Strategies advisers can implement to help their clients navigate new super rules will be the connecting thread of the SMSF Association’s Technical Day, with practical guidance from experts on how to approach tax changes, caps and calculations.
The chief executive of the SMSF Association, John Maroney, says the program was constructed around the key opportunities for advisers now that the superannuation policy unknowns have become legislation.
“It was a mad scramble, now it’s about sitting back and reflecting and looking at the long-term strategy,” he says.
Technical Day themes will include: the newly introduced concept of the ‘total superannuation balance’ and how to calculate it; the transfer balance cap; and capital gains tax relief opportunities.
The first session of the day, hosted by the ATO’s Tax Counsel Network, will detail the total super balance, how advisers can calculate it accurately on behalf of their clients and what the ATO expects in terms of reporting. Maroney says the calculation – and how to stay on the right side of the ATO in reporting it – has been a recurring question from advisers.
The second session will examine the transfer balance cap and how advisers can manage debits and credits to ensure a client’s balance remains within the new rules. How the cap affects transition-to-retirement pensions has been a particular area of interest for advisers, Maroney explains.
The third session, meanwhile, will look at the appropriateness and applicability of CGT relief, another issue advisers frequently raise, Maroney says.
In the final session, Colonial First State’s Craig Day will go through strategies advisers may wish to consider following the scrapping of the anti-detriment payment.
Based on feedback, this year’s program will feature longer sessions, with more time for questions from advisers. It will also feature real-life client examples to illustrate some of the strategies, Maroney says.
