I was pleased to read Minister Shorten’s press release today that the Government has decided to extend the 25% reduced minimum pension levels for the 2012/13 financial year. I have been quite vocal in my views that the Government ‘pulled the trigger’ a little early in trying to re-rationalise these minimum pension percentages from 1 … Continue reading »
Tag Archives: minimum pension
Why the 25% reduced minimum pension is not enough in these tough financial times
The current state of the world financial markets continues to bring great despair to many self-funded retirees. With the ASX All Ordinaries trading at about 4,800 around Federal Budget night, the Government in their wisdom decided on a path to ‘normalise’ the minimum pension factors by 1 July 2012. This resulted in the previous 50% … Continue reading »
Impact of the Federal Budget for SMSFs
Wayne Swan has handed down a ‘tough budget’ as the Labor Government strive to bring the economy back into surplus for 2012/13. For self-managed super funds and the superannuation industry, it was a budget that certainly won’t bring any front-page new stories, good or bad (and that’s probably a good thing!). Below are some of … Continue reading »
Financial year-end planning for your SMSF
With the end of the financial year fast approaching, it provides an important time for SMSF trustees to turn their attention to a range of strategies leading up to 30 June. The following list provides some ideas, issues, and strategies that can be used (or need to be addressed) with your self-managed super fund before … Continue reading »
What happens with excess pension payments?
Much of the focus in obtaining tax exemption within a SMSF is to ensure that a member’s minimum pension has been met prior to 30 June each year. Where the minimum pension has not been met, the fund is not entitled to tax exemption on income generated by assets supporting the pension account (see article, … Continue reading »
Cheque your timing with benefit payments
The Australian Taxation Office has recently issued its first SMSF determination for 2011, SMSFD 2011/1. This determination confirms that a benefit payable by cheque or promissory note is “cashed” at the time it is received by the member or beneficiary. This issue is very common when dealing with drawing minimum pension levels before 30 June … Continue reading »
Optimising transition to retirement pensions
Transition to Retirement Income Streams (TRIS) have been a very popular strategy since their introduction on 1 January 2006. Whilst the halving of the concessional contribution cap over the past couple of years has had an impact on this strategy, it still provides significant long-term benefits being run at its optimal level. What is “transition … Continue reading »
10 things to do with your SMSF before 30 June
With only a month until the end of the financial year, it is important for all trustees to consider a range of issues and opportunities to ensure that they are optimising the benefits of their SMSF. I have outlined below a list of 10 things to check and consider before 30 June: Ensure that you … Continue reading »