ASIC has released a consultation paper Competency standards for auditors of self-managed superannuation funds (CP 192) on the proposed self-managed super fund (SMSF) auditor competency standards.

The new SMSF auditor registration regime will commence on 31 January 2013 and will require auditors to be registered with ASIC in order to sign off on SMSF auditor reports from 1 July 2013

The draft standards included in the consultation paper set out the competency standards that SMSF auditors registered with ASIC will have to comply with.

The competency standards have been based on the ‘Competency requirements for auditors of self-managed superannuation funds’ issued in February 2008 by the Joint Accounting Bodies (CPA Australia Ltd, The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia & the Institute of Public Accountants). Thiis quite surprising for me considering that so much has changed in the SMSF landscape in the past 4 years.

Detailed information in relation to the Government’s new SMSF auditor registration regime can be found in the Institute’s SMSF Auditor Registration fact sheet.  To assist in keeping up to date with the introduction of this regime
members can also subscribe to ASIC’s free ASIC SMSF Auditor Update which will provide the latest news on the SMSF auditor registration process.