Speaking at the Lifespan Financial Planning 2015 Conference in Sydney last week, Cavendish Super SMSF specialist mentor David Busoli said while the new provisions provide a “neat way of cleaning out the taxable components from a fund” when the non-concessional contribution cap is breached, practitioners and trustees need to be careful.
“[The new legislation] means that you can make excess non-concessional contributions, apply to receive the excess amount and the excess amount will come from the taxable portion, not the tax exempt portion that you’ve made as a consequence of the non-concessional contribution,” he said.
Mr Busoli said the new rules, however, only allow an SMSF practitioner or trustee 30 days from when the trustee is first advised that the contribution has exceeded the non-concessional contribution cap, to apply to receive the excess amount.
“If your trustee happens to be overseas or you don’t get around to it [in the 30 days], then it will become an actual breach of the non-concessional cap and you’re going to be up for the tax, which this year is at 49.5 per cent,” said Mr Busoli.
“So be very wary of using this.”
Mr Busoli also said he considered the new legislation a “bit too good to be true” and expects there could be adjustments to the new provisions further down the line.
