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Superannuation Industry Stewardship Group key messages 9 June 2026

Key topics discussed at the Superannuation Industry Stewardship Group meeting 9 June 2026.

Published 9 July 2026

Superannuation regulators update

Treasury

The first tranche of 2026–27 Federal Budget tax legislation has been introduced to parliament, covering capital gains tax, negative gearing and the instant tax deduction. Treasury is preparing associated instruments for consultation.

Another tranche of legislation is in development, addressing technical issues including application to managed investment trusts and options to minimise compliance burden for trusts only servicing superannuation funds.

Treasury will undertake consultation on the proposed minimum tax on discretionary trusts.

Access to offenders’ superannuation for victims and survivors of child sexual abuse measure has passed parliament and is now in effect. This enables eligible applicants to seek information about an offender’s superannuation and apply for unpaid court-ordered release of funds.

Consultation on measures addressing family and domestic violence has concluded. There was broad support for a mechanism to prevent perpetrators from accessing victims’ superannuation death benefits, with policy options under consideration.

The government’s response to the Parliamentary Joint Committee inquiry into financial abuse is being finalised. The 4 recommendations relating to superannuation are being progressed through existing policy work and consultations.

Consultation on proposals stemming from recent superannuation fund failures is complete, with options now being considered for government decision.

Consultation on potential changes to the performance test is ongoing.

Payday Super regulations are before the Senate; work is ongoing on technical amendments covering the 3-day rule and the fifth quarter.

Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA)

Draft new Prudential Standard CPS 510 and consultation paper on governance is expected to be released in the coming weeks. Requirements are expected to be finalised late this year. APRA expects the new requirements to take effect from early 2028. APRA has since released its consultation paper and draft prudential standard for comment.

Public enforcement action against 5 platform trustees has been taken. APRA will ensure appropriate remediation action is taken by relevant registrable super entity licensees.

Potential changes to the prudential framework are progressing, including investment governance. Consultation is expected in the coming months.

Submissions on the Retirement Reporting Framework have been received and are under review.

A decision to not extend the Comprehensive Product Performance Package to retirement products at this stage has been made and we are considering alternative approaches to provide a more nuanced approach to transparency.

APRA and the ATO are working together to support Payday Super readiness. This includes joint engagement with trustees.

The results of the superannuation stress testing are expected to be published in the coming weeks.

Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC)

ASIC has made changes to the disclosure of stamp duty in product disclosure statements and portfolio holdings disclosures. A full review of Regulatory Guide 97 (RG97) has commenced, with initial public output expected this calendar year.

Reports on death benefit claims handling and trustee practices to safeguard superannuation are expected to be published shortly.

A recent Federal Court judgment confirmed that enforceable provisions within Regulatory Guide 271 are valid and legally enforceable.

ASIC has filed final proceedings against an additional superannuation trustee in relation to the First Guardian matter. Proceedings are now in place across all trustees involved.

Work on the Council of Financial Regulators’ Better Regulation Roadmap continues, including joint planning with APRA to minimise regulatory burden while meeting community expectations.

A new ban on advertising superannuation during employee onboarding will commence from 1 July. ASIC will take a balanced compliance approach during the first year of implementation.

Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA)

AFCA’s focus has included implementation of the Scams Ombudsman Service to support the Scam Prevention Framework. This new scheme will commence from 31 March 2027.

AFCA is enhancing its services, including changes to improve accessibility and technology uplift to support efficiency.

Over 3,000 complaints relating to Shield and First Guardian have been received, with more complaints expected. There will be a continued focus on proactive communication and publication of lead decisions.

AFCA has contributed to consultations on member protection and the Compensation Scheme of Last Resort. To inform regulatory settings, AFCA will continue to share data.

Consultation has commenced on rule changes to support complaints handling under new legislative measures, relating to genetic testing in life insurance.

From 1 July, providers of services relating to digital assets that are financial products will be required to be AFCA members.

ATO

Payday Super

In preparation for Payday Super commencing 1 July 2026, the ATO has undertaken extensive stakeholder engagement. This has included approximately 120 engagements to raise awareness across the sector. A range of Payday Super resources have been released, and more are coming. The latest resource supports the changeover from a quarterly to a payday system.

We wrote to all employers during April and May to increase awareness of the change and suggested they speak to their tax professionals about what this means for them. Funds were provided with a communication toolkit (white label content from the ATO) for the communication phases of Get Ready and Act Now (April – June). Another toolkit is in development for next financial year.

A variety of public advice and guidance products has also been published. Members noted contributions data from April 2026 showed a 30% increase from expected volumes, indicating employers have commenced to pay super more regularly. This was not accompanied by a corresponding increase in errors.

Data quality

The ATO is more reliant on accurate, timely and complete member account and transaction data (MATS) from large superannuation funds than ever before, as not only does it support around 20 downstream products, it will also be used to assure employer compliance with their super guarantee obligations.

Most funds meet most of their member reporting requirements however, given the extraordinary number of transactions, even small data quality issues can have significant impacts for members, employers, and other users of this data.

We are shifting from a reactive, issue-based approach to a more proactive, system-wide focus on data quality. In doing so it will:

  • Strengthen its preventative strategies through more prescriptive guidance and targeted communications.
  • Undertake specific issue-based campaigns and whole-of-fund performance reviews focused on timeliness, accuracy and completeness of member account attribute service and MATS reporting.
  • Where systemic issues persist, escalate to audit action and consider the imposition of penalties and referrals to APRA.

Compassionate release of super (CRS)

The ATO remains concerned that some registered agents and health practitioners are enabling individuals to inappropriately access CRS. Work will continue with other regulators to monitor and manage CRS risks, including the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA), Tax Practitioners Board and ASIC.

A joint media release in April 2026 from the ATO and AHPRA warned that some health practitioners are engaging in predatory practices to encourage inappropriate early access to superannuation. The media release outlined key red flags, consequences that can apply, and information about current compliance actions and outcomes.

In April and May 2026, the ATO commenced an advertising campaign across various platforms, focused on raising awareness and preventing misinformation. This included misinformation from businesses that promote CRS as the primary pathway for funding medical and dental treatments.

We continue to undertake compliance activities to address behaviours of concern from individuals, health practitioners and registered agents. Where these activities identify inappropriate behaviour, the ATO will progress consequences including imposing penalties for making false or misleading statements.

Self-managed super fund (SMSF) establishments

In response to a request from Super Consumers Australia, the ATO provided an overview of trends in the SMSF sector, noting continued growth in both fund numbers and assets under management, with over 660,000 funds and more than $1 trillion in assets. It was noted that new establishments remain strong, with over 43,000 funds established in 2025–26 as of April 2026.

ATO highlighted that the SMSF registration and establishment process is a critical regulatory control point. Key risks identified at the point of SMSF establishment include:

  • Potential fraud, particularly identity theft involving rollovers from APRA-regulated funds.
  • Illegal early access to superannuation.
  • Trustee ineligibility.
  • Lack of awareness or understanding of trustee obligations.

All new SMSFs are risk assessed during registration. Funds assessed as low risk proceed through registration and receive a notice of compliance and information on education resources. Funds assessed as higher risk are subject to additional controls, including:

  • Pausing their registration process and withholding Super Fund Lookup status to prevent rollovers.
  • Direct engagement with ATO case officers.

Member discussion noted:

  • Drivers of the surge in SMSF registrations including increased awareness of SMSFs as an option and members’ desire for greater control and flexibility over investments, such as accessing investment options that are not available in an APRA-regulated fund.
  • Characteristics of a higher risk fund.
  • Variability in trustee capability across the SMSF sector, with some trustees well equipped to manage their obligations, while others may not have sufficient understanding of the responsibilities involved.
  • Identifying potential coercion of vulnerable trustees by promotors to establish SMSFs.
  • Lower balance funds may face challenges in achieving scale, although outcomes vary significantly across the sector.

Help and support for SMSFs are available to assist trustees to establish, operate and exit an SMSF, including online education models.

Fraud and cyber security

APRA and ASIC discussed the evolving cyber threat environment, noting increased focus on risks associated with artificial intelligence (AI). This includes Frontier AI models and the potential for these technologies to increase the speed and scale of malicious activity.

ASIC advised that its letter to licensees, issued 8 May emphasised the urgency of strengthening existing cyber security practices. These practices include patching systems, maintaining up to date controls, and ensuring robust governance and cyber incident response arrangements.

APRA noted that reviews completed in March 2026 identified control weaknesses, particularly in the effectiveness of multi factor authentication (MFA) and some automated cyber defences. Impacted trustees have since confirmed mandatory MFA is in place for log on and high-risk transactions. APRA continues to monitor progress by trustees to close the remaining findings.

APRA advised an ongoing focus on strong governance, risk management and oversight of critical operations and material service providers. This is alongside a series of targeted reviews examining technology risk management and operational resilience in practice.

Industry associations noted a strong commitment across funds to collaborate on AI related risks and governance approaches, with varying levels of maturity and resourcing across the system. Members also noted the increased frequency of regulator led roundtables, which are viewed as valuable for sharing insights and strengthening system resilience.

Members observed that while AI assisted activity (including complaints and document generation) is increasing, there has not been a significant reported increase in AI driven fraud or cyber incidents. However, this risk is recognised and under active consideration.

ATO App update

The ATO app has new fraud prevention measures for the Transfer Super function, released in May 2026. These measures include pre submission messages within ATO online services that prompt users to verify key details before progressing a transaction.

For registered ATO app users, requests to transfer or consolidate super submitted through ATO online services for individuals, via myGov require verification through the ATO app before processing. Users have 5 minutes to approve the request, otherwise the transaction does not proceed. Users are also able to lock their account if they do not recognise or authorise the request.

SuperMatch

The ATO advised it is observing an increase in fraudulent rollovers and withdrawals where SuperMatch services had been utilised, particularly for members who had reached preservation age.

Funds were warned to be vigilant and were reminded of their obligation under the SuperMatch terms and conditions to report suspected misuse within 24 hours.

The ATO is monitoring this behaviour and considering additional safeguards.

Environmental scan – member updates

MUFG Pension & Market Services

Deborah Schembri outlined MUFG’s role as a superannuation administrator, supporting funds through member administration, transaction processing and operational services, with visibility across trustees, regulators and system participants. MUFG said it is increasingly focused on forward-looking pressures on the superannuation system, particularly demographic change and the shift from accumulation to retirement income. It noted that an ageing population is driving greater complexity at the point where members need the most support, especially in relation to drawdown strategies and advice.

In response, MUFG sees its role as helping funds anticipate these changes and build operating models that can adapt, underpinned by a strong focus on privacy, data protection and robust governance. It also highlighted that trust is central to the system and that its approach is supported by global banking standards, embedded risk and compliance capability, a client-focused model and experience managing large-scale change.

MUFG emphasised Payday Super is a whole-of-system transformation (rather than a payment or technology change), impacting operating models, risk profiles and ecosystem dependencies. MUFG highlighted early engagement, future-state design and ecosystem coordination as central to its approach, supported by scenario planning and scalable, automated processing.

Business Council of Australia

Business Council of Australia (BCA) noted it is an industry association representing about 130 of Australia’s large businesses, across all sectors. Key areas of work include:

  • Larger employers’ implementation of Payday Super is progressing. BCA members have not raised any significant concerns. Challenges are being observed across the broader employer community, particularly for small businesses, including cash flow impacts. Other concerns were highlighted in relation to ongoing employer obligations after payment, payment timeframes, and the application of penalties.
  • Recent budget tax changes are an active focus, with concerns raised about the different tax treatment of superannuation compared with non-superannuation investments.
  • BCA’s engagement on regulatory reforms is ongoing. This includes support for recent changes to RG97 and the intent of the superannuation performance test, alongside consideration of potential refinements.
  • AI was identified as a key priority, with concerns raised about getting regulatory settings right.
  • The BCA earlier in 2026 released its inaugural Global Investment Competitiveness IndexExternal Link that showed Australia’s competitiveness ranking had declined in recent years.

ATO Vulnerability Framework

The ATO provided an update on the implementation of the Vulnerability Framework, which sets out the ATO’s commitment to supporting people experiencing vulnerability within its role in the tax system. The Framework is a principle-based guide that outlines the ATO’s guiding principles, core focus areas and engagement approach. It informs the ongoing design of practical tools, training and inclusive services to build staff capability and continually improve support for people experiencing vulnerability.

The Framework was developed in consultation with partners, industry and professional associations, subject matter experts, ATO staff and the wider community. It also states the ATO is committed to listening to people with lived experience to help build trust, understand needs and improve support.

We are implementing training to build staff capability to identify and support taxpayers experiencing vulnerability. This training:

  • Is designed to support a consistent understanding of vulnerability and its impact on engagement and compliance.
  • Emphasises responding to taxpayer needs in a way that is empathetic and supportive.
  • Is being delivered at different levels, including additional and future specialist training for more complex cases.
  • Aligns with the Framework’s commitment to building staff capability.

In addition to new training, we are in the process of implementing new trauma-informed guidance and tools to support staff in engaging effectively with taxpayers experiencing vulnerability.

More information about the Our Vulnerability Framework is available.

Death benefits claim handling process

An update on ASICs multi-year Member Services Project was provided. This project focuses on improving member interactions with superannuation funds, including through targeted reviews and industry-wide follow up work.

ASIC outlined the findings from its follow up review of death benefit claims handling, which assessed progress against recommendations from its earlier report. Key findings from the follow-up included:

  • Most trustees had engaged with ASIC’s findings and developed plans to implement improvements, including enhancements to policies, processes and governance.
  • Many trustees have introduced or are implementing improvements in claims handling times, board reporting and process reviews, although progress remains uneven across the industry.
  • There were modest improvements in claims handling times and reductions in complaints related to death benefit delays, while noting complaint volumes had previously been elevated.
  • Areas requiring further focus were identified including measurement of claims performance, clearer risk appetite settings, and more proactive member and claimant communications.
  • Ongoing challenges were noted in supporting vulnerable members and claimants, including financial hardship scenarios, and trustees are encouraged to consider whether current approaches are sufficient.
  • ASIC highlighted that complaints remain a key indicator of systemic issues. Its next phase of work will examine how trustees use complaints data to identify and address underlying service issues.

Lost and unclaimed super money

Lost super enquiry process

The ATO provides a Lost Super Enquiry email advice service to superannuation funds where a relative approaches the ATO seeking information about a deceased member’s superannuation holdings. This aims to assist individuals searching for the superannuation of a deceased family member, while complying with legislative information-sharing constraints. The service was introduced in 2019 and to date, over 1,400 enquiry emails have been issued to super funds.

ATO has updated the Lost Super Enquiry email template to make its purpose more explicit, including adding wording that the applicant has advised that the member is deceased. The change is intended to support improved member outcomes by encouraging funds, where appropriate, to initiate contact with potential beneficiaries and provide guidance on claiming superannuation death benefits.

Members discussed practical barriers in deceased estate administration, particularly where probate is not obtained, noting impacts on access to superannuation. Members observed that broader issues relating to access to superannuation in deceased estates may require legislative reform.

Lost and unclaimed super money working group

The group noted an update about the Lost and Unclaimed Super Money Working Group, discussed in previous meetings. ATO has connected with interested stakeholders for initial discussions on the formation and priorities of the group, with an agreement that the first meeting be held post 1 July 2026, noting competing priorities with the commencement of Payday Super.

It’s envisioned the group operates in phases to ensure delivery of tangible outcomes. The initial focus will be on First Nations members, vulnerable members and deceased estates. This work will inform the next phase of the working group.

Membership will be finalised shortly, with terms of reference to be defined in the first meeting. A progress update with be provided at the next Superannuation Industry Stewardship Group meeting.

In addition, the ATO noted plans to bring forward its annual Super health check messaging to align with Tax Time to encourage earlier engagement by individuals.

Attendees

Attendees list

Organisation

Attendee

ATO

Ben Kelly (Co-chair) Superannuation and Employer Obligations

ATO

Justin Micale, Superannuation and Employer Obligations

Actuaries Institute

Timothy Jenkins

Australian Financial Complaints Authority

Benjamin Norman

Australian Financial Complaints Authority

Paul Wodburn

Australian Prudential Regulation Authority

James Douglas

Australian Prudential Regulation Authority

Sarah Nicholson

Australian Securities and Investments Commission

Nicole Chew

Australian Securities and Investments Commission

Pippa Lane

Business Council of Australia

Michael Potter

Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand

Tony Negline

COTA Australia

Patricia Sparrow

Financial Services Council

Kirsten Samuels

Gateway Network Governance Body

Michelle Bower (Co-chair)

Grow Inc

Adam Gee

Law Council of Australia

Anne Clarke

MUFG Pension & Retirement Solutions

Deborah Schembri

SMSF Association

Peter Burgess

Super Consumers Australia

Xavier O'Halloran

Super Members Council of Australia

Hannah Cole

The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia

Garry Davenport

The Tax Institute

Phil Broderick

Treasury

Lachlan Alvey

Treasury

Neena Pai

Treasury

Ruth Moore

Apologies list

Apologies list

Organisation

Member

Australian Prudential Regulation Authority

Ian Beckett

 

QC107763