AIST backs 'one touch' account consolidation

The Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees (AIST) has endorsed the Government's move to introduce 'one touch' consolidation of superannuation as being "in the best interests of all Australians", and has argued the process should also be used for accounts that aren't lost.

However, the industry body also supports the right of members to decline to quote their tax file number (TFN) throughout the process, according to AIST chief executive Fiona Reynolds.

The ATO's SuperSeeker facility should be changed to enable searches without the use of TFNs in the future, she said.

Taxpayers who are searching for lost superannuation through the electronic portability tool must be made aware that their TFN may be passed on to another super fund, Reynolds added. This will enable members who do not want to have their TFN passed on to another fund to ring the new fund directly and request transfer forms, she said.