#TBARmaggedon has arrived…
The first regular reporting date for transfer balance account (TBA) purposes occurs on 28 October 2018 for fund’s that need to report quarterly. This due date will require the fund to report ‘events’ from both:
- the 2017-18 financial year; and
- first quarter of 2018-19 financial year (July – September 2018).
For SMSFs, transfer balance events that occur during the above periods should be reported at the same time as the SMSF’s first TBAR is due:
- For SMSFs required to report events annually – same date as the due date to lodge the 2017-18 SMSF Annual Return (check the due date via the Tax Agent Portal)
- For SMSFs required to report events quarterly – this will be 28 October 2018.
How to determine the timing of when a fund needs to report?
The following table and details outline the requirements that determine a fund’s obligations to report transfer balance events of a member on either a quarterly or annual basis:
| TSB at 30 June 2017 | TSB at 30 June of prior year |
| if a member had a pre-existing income stream or where the first member starts their first retirement phase income stream during the 2017–18 year. | the first member starts their first retirement phase income stream. |
Where a fund member has a Total Superannuation Balance (TSB) ≥ $1.0m, the fund must report all events for all members within 28 days after the end of the relevant quarter, even if the balance of the first member to start a retirement phase income stream is below $1.0m.
TBAR threshold from 1 July 2018
Once the reporting framework is set (following the first event to be reported), SMSF trustees will not be expected to move between annual and quarterly reporting due dates, regardless of fluctuations to any of its members’ balances.
The ATO will continue to evaluate the benefits and risks arising from this reporting framework – for example, the $1.0 million threshold may be re-evaluated in the future, given that the $1.6 million transfer balance cap is indexed.
