Tuesday, March 20, 2018

Don't Stop Believin' - Tax Office & superannuation proceeds trusts **

View by Don't Stop Believin' - Tax Office & superannuation proceeds trusts ** by Matthew Burgess

Previous posts have explored various aspects of superannuation proceeds trusts (SPT).

View the earlier posts at the following links -

http://blog.viewlegal.com.au/2015/06/view-legal-and-superannuation-proceeds.html

http://blog.viewlegal.com.au/2014/09/what-are-superannuation-proceeds-trusts.html

As explained in these posts, historically there was a concern that the Tax Office may adopt a narrow interpretation of the tax legislation and mandate that the superannuation death benefits pass directly from a super fund to an SPT in order to access the excepted trust income concessions.

This was because, section 102AG(2)(c)(v) of the Tax Act allows infants to access excepted trust income where the transfer of funds to the SPT is 'directly as the result of the death of a person and out of a provident, benefit, superannuation or retirement fund'.

In Private Ruling Authorisation Number 1012994963374, the Tax Office confirms it will accept that property transferred to the benefit of a minor by the widow or widower sourced from superannuation moneys originally paid to the widow or widower (ie not to the SPT), will still fall within the requirements of the Tax Act (and in particular section 102AE(2)(c)(ii)). As usual if you would like a copy of the Private Ruling please contact me.

In support of this interpretation the Tax Office references comments in the Canberra Income Tax Circular Memorandum (CITCM) 884 published in 1981 to confirm its view that superannuation monies are to be treated as if they formed part of the estate of the deceased person, even if there is an ‘interposed step’ where the funds pass through the hands of a surviving spouse.

This means that the requirement set out in section 102AG(2)(d)(ii) of the Tax Act will be met and in turn the assessable income of the SPT will be excepted trust income. Section 102AG(2)(d)(ii) ensures access to excepted trust income where funds are transferred to the trustee for the benefit of the beneficiary by another person out of property that devolved upon that other person from the estate of a deceased person and was transferred within 3 years after the date of the death of the deceased person.

** For trainspotters, in 1981, when the CITCM referenced here was released, Journey's song Don't Stop Believin' was one of the hits of the year. Given the likelihood many readers of today's post were not born in 1981, further learning is available here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NQIPVqLMUg


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