SMSF Accounting for Self-Managed Super Funds

What our SMSF accountants do

An SMSF has to prepare financial statements each year, lodge an annual return with the ATO and be audited by an independent approved auditor. Behind those three outputs sits a year of transactions, valuations, member records and compliance checks.

We take care of the accounting side: recording contributions, investment income and expenses, tracking each member's balance, valuing assets at year end, preparing the statements and the annual return, and coordinating the audit. If something looks off during the year, we tell the trustees early rather than at lodgement time.

We work with funds set up by business owners, investors and families, in accumulation phase and in pension phase. Many trustees come to us after a period of doing it themselves, usually around the time the audit queries start to pile up.

• Annual financial statements and member statements
• SMSF annual return preparation and lodgement
• Independent audit coordination
• Year-end asset valuations and supporting records
• Pension and contribution record keeping
• Ongoing trustee questions answered in plain English

SMSF accounting for property, shares and managed funds

Property inside a fund brings rent, expenses, depreciation and, where borrowing is involved, a limited recourse arrangement with its own documentation. Each year the property needs a supportable market value, and related-party dealings have to follow strict rules.

Listed shares and managed funds are simpler to value but generate a steady flow of dividends, distributions, franking credits and corporate actions that all need to be captured correctly. We use data feeds where they are available so the fund's records stay current rather than being rebuilt once a year.

Where a fund has a limited recourse borrowing arrangement in place, the loan, the holding trust and the property need to be recorded consistently so the structure stays compliant and the audit trail is clear.

Crypto and commodities in a self-managed super fund

More trustees are holding digital assets and physical commodities such as bullion inside their funds. The rules allow it, provided the assets are held in the fund's name, kept separate from personal holdings, valued properly and consistent with the fund's investment strategy.

The accounting is where many funds come unstuck. Exchange records, wallet addresses, storage arrangements and year-end valuations all need to satisfy the auditor. We have built processes for these assets so the paperwork holds up.

Staying compliant as an SMSF trustee

Trustees carry the responsibility for the fund meeting superannuation law. The most common issues we see are simple ones: fund money mixed with personal money, assets not held in the right name, an investment strategy that has not been reviewed, and contributions or withdrawals that did not follow the rules.

Our role is to keep the accounting clean, flag anything that might concern the auditor or the ATO, and help trustees understand what the rules generally require. We do not tell you what to invest in. We make sure the fund can show that whatever it did was done properly.

The ATO publishes guidance on trustee obligations and the rules change from time to time. We keep the fund's records aligned with the current rules and point trustees to the relevant guidance when a question comes up, rather than guessing.

How SMSF accounting fits with the rest of your finances

For many business owners the fund sits alongside a company, a trust and a family home. Decisions in one area can affect the others, from where business premises are held to how a business sale is planned.

Because we also handle business accounting, structuring and exit planning, we see the whole picture. Our SMSF work is about accurate accounting and compliance; where broader financial advice is needed, we work alongside licensed advisers so the fund, the business and the family all point the same way.

Our offices are in Victoria Point and Jimboomba, and we support trustees across Queensland and Australia by video, with documents and records exchanged securely online.