How your self-managed super fund is regulated

Your role as trustee

An SMSF can have one to four members and each member must be a trustee or a director of the corporate trustee except in certain limited circumstances. Your role as a trustee of an SMSF is an important one. While an SMSF allows you to have direct control of your super, this added control comes with added responsibility and workload. You will need plenty of time to manage your fund and the skills and experience that enable you to make sound investment decisions.

All trustees are equally responsible for the decisions made for your fund and for ensuring that super and tax laws are complied with. You can pay a professional a fee to do the administration for your SMSF but you cannot pass on the responsibility of being a trustee.

In running your SMSF, you must allow for ongoing expenses such as professional accounting, tax, audit, investment and legal advice.

As a trustee, your obligations include:

• complying with all super and tax laws
• making sure your fund is maintained only for purposes specified under super law, for example providing benefits for members upon their retirement
• preparing and implementing an investment strategy that ensures the fund is likely to meet your retirement needs
• making investment decisions that comply with super and tax laws and the trust deed of your fund
• considering insurance requirements for fund assets and members
• accepting contributions and paying benefits (income streams or lump sums) in accordance with super and tax laws
• appointing an independent auditor for each income year
• undertaking administrative tasks such as lodging annual returns
• making sure new trustees sign the Trustee declaration (NAT 71089)
• notifying us of any changes to your fund's structure or contact details within 28 days
• keeping comprehensive records of all matters about the operation of your fund.

For more information about your duties and responsibilities as trustee, refer to Running a self-managed super fund (NAT 11032).