The Joint submission outlines the response of Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand, CPA Australia and the Institute of Public Accountants to Treasury’s proposed Financial Institutions Supervisory Levies for 2025–26. The submission explains that the levies are intended to recover costs incurred by APRA in supervising regulated entities under the Government’s cost recovery framework. The Joint Accounting Bodies emphasise the importance of transparency, noting that the updated Cost Recovery Implementation Statement should be released earlier to allow stakeholders to better assess the financial impact of the levies.

The submission focuses on the proposed levy calculations for large APRA-regulated superannuation funds (excluding pooled superannuation trusts). It supports maintaining fixed levies of $590 for Small APRA Funds and Single Member Approved Deposit Funds. Modelling indicates that all other funds will experience fee increases, with mid-sized funds facing the largest proportional rises (around 6% to 8.8%), compared to smaller increases for the largest funds.

The Joint Accounting Bodies argue this outcome is inequitable and recommend revising the structure so levy increases are distributed more evenly across funds, reducing the disproportionate burden on smaller entities and their members.