The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia (ICAA) has cautioned its members who are registered SMSF auditors to fulfil their additional educational requirements before the annual renewal of this registration.
As part of the initial SMSF auditor registration process, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) imposed additional conditions on individuals to ensure they could continue their registered status for future years.
An example of these conditions, and possibly the most common requirement, is the need to complete an SMSF auditor competency exam.
“Members who have this condition placed on their registration should ensure they have completed the exam and notified ASIC by 1 July 2014,” the ICAA communicated to its members in its latest superannuation newsletter.
“Auditors who do not complete the competency exam and notify ASIC by this date risk having their registration cancelled.”
In particular, the professional association advised its members not to rely on taking the examination closer to the 1 July 2014 deadline, as doing so might result in them missing out due to the capacity constraints of the examiners.
The competency exam is administered electronically and can be taken by individuals at one of examination provider Assessment Services’ venues under the supervision of a trained invigilator. Auditors will be charged a $100 fee to sit the test.
Once members passed the exam they needed to notify ASIC to amend the conditions of their registration by sending an email to [email protected], the ICAA said.
Auditors can check the conditions of their registration status on the SMSF auditor index on ASIC’s website.
