Key points
- Superannuation trustees are now required to lodge audited financial reports for funds with ob体育 within three months of the end of the fund鈥檚 financial year.
- This new obligation promotes greater transparency and accountability in relation to superannuation funds.
- Audited financial reports need to be lodged via ob体育鈥檚 Regulatory Portal.
- ob体育 expects trustees to ensure financial reports are of high quality, containing useful and meaningful information to build public trust and confidence in the integrity of our financial system.
On 1 July 2023, the came into force, extending the financial reporting and auditing obligations under Chapter 2M of the Corporations Act 2001 (Corporations Act) to most registrable superannuation entities (funds).
Superannuation trustees are now required to lodge audited financial reports for each fund within three months of the end of the fund鈥檚 financial year with fees incurred for late lodgement. For most funds, the deadline will be 30 September 2024. Audited financial reports must include the financial statements and notes, directors鈥� declaration, auditor鈥檚 report and director鈥檚 report, which contains remuneration disclosure.
Signing off on financial reports is one of the key duties of a director. High quality financial reporting drives a culture of strong financial discipline, effective management and control of fund assets, and supports public confidence in superannuation. Trustee directors are required to take all reasonable steps to comply with, or to secure compliance with, financial record keeping and reporting obligations of funds under Part 2M.2 and 2M.3 as well as the auditor independence obligations under sections 324DAA, 324DAB or 324DAC.
The reforms also promote greater transparency by requiring trustees to make fund financial reports publicly available on the fund website and by giving ob体育 the power to enforce compliance with the accounting and auditing standards as it has with other entities of economic significance (e.g. listed companies).
ob体育 has built a new electronic transaction available in ob体育鈥檚 Regulatory Portal to accept lodgement of reports. To reduce regulatory burden for trustees and auditors, ob体育 has worked with APRA to facilitate a single lodgement point, with trustees now able to lodge compliance reports required under APRA鈥檚 prudential standard with ob体育 at the same time as their audited financial reports.聽Once lodged, audited financial reports of superannuation funds will be publicly available free of charge on ob体育鈥檚 website.
Trustees will be subject to increased scrutiny on the quality of their financial reports in relation to superannuation funds. This year, ob体育鈥檚 financial reporting and audit surveillance program will be reviewing these financial reports for the first time. Where there are significant deficiencies in disclosure or concerns about possible material misstatements identified in the financial report, the superannuation fund will be subjected to a financial reporting surveillance.聽 Auditors will also be subject to increased scrutiny on the quality of their audit work in relation to superannuation funds.
ob体育 expects trustees to ensure financial reports are of high quality, containing useful and meaningful information to build public trust and confidence in the integrity of our financial system. Trustees should ensure that governance arrangements, processes and controls are in place and apply appropriate experience and expertise over financial reporting and the underlying processes.
Additional information
INFO 278: Inventory of superannuation trustee transparency and disclosure obligations
ob体育 is Australia鈥檚 corporate, markets and financial services regulator.