Financial Planning

Australian banks this month started the largest ever customer contact program in the industry's history.

With the ending of a number of the original COVID-19 relief and stimulus initiatives, August and the beginning of September has seen the release of new plans to move into the post-September period. Links to these updates and changes are listed below.

The rules around Superannuation contribution change almost every year, so it is important that taxpayers know what these changes mean to them.

The government’s early super release scheme shows no signs of slowing down, with almost 90,000 release applications received by super funds in the first week of August and more than $700 million in payments made.

Choice is inherently regarded as a good thing, particularly in these COVID-affected times when some of our basic choices have had to be suspended for the greater community good.

SMSFs with outstanding compliance issues should consider making a voluntary disclosure while the ATO still has a more flexible approach in place and before they implement tougher admin penalties, says a law firm.

It's often said that starting out early on one's investing journey will deliver good long-term results.

The ATO has confirmed only payments made to a member after 24 March in excess of the reduced minimum pension can be treated as a lump sum, even where a valid election was previously in place, says the SMSF Association.

Last week, Vanguard and Investment Trends launched the 2020 SMSF Investor Report. This year's report surveyed over 3000 SMSF trustees on their investment priorities and industry outlook, providing an insight into how trustees navigated through COVID-19 volatility.

Several new links have been added to the many already in this article, links that date back to the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.  If you have any questions, or require further assistance, please send us an email or phone.