Accountants welcome SMSF guidance

Australia’s three main accountancy bodies have welcomed the release of a guidance statement by a government regulator aimed at promoting the more rigorous audit of self-managed superannuation funds (SMSFs).

The guidance note was issued by the Government’s Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (AUASB), which described the guidance note as “providing a road map to guide auditors through the application of AUASB standards and the complex requirements of the legislation and regulations governing the audits of SMSFs”.

In a joint announcement responding to the guidance note, CPA Australia, the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia and the National Institute of Accountants welcomed the initiative as reflecting the increasing social and economic importance of SMSFs.

The statement described the guidance note as being “the next step in a series of initiatives designed to assist, protect and enhance the role of auditors of SMSFs as well as helping trustees discharge their responsibilities”.

The guidance note has been released only a few months after the Australian Taxation Office saw fit to detail a range of shortcomings on the part of SMSF trustees.