In the media
Helping make your super work harder in retirement
TREASURY - 17 May 2018 - The Turnbull Government is
progressing reforms announced in the 2018-19 Budget to secure the
retirement incomes of Australians and improve their standard of
living in retirement.
More...
FSC and AIST release due diligence tools
MEDIA – 17 May 2018 - Retail and industry super
lobby groups the FSC and AIST have released joint guidance for fund
managers responding to due diligence requests from super funds.
More...
APRA releases findings of thematic review of
superannuation board governance practices
APRA – 17 May 2018 - The Australian Prudential
Regulation Authority (APRA) has urged
superannuation licensees to examine whether their board has the
optimum mix of skills, capabilities and experience needed to
effectively carry out its responsibilities. More...
Penalties and ASIC's powers boosted to curb
misconduct
GOVERNANCE INSTITUTE - 16 May 2018 – The government
is introducing tough new penalties for corporate and financial
misconduct and will bolster the powers of the Australian Securities
and Investments Commission (ASIC) in its response
to the ASIC Enforcement Review Taskforce Report.
More...
'Disappointing': Nation's biggest super fund
slams banks over scandals
MEDIA – 16 May 2018 - Australia's biggest
pension fund has hit out at the nation's banks, saying a string
of scandals exposed by the royal commission showed the industry was
too focused on the short term.
More...
KPMG flags cost threats to super fund operations
MEDIA – 16 May 2018 - Superannuation funds face
numerous challenges over the next decade and their chance of
survival may come down to management of operational costs, says
KPMG Australia.
More...
Oversight of self-managed super funds to be reduced in
budget shock Analysis
MEDIA – 14 May 2018 - Despite the litany of
atrocities within the financial services industry, the budget
papers reveal plans to scale back oversight of almost a third of
Australia's $2.6 trillion superannuation industry.
More...
CBA CFO resigns with immediate effect
The major bank has announced that its chief financial
officer has stepped down, as the "renewal" of its
executive team continues (14 May 2018).
More...
$1.6bn opportunity to fix unpaid super and gender super
gap goes begging
ISA - 09 May 2018 - The 2018 Budget has missed the
opportunity to tackle unpaid superannuation and close the gender
super gap by failing to re-invest over $1.6bn in windfall budget
savings raised from 'protecting' small super balances and
paring back a super tax break that only started this year.
More...
New Alliance wants fairer retirement outcomes for all
Australians
SMSF Association - 7 May 2018 - Several associations have
formed the "Alliance for a Fairer Retirement System" to
explore options to fix problems with the existing superannuation
taxation, Age Pension means testing and broader retirement income
systems. The formation of the Alliance is in response to
Labor's proposal to disallow refunds of excess franking credits
for a range of retirees and shareholders.
More...
In practice and courts
Retirement Income Covenant Position Paper:
Consultation
The retirement phase of the superannuation system is
currently under-developed and needs to be better aligned with the
overall objective of the superannuation system of providing income
in retirement to substitute or supplement the Age Pension. The new
covenant will form the cornerstone of the new framework. It will be
added to the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act
1993. The position paper is available on the Treasury
website. Interested parties are encouraged to provide
submissions on the proposed covenant principles by 15 June 2018 (17
May 2018).
Federal Budget 2018-19: Highlights for lawyers
Law Council of Australia has produced a summary of key
items from last night's Federal Budget of interest to the legal
profession.
More...
Superannuation measures
- The Government has introduced new measures to protect against the erosion of superannuation balances through excessive fees and inappropriate insurance arrangements
- Administrative and investment fees will be capped on accounts with under $6,000 balances at 3% annually, and exit fees will be banned for all superannuation accounts
- The Government will tailor insurance arrangements in super by ensuring that cover is offered on an opt-in basis for accounts of young members under the age of 25, inactive accounts which have received no contributions for 13 months, and low balance accounts under $6,000
- The Protecting Your Super Package will reunite individuals will their lost and low balance inactive superannuation accounts through the existing ATO-led account consolidation regime (including individuals with multiple superannuation accounts.
ASFA Research Papers
Mythbusters: Myths that a 12 per cent SG is not needed, Ross
Clare, Director of Research, ASFA – May 2018.
Cases
Hart and Commissioner of Taxation (Taxation) [2018] AATA
1267
SUPERANNUATION – self managed superannuation fund
– whether breach by trustee of Trust Deed – whether
breach by trustee of covenants – whether fit and proper
person – disqualification – failure to lodge annual
returns – breach of in-house asset rule – condition of
release not met – breach of related entity provisions –
acquisition of superannuation fund assets – arm's length
investments – acquisition of real property –
acquisition of shares in a foreign company – failure to
comply with benefit payment standards – falsifying signatures
on superannuation fund documents – payment of benefits due to
terminal illness – loans and financial assistance to members
– sole purpose test – forfeiture of benefit of members
- Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993.
This publication does not deal with every important topic or change in law and is not intended to be relied upon as a substitute for legal or other advice that may be relevant to the reader's specific circumstances. If you have found this publication of interest and would like to know more or wish to obtain legal advice relevant to your circumstances please contact one of the named individuals listed.
