Monday, 14 July 2008 
 
 
The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia (the Institute) has emphasised the role of professional advisers in the ongoing education of trustees in a self managed superannuation funds’ (SMSFs) lifecycle.  
 
The issue of trustee education has been a high profile issue recently, and its importance has rapidly grown in line with the increased number of SMSFs having been established in the last 12 months. SMSF stakeholders agree that it would be enormously beneficial for trustees to have a greater level of knowledge and a better understanding of the requirements of a SMSF, the responsibilities of a SMSF trustee and the superannuation industry in general.  
 
The Institute, recently hosted an industry forum aimed at discussing a number of governance and regulatory issues of the SMSF sector. Trustee education was recognised by delegates as a key issue which required to be addressed as part of the ongoing growth of the SMSF sector. 
 
“Forum delegates were of a similar view – trustee education needs to increase as the SMSF sector, continues to be a significant part of the superannuation landscape,” said Hugh Elvy, Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia, Manager of Financial Planning and Superannuation.  
 
While trustees have specific responsibilities for their SMSFs, the Institute strongly believes that professional advisers in the SMSF sector also have a responsibility to assist trustees. This includes educating trustees at the time of the establishment of their SMSF and on an ongoing basis. 
 
“The Institute understands the increased importance of trustee education to the ongoing strength of the sector. The Institute and its membership are deeply involved in this sector through audit, tax, administration and advisory services and would welcome the opportunity to work closely with the government and industry in the development of initiatives for trustees and advisers in the area of trustee education,” said Mr Elvy.  
 
While the Institute strongly supports and agrees with improved knowledge regarding trustee education, it has stopped short of recommending compulsory education. 
 
“According to the majority of forum delegates, mandatory trustee education is not the preferred direction for the industry to head. The Institute believes that education opportunities for trustees could take the form of a wide range of educational options and solutions,” said Mr Elvy. 
 
The SMSF industry forum included stakeholders in the accounting profession, regulators, auditors, administrators and industry bodies. Other issues discussed at the forum included, minimum monetary balances of SMSFs, the importance of audit, the value of the investment strategy, the SMSF penalty regime, and the Australian Taxation Office as regulator.  
 
“The forum discussed some of the key issues, that should be addressed to improve the regulatory and governance framework of the SMSF sector. The industry needs to continue to work together with the federal government to proactively improve and enhance the regulatory framework of the sector,” concluded Mr Elvy. 
 
The forum discussion’s are outlined in a paper entitled, Governance of SMSFs: A forum on the existing regulatory and governance framework, which can be found on the Institute’s website charteredaccountants.com.au.