ATO: SMSF member in receipt of ENCC determination
The ATO has advised that if a member of an SMSF has received an “excess non-concessional contributions” (ENCC) determination, the ATO may send the SMSF a release authority which must be actioned within 10 business days of the issue date by paying the amount to the ATO. By way of background, the ATO says it assesses members contributions when it has contributions information and the member lodges their tax return for the same financial year. If a member exceeds their non-concessional contributions cap, the ATO will then send them an ENCC determination.
Monthly exchange rates for April 2023
The ATO has released details of the average monthly exchange rates for April 2023 for selected countries as follows (to Australian $1): Chinese renminbi 4.6103; European euro 0.6110; Hong Kong dollar 5.2551; Indian rupee 54.9247; Indonesian rupiah 9931.1765; Japanese yen 89.3894; Malaysian ringgit 2.9626 New Taiwan dollar 20.4535; New Zealand dollar 1.0783; Philippine peso 37.0718; Singapore dollar 0.8916; South Korean won 885.0047; Swiss franc 0.6020; Thai baht 22.9418; UK pound sterling 0.5383; United States dollar 0.6695; Vietnamese dong 15714.5882. Note: General information on exchange rates and their application to tax can be found at the ATO website, here.
ASIC calls on investment product issuers to improve on DDO
ASIC has called on investment product issuers to “lift their game” after an initial review found significant room for improvement in how they meet their “design and distribution obligations” (DDO). [Note the DDO scheme requires financial products to be designed and distributed with clear and contemporary consideration of the objectives, financial situation and needs of the consumers and retail investors being targeted.] In its Report 762 Design and distribution obligations: Investment products, ASIC outlined the review findings and actions taken by ASIC in response. The review found that a significant number of the product issuers made deficient target market determinations, with poorly defined target markets and unclear or inadequate product governance arrangements.
