The registrations of 29 self-managed superannuation funds (SMSF) auditors have been cancelled by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) for failing to lodge annual statements.
This was in addition to the cancellation of 374 SMSF auditors in January 2023 and 10 SMSF auditors in May 2022, as part of the regulator’s current compliance program.
Notices of cancellation had been sent to the 29 individuals on 22 May 2023, who were advised on two occasions (August 2022 and March 2023) that they still had outstanding annual statements, and that ASIC was considering cancelling their registration.
“ASIC expects SMSF auditors to comply with their regulatory obligations given the important role they play in promoting confidence in the SMSF sector.
“ASIC will continue to monitor whether SMSF auditors are complying with their obligations and take action where their conduct falls short,” said ASIC commissioner, Danielle Press.
The regulator had communicated to more than 1,400 SMSF auditors that they had outstanding annual statements, most of whom subsequently lodged their statements.
Failure to do so may have been due to poor administrative practices such as failing to keep their contact details up to date on the SMSF auditor register, ASIC said.
Since 1 July 2013, the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 (SIS Act) required all auditors of SMSFs to be registered with ASIC. This was to ensure that all SMSF auditors meet at least base standards of competency and expertise.
Under s128G of the SIS Act, they must annually lodge a statement with ASIC within 30 days of the anniversary of their registration.
A cancelled SMSF auditor may reapply for registration in the future.
