The Australian Taxation Office has said that it is seeing a number of schemes targeting Australians planning for their retirement that encourage individuals to channel money inappropriately and deliberately to avoid paying tax.

Recently, nestegg has reported on a number of fraudulent SMSF schemes.

In one instance, a Western Australian man was banned from providing financial services or engaging in credit activities for eight years after he illegally provided people with early access to their super. 

In another, a Sydney man found himself behind bars after he orchestrated the illegal early release of superannuation to 25 people in the community. 

The ATO has indicated on a number of occasions that “the penalties for being involved in deliberate tax avoidance schemes are substantial”.

And the penalties aren’t just financial – “an individual may lose their right to be a trustee of their own superannuation fund or, in some cases, they could go to jail”.

Noting that superannuation schemes have common features, the Tax Office has provided some guidance on how Australians can recognise such schemes.

Recognising a super scheme

1. Super schemes are artificial or contrived with complex structures around an existing or newly created SMSF.
2. They involve seemingly unnecessary steps or transactions.
3. Super schemes are designed to give the taxpayer minimal or zero tax, or even provide them with a refund.
4. They aim to bring forward a tax benefit for the individual.
5. They invariably sound “too good to be true”, with the ATO noting “as such, they generally are”.