On 30 June 2026, Parliament passed important amendments to section 17A of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 (Cth) (SISA) as part of the Treasury Laws Amendment (Delivering an Efficient and Trusted Tax System) Bill 2026 (Bill). What are the trustee/member rules Section 17A of the SISA sets out the rules that determine whether a superannuation [read more]
New Queensland trust legislation has introduced a number of changes to trustee duties, beneficiary rights and court powers. The changes affect trusts subject to Queensland trust law, including discretionary trusts, testamentary trusts, unit trusts and self managed superannuation funds (SMSFs). Background The Trusts Act 2025 (Qld) (Act) received royal assent on 19 May 2025, with [read more]
Under the Duties Act 2000 (Vic) (Duties Act), when someone (including a company) obtains real property in Victoria, land transfer duty is ordinarily payable based on the dutiable value of the land. It is a common law right in Victoria for a purchaser described on a contract of sale to later nominate another entity to [read more]
Background On 13 October 2025, Treasury announced changes to the proposed ‘Better Targeted Superannuation Concessions (BTSC). These proposed laws, typically referred to as the Division 296 (Div 296) tax will be inserted in the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (Cth) (ITAA). On 14 October 2025 a Fact Sheet providing more information on these changes was [read more]
Recent changes to Queensland trust law allows for trusts to vest up to 125 years after the commencement date of the trust, including a discretionary trust, testamentary trust and unit trust. The extended vesting date should be reflected in new trust deeds while a variation to extend the vesting date of an existing trust deed [read more]
Introduction Unit trusts are a common investment structure in Australia and can provide a simple way for parties to pool money and invest together. In particular, investing via a unit trust is a popular way for SMSFs to gain real estate exposure and is often used where real estate is being developed. While the terms [read more]
As the end of financial year (EOFY) approaches, trustees and their advisers need to be aware of their trust obligations to ensure ongoing compliance and ensure they do not invoke unnecessary tax liabilities and avoid breaches of trust duties that could result in severe penalties. The ATO has released a checklist designed to assist with [read more]
Prohibition on borrowing and charging It is well known that SMSF trustees are generally prohibited from borrowing. One exception to this prohibition is where the borrowing complies with the requirements under s 67A of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 (Cth), otherwise known as a limited recourse borrowing arrangement (LRBA). An SMSF trustee is also [read more]
Unrealised capital gains Taxation of unrealised capital gains has been contentiously debated amongst OECD countries. Australia appears set to join the ranks of Norway and Switzerland with the Labor Government seeking to pass legislation that effectively taxes unrealised capital gains. This will be a major step in tax law in Australia and may result in [read more]
The ATO estimates that around $5.2 billion in superannuation guarantee (SG) contributions for the FY2021–22 was not paid on time. This is a major reason why the government wants to introduce Payday Super (PDS). Thus, on 14 March 2025, the draft legislation to introduce the PDS regime, due to commence from 1 July 2026, was released [read more]
