Trustees can add a new Member to their SMSF by following these steps:
- Minute the Trustees’ decision to add the member. Download a Minute template here.
- The new Member must sign a Membership application and Consent to Act as Trustee. Click here to download the application.
- The new Member must sign a Trustee declaration
- Notify the ATO about your decision to add a new Member. As a Tax Agent, Superannuation Warehouse will do this for you (at no additional charge). Click here to contact us. To add the new Member we’ll need the following information:
Title:
First Name (as per ATO records):
Middle Name:
Surname:
Tax File Number:
Date of Birth:
Occupation:
Place of Birth:
If Trustees instruct Superannuation Warehouse to update the Member details with the Tax Office, we will send you the minutes and application forms as explained above. All you need to send us are the new Member’s personal details, as indicated in the point above. We charge a fee of $350 to update the Member details including updating the Trust Deed to reflect the New Member. For more information on our fee, please see the fee schedule page.
Corporate Trustee
If the Trustee is a Corporate Trustee, the new Member must be appointed as a Director of the Corporate Trustee. ASIC must be notified by lodgement of Form 490. As your administrator, Superannuation Warehouse will lodge the ASIC notification on your behalf.
ATO Review
The Australian Taxation Office may conduct a ‘risk assessment’ of the new Member in the Fund. When we update the Australian Business Register for a Fund, the request may go through instantly meaning the new Member change is effective immediately and live. However, the ATO may conduct a background vetting check on the new Member. This will cause the Fund to be given a ‘Regulation Details Withheld’ status meaning the Fund cannot receive contributions or rollovers. During this process, it is encouraged that SMSF Trustees contact the ATO and discuss the matter. This process is similar to an ATO Audit that the Tax Office conduct when the Fund is first established.
Remember
All Members must also be Trustees or Directors of the Corporate Trustee. An SMSF can have no more than 4 members.
For more booklets and information brochures on Trustee responsibilities and Member requirements, click here.
