Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CA ANZ), CPA Australia and the Institute of Public Accountants (IPA) have made a joint submission to the Australian National Audit Office’s (ANAO) performance audit of the Australian Taxation Office’s (ATO) regulation of self-managed superannuation funds (SMSFs).

We consider the SMSF sector to be generally well run and well regulated, while identifying areas where regulatory administration, risk identification, follow-up and transparency could be improved. Annual independent audits, registered tax agents, Auditor Contravention Reports (ACRs) and ATO data-matching and compliance programs collectively provide a strong regulatory framework.

We call for greater transparency around the use of the annual SMSF regulatory fee, currently $259 per fund, and believe the fee should be used for the ATO’s efforts to ensure SMSFs comply with their obligations under the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993.

Drawing on member feedback, we also raise concerns about lengthy ATO auditor review processes, inconsistent service experiences and communication difficulties when practitioners are dealing with specific client matters. We recommend clearer service-level commitments for auditor reviews, more consistent review processes and improved reporting on regulatory outcomes.

We support, in principle, mandatory trustee education before SMSF registration and industry-led initiatives to strengthen standards across the sector. We also identify opportunities to assist SMSFs that are unable to wind up, improve trustees’ access to fund records and strengthen responses to high-risk situations.

We also recommend reviewing the longstanding monetary thresholds that trigger ACRs and periodically examining the interaction between the Independent Auditor’s Report, SMSF Annual Return and Auditor Contravention Reports to ensure these mechanisms remain appropriately targeted and consistent.