In its pre-budget submission, the IFPA said Australia’s tax and superannuation system should support all Australians, not create unnecessary complexity and inequity.
Natasha Panagis, IFPA head of superannuation and financial services, said the association has provided the government with a roadmap for meaningful reform and “now is the time for action.”
The submission called for the government to overhaul key tax and superannuation policies ahead of the 2025–26 budget, warning that many existing measures are outdated and no longer meet the needs of modern Australians.
It outlined 11 tax-focused recommendations and 17 proposals for superannuation and financial services reform, all aimed at making the system simpler, fairer, and more equitable.
Regarding superannuation, the IFPA has pushed for major reforms to simplify and streamline the system, including consolidating many superannuation thresholds to the general transfer balance cap and ensuring consistent indexation.
It has also called for the abolition of the work test for personal deductible super contributions and the streamlining of the personal deduction process to remove unnecessary administrative hurdles.
Furthermore, it wants the spouse contribution splitting system to be simplified and the death benefit system to be updated, which has seen little reform in decades.
“IFPA has also renewed its call for urgent changes to non-arm’s length expense rules affecting super funds and has requested a review of the ATO’s tax ruling on when a superannuation income stream starts and stops, which could have significant implications for SMSF trustees,” Panagis said.
The submission also contained a number of key tax reform policies that the IFPA has flagged as urgent areas for review.
These include fixing Division 7A to address disguised distributions by private companies and allowing disclaimers of trust distributions to improve tax flexibility.
It has also called on the government to review repealing or amending section 100A to reduce complexity and uncertainty and enhance the instant asset write-off rules to support businesses and investments.
