Treasury has released a draft Treasury Laws Amendment (Financial Reporting and Auditing Requirements for Registrable Superannuation Entities) Bill 2021 which will impose financial reporting obligations on registrable superannuation entities that are consistent with those that currently apply to public companies and registered schemes.

The Bill will amend the Corporations Act, SIS Act and the ASIC Act to extend and adapt the financial reporting and auditing requirements in Chapter 2M of the Corporations Act to apply to registrable superannuation entities. While funds are required to provide financial information and data to APRA, this information is not currently subject to monitoring and enforcement action by ASIC to ensure compliance with the relevant accounting and auditing standards.

The new financial reporting requirements require the RSE licensee for a registrable superannuation entity to:

• prepare and lodge financial reports for an entity for each financial year and half-year with ASIC;
• make publicly available the financial and directors’ reports for an entity for a financial year and the associated auditor’s report on the entity’s website;
• include details on how to access the financial and directors’ reports for an entity for a financial year and the relevant auditor’s report with the notice to the annual members’ meeting; and
• provide financial reports for a financial year and half-year to members upon request.

The new auditing requirements require the RSE licensee for a registrable superannuation entity to appoint an individual auditor to conduct an audit or review of the entity and for the auditor to:

• prepare an auditor’s report for an audit or review of an entity’s financial report for a financial year and half-year;
• report suspected contraventions to the Regulator;
• meet auditor independence and rotation requirements; and
• prepare, lodge and publish auditor transparency reports, if required.

For a year of income beginning on or after 1 July 2022, registrable superannuation entities must keep financial and accounting records for seven years (increased from five years).

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