SMSF trustees should consider including their business premises as a super fund asset to maximise the available legislative tax benefits, according to an international property manager.

The SMSF Professionals’ Association of Australia (SPAA) has called on the Financial System Inquiry (FSI) to provide fresh insights into how to achieve better outcomes for both SMSF trustees and practitioners rather than bring down restrictive recommendations for the sector.

Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CAANZ) has used its submission to the Financial System Inquiry to advise against criticism of the SMSF sector for taking unfair advantage of tax concessions within the superannuation framework.

Financial advisers with SMSF clients wanting to take advantage of the grandfathering rules applying to the Commonwealth Seniors Health Card (CSHC) should commence pensions for those individuals immediately, according to an industry expert.

Applying a calculation based on a fixed percentage rate for income generated from excess non-concessional contributions to be refunded along with the contributions over the limit is the optimal method to determine these earnings under the proposed new superannuation rules, despite fairness concerns, according to a leading SMSF technical services manager.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has rejected suggestions an obligatory minimum balance should be satisfied before an SMSF can be set up.

SMSF documentation and strategy specialist NowInfinity has joined forces with administration provider Class Super and accounting software firm Xero to automate certain SMSF functions, including fund establishment and setting up limited recourse borrowing arrangements.

Magellan Funds Group is in the process of securing inclusion on the new Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) mFund Settlement Service as a means of attracting fund flows from the SMSF sector.

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) is closely monitoring trustee education seminars, particularly those being held overseas, to make sure the associated strategies and investments fall into line with the sole purpose test.