ATO Report Released - Top Contravention Areas for SMSF

The ATO has released valuable data that outlines where the highest proportion of contraventions occurred in the previous financial year and how many have since been rectified.

The review has shown that 7,900 SMSF's had auditor contravention reports lodged with a total of 20,500 contraventions.

The report shows there has been a decrease compared to the previous year of 4% in the number of SMSFs with an ACR and a decrease of contraventions by around 7%. Just under half of those contraventions reported to June 2016 were reported as rectified.

SMSF trustees exposing themselves to compliance risks by using personal bank accounts

A recent article in SMSF Adviser has provided an overview of the issues some SMSF trustees are facing by exposing themselves to potential compliance risks by paying fund expenses from their personal bank accounts.

SMSF trustees should be aware that there are severe consequences should these payments not be rectified before the fund is audited. While some of these funds might be only small amounts when it comes to audit time, they usually reach a reasonable amount and as such, they need to be paid out of the fund rather than a personal bank account. 

While it can often be an honest mistake, if the issue continues to occur then it can become a compliance issue for SMSF trustees.