A senior financial planner has written to the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) requesting that it hand financial advisers the same powers as BAS Agents to obtain Australian Business Numbers (ABNs).
The adviser, Adrian Hanrahan has published his letter to the TPB in which he requests the creation of a legislative instrument to allow Tax Financial Advisers (TFAs) to apply for ABNs on behalf of clients.
His letter notes that the TPB in 2016 created a similar legislative instrument that permitted a BAS Agent to apply for an ABN on behalf of a client.
“Amending the law in a similar manner to permit a TFA to apply for an ABN on behalf of a client would be a practical and welcomed change for financial advisers,” Hanrahan’s letter said.
It pointed out that under the Corporations Act financial advisers are permitted to provide financial product advice and to recommend the establishment of a superannuation fund, including a self-managed superannuation fund (SMSF).
“To implement the recommendation of SMSF establishment, one of the early steps (among others) is the establishment of an Australian Business Number and a Tax File Number for the new entity,” Hanrahan’s letter said.
