When to notify us of changes
As a trustee of a self-managed super fund (SMSF), superannuation law requires you to notify us of any changes to your SMSF.
You must notify us within 28 days if there is a change in:
- trustees
- directors of the corporate trustee
- members
- contact details (contact person, phone, email address and fax numbers)
- address (postal, registered or address for service of fund notices)
- fund status.
Notifying us of any changes as soon as possible will enable you to receive timely fraud protective alerts used to prevent unauthorised access to your super.
Trustee changes must comply with the definition of an SMSF
When making changes to trustees, members or trustee structure, you need to ensure trustee requirements continue to be met. All members of the fund should also be either:
- an individual trustee of the fund
- director of the corporate trustee.
If not, this means your fund won't meet the legal definition of an SMSF and you have 6 months to either:
- restructure your fund to meet the definition
- voluntarily wind up your SMSF and roll the benefits into an APRA (Australian Prudential Regulation Authority) regulated fund.
If you do nothing, our actions could include:
- making your SMSF non-complying
- disqualifying you as a trustee.
Corporate trustee changes
If your corporate trustee is no longer eligible to be a trustee – for example, due to insolvency or because the company has been deregistered by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) – you need to restructure your fund. This could involve:
- re-registration of the company
- appointing a new company to operate as trustee, or
- changing the fund structure to individual trustees.
This process can be complex. Talk to ASICExternal Link to ensure assets vested with the corporate trustee can be transferred to the new entity or individuals to be held in trust for the fund.
ASIC-initiated deregistration of a companyExternal Link may happen if they think it has ceased trading or it has overdue fees and penalties.
If a trustee resigns
If a trustee that is also a member resigns, their super benefits will need to be rolled over to another complying super fund if they haven't yet reached preservation age.
The resignation must be clearly documented in trustee minutes. You may also consider updating the fund's trust deed to make it clear the legal responsibilities for the resigning trustee have ceased.
If this results in your fund no longer meeting the legal definition of an SMSF, for example, you have an individual trustee structure and only one trustee remaining in the fund, your SMSF has 6 months to restructure.
The existing trustees can do one of the following:
- add another member to meet the minimum membership requirements
- change to a corporate trustee structure
- appoint an approved trustee who has a licence from APRA (that is, become a small APRA fund)
- wind up the SMSF.
Being disqualified
A disqualified person includes those who have been convicted of dishonest offences, are bankrupt or insolvent or may be a future risk to retirement savings.
If you become a disqualified person, you must immediately:
- notify us in writing of your disqualification (unless we have disqualified you)
- cease being an individual trustee or a director of the corporate trustee.
If you are a director of a corporate trustee, you may also have obligations to inform ASIC.
Requesting a review of disqualification
If you have been disqualified:
- because you've been convicted of a dishonesty offence, you can apply within 14 days of the conviction to have the disqualification waived
- by us, you can request a review of our decision in writing within 21 days of receiving the notice of disqualification.
Send your request to:
AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE
PO BOX 3100
PENRITH NSW 2740
If you're disqualified due to being insolvent under administration, you can't have your disqualification waived. Once you are no longer insolvent under administration, you will no longer be disqualified and can become a trustee or director again.
When we review changes
We review SMSFs that add new trustees and members. This includes changes in structure from individual trustee to corporate trustee.
If a potential risk is identified, the fund's Super Fund Lookup status is changed to 'Regulation details withheld' while we conduct a further review. We aim to complete reviews within 56 days.
How to notify us of changes
You can update changes to your SMSF:
- online through the Australian Business RegisterExternal Link
- through a registered agent
- by phone 13 10 20 – you must be the authorised contact for your SMSF
- by lodging the paper form Change of details for superannuation entities (NAT 3036, PDF 1.01MB)This link will download a file.
To update your fund's financial institution account details, tax refund account or electronic service address (ESA), use one of the following methods:
- through Online services for businessExternal Link
- by contacting your tax agent
- by contacting us.
You can also update the ESA by lodging the paper form Change of details for superannuation entities (NAT 3036, PDF 1.01MB)This link will download a file.
You can't use the SMSF annual return to tell us about a change in the structure of your SMSF.