Superstream for SMSFs – do we need it and do we want it?

A personal view?  You bet.

The Government released Superannuation Legislation Amendment (Stronger Super and Other Measures) Bill (No 2) 2012 last week as a draft for comment.  It is the first step in the process to implementing the Cooper Review’s Superstream recommendations.  These are designed to streamline the way in which information and money is passed  around the superannuation system.  (Imagine, for example, a world with no cheques just electronic transfers, no paper rollover forms, contribution schedules from employers that were in an identical format regardless of the employer from whom they came or the fund to which they were being paid.  This gives you some feel for what Superstream is aiming for.)

At this stage, it remains to be seen how much this will impact on SMSFs.  The Cooper recommendation was to largely leave SMSFs untouched but we will obviously need to deal with the changes at some level (certainly on those occasions when SMSFs interact with large funds and employers).  However, we won’t know the detail until we see the Regulations and Legislative Instruments that will be used to spell it out.  The changes proposed in the current Bill simply set a framework – ie, they define “superannuation data and payment matters”, give the Commissioner (and where relevant APRA) the power to set standards in relation to those matters and then finally provide for penalties where the standards aren’t met.

However, should SMSF trustees and practitioners see this as something that will help or hinder business as usual?

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