Legal news
The Board of Taxation (BOT) has recently released its report on the taxation of digital taxes – Review of the tax treatment of digital assets and transactions in Australia. This includes a section, from page 155, on whether crypto assets should receive the “trading stock” exemption.
As noted in part 1 of our articles on the application of the Bendel decision to the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 (SIS Act), in our view, it is likely that the Courts will apply the Bendel decision to the SIS Act, such that the expanded definition of loan in the SIS Act will apply to arrangements that involve the advancement of principal with an obligation to repay and that it will not apply to a mere creditor and debtor arrangement.
As noted in part 1 of our articles on the application of the Bendel decision to the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 (SIS Act), in our view, it is likely that the Courts will apply the Bendel decision to the SIS Act, such that the expanded definition of loan in the SIS Act will apply to arrangements that involve the advancement of principal with an obligation to repay and that it will not apply to a mere creditor and debtor arrangement (like a UPE).
In this part 3 of the series we examine how this may play out in the in-house asset rules contained in Part 8 of the SIS Act.
As noted in part 1 of our articles on the application of the Bendel decision to the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 (SIS Act), in our view, it is likely that the Courts will apply the Bendel decision to the SIS Act, such that the expanded definition of loan in the SIS Act will apply to arrangements that involve the advancement of principal with an obligation to repay and that it will not apply to a mere creditor and debtor arrangement (like a UPE).
As discussed here, the recent decision of the Full Federal Court (Court) in FCT v Bendel [2025] FCAFC 15 (Bendel) has been a significant one in the private tax world.
In the 2023-24 Budget, the Government announced that the super guarantee framework will be reformed to align the payment of super guarantee contributions with an employee’s regular pay cycle, instead of the current quarterly requirements.
The exposure draft legislation for the new ‘Payday Super’ rules has now been released, with consultation open until 11 April 2025.
The super guarantee charge, payable where employers fail to make contributions in full and on time, will be updated, including a new ‘administrative uplift’ component of up to 60% of the shortfall amount.
In the decision of QWYN and Commissioner of Taxation (Taxation and business) [2025] ARTA 83 the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART) has determined that regular disability payments described as a superannuation income stream was a superannuation income stream for tax purposes and not a number of (more tax concessionally treated) disability lump sums.
Division 296 tax, the proposed new $3 million super fund tax on unrealised gains, did not pass in the Senate yesterday, 13 February 2025.
Division 296, if passed, would impose an additional 15% tax on members with a $3 million or more total super balance (not indexed).
Division 296 is now unlikely to be put to the Senate before an election, and is expected to become a key election issue.
#division296 #$3million #unrealisedgains
Active Super was found to have made false or misleading representations by using unequivocal language, and engaged in conduct liable to mislead the public in relation to investments it made.
The case provides further insights into the latest developments on ASIC’s ongoing greenwashing enforcement action.
Last year, the ATO has updated its ruling TR 2013/5 Income tax: when a superannuation income stream commences and ceases. This included that the ATO’s view that if a super pension ceases (eg because of failure to make minimum pension payments, that a new pension will not start until a new pension commences (eg via new pension documents).
Last year, the Federal Court of Australia handed down its decision in Australian Securities Investment Commission v Vanguard [2024] FCA 308. This case serves as a reminder that business who are making sustainable investment claims must ensure that those claims are not misleading or deceptive in nature.
In ASIC’s first case against alleged greenwashing conduct, the court has ordered that Mercer Superannuation (Australia) Ltd pay a landmark $11.3 million penalty after it made misleading statements about sustainable and environmentally-friendly superannuation investment options marketed to its members.
Read on for key details of the case, and a breakdown of what your business can do to avoid greenwashing.
As previously noted, the Government has released regulations to permit the conversion of legacy pensions and reserves over a 5 year period and to better allow allocations from non-pension reserves. These regulations have now been tabled in parliament.
In the decision of Application by Gainer Associates Pty Ltd [2024] NSWSC 1437, the Court found that, due to the lost trust deed for the Werner Thelen Family Trust (Trust), the corporate trustee of the Trust (Gainer Associates Pty Ltd – referred to as Gainer) would hold the assets purportedly held for the Trust on resulting trust for the sole beneficiary the late Werner Thelen (Werner), husband of the late Gail Thelen (Gail).
What happens if the former trustee of an SMSF is still the registered proprietor of an SMSF property and goes into administration? This issue was considered in the decision of Re Absolute Vision Technologies Pty Ltd (subject to deed of company administration) [2024] NSWSC 1010 (13 August 2024). There, the Court ordered that a contract be completed where the former trustee entered into a contract of sale of real estate (Suite 901) notwithstanding it was in administration.
The Government announced further policy design details on the Payday Super measures scheduled to be effective from 1 July 2026 (see our earlier article) contained in a four page fact sheet.
