SMSFs risk ABN hassles

The federal government has warned self managed superannuation funds to obtain an Australian Business Number or risk hassles later on.

The federal government has warned self managed superannuation funds to obtain an Australian Business Number or risk hassles later on.

New Tax System Advisory Board chairman Chris Jordan says the government's legislation put beyond doubt whether self-managed funds could receive ABNs.

"It's easy to register and getting the ABN now will save hassles later on," Jordan says.

The ABN will become the main identifier for doing business with other super funds. For exam-ple, it will become easier to transfer money between funds if both have ABNs.

Jordan says having an ABN did not automatically mean a fund was registered for the GST.

"All super funds need to self-assess whether the fund is carrying on an enterprise and if it needs to, register for GST. If so, you will have to get an ABN first and simply register for GST on the same form," he says.

Jordan says some funds are concerned that having an ABN required them to complete a business activity statement every quarter, but whether a fund had to report or not depended on their busi-ness characteristics, not just whether they had an ABN.

Super funds can get an ABN by visiting the New Tax System website at www.taxreform.gov.au or by contacting the Tax Reform Infoline on 13 2478.