New Reporting Obligations for SMSF

Self Managed Super Funds (SMSF) have new obligations to report certain events that affect their Transfer Balance Cap by lodging the Transfer Balance Account Report (TBAR).  The reporting obligation commences on 1 July 2018.

The TBAR is a separate form from the Self Managed Super Funds’ Annual Tax Return and it is used by the ATO to keep track of an individual’s total superannuation balance.  Some reportable events include:

• Value of income streams a member was receiving on 30 June 2017 that
  • continued to be paid to them on or after 1 July 2017, and
  • are in retirement phase
• Value of new retirement phase income streams commencing after 1 July 2017
• Some limited recourse borrowing arrangement payments
• A commutation to comply with authority issued by the ATO
• Personal injury (structured settlement) contributions
• Commutations of retirement phase income streams

Events that do not need to be reported include:

• Pension payments
• Movements of investment earnings and losses
• When an income stream ceases because the interest has been exhausted
• The death of a member
• Information that individual members report to the ATO directly using a Transfer balance event notification form (NAT 74919) which includes:
  • family law payment split
  • debit event from fraud, dishonesty, or bankruptcy
  • structured settlement contributions made before 1 July 2007

When to report:

Where all members of the SMSF have a total superannuation balance of less than $1 million, the SMSF can report this information at the same time as when its annual return is due. SMSFs that have any members with a total superannuation balance of $1 million or more must report events within 28 days after the end of the quarter in which the event occurs.

Contributed by Helene Kosasie