The recent decision of Ackinclose v Commissioner of State Revenue [2026] QCAT 312 provides important guidance on the circumstances in which land held by an SMSF may be aggregated with land held by a discretionary family trust for Queensland land tax purposes. The matter concerned a husband and wife who acted as trustees of both an [read more]
Following the Government’s proposed 30% tax on discretionary trust (DT) distributions from 1 July 2028 announced in the 12 May 2026 Federal Budget some have been considering setting up companies with more than one share class. This is based on the thinking that this will provide greater flexibility. However, there are a number of tax [read more]
OVERVIEW In April 2025, the Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia handed down its decision in Merchant v Commissioner of Taxation [2025] FCAFC 56. This decision was appealed to the High Court, whose decision is still to be finalised. This article is therefore prepared on the basis of the Full Court decision and [read more]
A discussion about capacity to make decisions can focus on what control means, how it can be maintained with assistance, and what the client wants to happen when decision-making capacity is lost. Such discussions can be used to equip individuals with the mechanisms to preserve control and agency, whilst taking advantage of assistance and delegation [read more]
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]
A recent court decision held that a change of director in a company could give rise to duty on the value of any dutiable property held by trustee of a unit trust. After the unfavourable Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) decision in Tao v Commissioner of State Revenue (Review and Regulation) [2024] VCAT 637, [read more]
Yesterday, the High Court handed down its decision in FCT v Bendel [2026] HCA 18. FCT v Bendel [2026] HCA 18 represents the ATO’s appeal of a 2025 decision of the Federal Court of Australia (Full Court) of the same name. Last year, we considered the impact of the 2025 decision. Accordingly, now, we want [read more]
The recent decision of Carrello [2026] FCA 468 illustrates various options in respect of SMSFs and bankruptcy. Carrello contrasts interestingly to Hunt [2026] FCA 389, which is also a recent decision. Carello Mr and Mrs Jones were the trustees of an SMSF. At all relevant times, a principal asset of the SMSF was certain real [read more]
Subject to satisfying the relevant legislative requirements, individuals may be entitled to deduct financial advice fees from their assessable income under sections 8-1 or 25-5 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (Cth) (ITAA 1997).Tax Determination (TD) 2024/7 sets out the ATO’s views on how these provisions apply to financial advice fees. TD 2024/7 does [read more]
With Div 296 now commencing from 1 July 2026 many advisers and trustees are asking us: ‘Do I need to update my deed?’. As usual, the answer is not straightforward. What is Div 296? Generally speaking, tax outcomes for an SMSF are driven by the relevant legislation and regulations, with the deed having a more [read more]
