SMSF growth at risk of being derailed

David Shirlow

The growth of self-managed superannuation funds (SMSFs) in Australia risks being brought to a halt if the Government seeks to impose the same requirements on SMSF trustees it imposes on the trustees of larger superannuation funds, according to the head of Macquarie Adviser Technical Services, David Shirlow.

Shirlow told Money Management that he harbours deep concerns about the tenor of the submissions received by the Government with respect to SMSF governance and the likelihood that they might result in the imposition of a significant educational requirement on trustees.

He said that he had been particularly disturbed to note that at least some of the support for the imposition of educational standards had come from submissions filed by the Financial Planning Association (FPA) and the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia.

Shirlow’s comments were prompted by recent remarks by the Minister for Superannuation and Corporate Law, Senator Nick Sherry, and the contents of a number of industry submissions to the Government on the question of SMSF governance.

Sherry has pointed to data collected by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) detailing breaches with respect to SMSFs and expressed concern at governance standards in the sector.

Shirlow said he was surprised at the attitude adopted by the FPA and said he could not think of any other professional association in Australia that would have suggested such a thing in circumstances where members were providing advice in the SMSF arena.

“The imposition of a compulsory educational requirement on SMSF trustees has the capacity to stop the growth of SMSFs in its tracks,” he said. “It would therefore be interesting to ask the organisations canvassing such an arrangement whether that outcome would suit their purposes.”

Shirlow acknowledged the fact that data collected by the ATO has formed the basis for many of the criticisms of SMSF compliance, but suggests that the ATO survey findings need further analysis and explanation.

He said this was particularly the case in circumstances where the information was collected as part of the distribution of a new ATO Trustee Declaration form.