Maintaining your SMSF can be as simple or as complicated as you like. It all depends on how much help you want from professionals with running your fund.
However no matter how much you outsource to professionals, as an SMSF trustee the buck stops with you.
There are some activities you need to make sure that you do every year so you comply with the superannuation law.
As an SMSF trustee you must make sure:
- You lodge the SMSF Annual Return with the ATO. This is a combined tax and regulatory return that MUST be completed every year
- You engage an approved SMSF auditor to complete an audit of your fund
- You pay the annual SMSF supervisory levy which is included in your SMSF Annual Return
- You ensure that fund assets are valued so that your SMSF financial statements and annual return are accurate
- You keep proper records as required by the superannuation and tax laws, such as trustee declarations, actuarial certificates and reporting events affecting transfer balance accounts.
- From 1 July 2018, ensure you are reporting events to the Australian Taxation Office that affect a member’s transfer balance.
- You notify the ATO of any significant changes to the fund, such as a new trustee or a change in contact details, within 28 days of the change
- If you make a contribution to your fund you must ensure your fund is able to accept the contribution. For example, the contribution needs to be under the fund capped contribution limit in the superannuation law
- If your SMSF is paying pensions, ensure you pay the minimum annual pension payments to keep your tax concessions on pension assets
As well as these specific activities don’t forget you need to meet the investment rules at all times.
SOURCE, All rights reserved to – Self Managed Super Fund Association, What needs to be done to maintain an SMSF effectively, https://trustees.smsfassociation.com/topic/what-needs-to-be-done-to-maintain-an-smsf-effectively>
SMSF Audits is about more than just cost effective audits. We provide complying, timely audits and offer support to solve potential problems. Let us be your competitive advantage.
