When you are opening a bank account or a trading account for your SMSF, the bank or broker may ask you for certified documents. They will ask for a certified Deed extract. As your SMSF administrator, Superannuation Warehouse can certify your Deed and post it to you. Alternatively, you can have it certified by someone else (see below for a list of individuals qualified to certify documents).
The certification statement should read as follows: “I have sighted the original document and certify this to be a true copy of the original.” On each of the photocopied pages the certifier must also include their full name and signature, the date and registration number (if any), and a reference to the qualification or occupation that entitles them to certify the documents.
The person who certifies the Deed must be either an Australian Citizen or a permanent resident of Australia.
Summary of individuals authorised to certify:
- Chiropractor, dentist, medical practitioner, nurse, physiotherapist, optometrist, pharmacist, psychologist, or veterinary surgeon
- Legal practitioner, patent attorney, trademark attorney, or bailiff
- Agent of the Australian Postal Corporation in charge of an office that supplies postal services to the public
- Australian consular officer or Australian diplomatic officer (within the meaning of the Consular Fees Act 1955), in Australia or overseas
- Commissioner for Affidavits or Commissioner for Declarations
- Finance company officer with two or more years of continuous service
- Judge, Justice of the Peace, Clerk of a court, or magistrate, in Australia or overseas
- Marriage celebrant registered under Subdivision C of Division 1 of Part IV of the Marriage Act 1961
- Member of Chartered Secretaries Australia or a Fellow of the National Tax Accountants’ Association
- Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia, the Australian Society of Certified Practicing Accountants or the National Institute of Accountants
For a more extensive list of those authorised to certify, click here. When Trustees open up a bank account, the bank will usually require a certified copy of the Trust Deed, Superannuation Warehouse can certify a copy of the Trust Deed. For more details on opening up an SMSF bank account with Macquarie, see the Macquarie page
