration.