Self-managed super funds explained: a factual, general overview from our Adelaide office (formerly PBS Accountants & Advisers). General information only, not personal financial advice.
An SMSF gives you control of your retirement savings. It also makes you personally responsible for a set of rules that the ATO enforces against trustees, not against the fund. Our job is to keep the fund's books right, get the return and audit done on time, and tell you early when something needs fixing.
Most trustees come to us for one of three reasons: their current accountant lodges once a year and is otherwise silent, the audit keeps turning up the same issues, or the fund has fallen behind. Whichever it is, the work is the same: clean records, a compliant fund, and an audit that holds no surprises.
What does an SMSF accountant actually do?
An SMSF accountant prepares the fund's annual financial statements and member statements, works out the fund's tax, prepares and lodges the SMSF annual return, and gets the fund ready for its independent audit. A good one also keeps track of the fund's obligations during the year. Here's exactly what's included when you work with us.
Annual accounts and the SMSF annual return
- Financial statements: the statement of financial position and operating statement the law requires, with every asset valued at market value at 30 June.
- Member statements: each member's balance split into preserved, restricted and unrestricted amounts, and into tax-free and taxable components.
- Tax: the fund's taxable income at 15%, capital gains, franking credits, exempt pension income (with an actuarial certificate where needed), and any non-arm's length income.
- The SMSF annual return: the income tax return, regulatory information, member contributions reporting and the supervisory levy, lodged by us as your registered tax agent.
- Trustee minutes and resolutions for the year, ready to sign on your phone.
Independent audit coordination
Every SMSF must be audited each year by an approved SMSF auditor registered with ASIC, before the annual return is lodged. We don't audit funds. The law requires the auditor to be independent, and an auditor can't audit a fund whose accounts their own firm prepared. So we prepare the audit file, send it to an approved independent SMSF auditor, answer their questions, gather any extra evidence they need, and explain their findings to you in plain English. Our SMSF audit guide explains what auditors check.
Compliance through the year
The return covers one year, but most breaches happen on one particular day. We monitor the things that cause them:
- contributions against the concessional and non-concessional caps (for 2026–27, $32,500 and $130,000)
- pension minimum payments, so they're paid in cash before 30 June
- transfer balance account reports, lodged within 28 days after the end of each quarter in which a reportable event happens
- in-house assets against the 5% limit, related-party transactions and loans
- the fund's investment strategy, so it's reviewed and matches what the fund actually holds
- notifying the ATO within 28 days of changes to trustees, directors, members or contact details
- ASIC annual review for the corporate trustee
Specialist work when you need it
Some funds need more: property bought through a limited recourse borrowing arrangement, business premises leased to the members' business, a Regulation 13.22C unit trust, members with balances near the $3 million Division 296 threshold, a fund being wound up after a death, or years of overdue returns. We handle these, and say in advance when a job needs a solicitor or a licensed adviser as well.
Who is this service for?
- Trustees running their own fund who want the accounting, tax and audit side done properly and want someone watching the deadlines.
- Business owners whose SMSF owns their business premises. Leases, rent reviews, market valuations and related-party rules all have to line up. See our guide to business real property.
- Families with more than one entity. If you have a company, a family trust and an SMSF, we can look after all of them under one engagement, signed once.
- Funds that have fallen behind. Overdue returns, missing audits, or an auditor contravention report already lodged.
- Financial advisers who want a reliable accounting and tax partner for their SMSF clients.
If you have a modest balance and no particular reason to run your own fund, it's worth asking your financial adviser whether an SMSF still suits you. Our comparison of SMSF vs industry super lays out the trade-offs honestly.
Want a second opinion on where your fund stands before this year's audit? Ask us for an SMSF review and send last year's financial statements, audit report and the trust deed.
Where does our role end? The AFSL boundary
This matters, and it protects you.
| Question | Who answers it |
|---|---|
| Should I set up, keep or wind up an SMSF? | A licensed financial adviser (AFSL) |
| What should the fund invest in? Should I start a pension? How much should I contribute? Should the fund hold insurance? | A licensed financial adviser |
| Trust deed updates, binding death benefit nominations, enduring powers of attorney, leases | A solicitor |
| Was this contribution within the cap? What's this year's pension minimum? How is this capital gain taxed? Is this transaction a related-party problem? | Us |
| Accounts, member statements, tax, annual return, transfer balance reports, audit coordination | Us |
| Is the fund compliant with super law? | The independent auditor (and we prepare you for that) |
We give accounting, tax and compliance information about your fund. We don't recommend financial products. When a question crosses into advice, we say so and work with your adviser, or point you to one, so the strategy and the compliance line up.
How does it work with BPAG?
- Free strategy call. Tell us about the fund: members, what it holds, any pensions, and where last year's work is up to.
- Fund review. We read the trust deed, last year's accounts, audit report and any management letter, and the investment strategy. You get a short list of what's fine, what needs fixing, and a fixed fee.
- Engagement and handover. One engagement covers your fund and, if you want, your other entities. You sign it on your phone and confirm your identity through your bank (ConnectID) or a photo ID and selfie. If you're switching, we ask your previous accountant for the records, with your authority.
- Records connected. We set up bank and investment data feeds where your platforms allow it, so transactions come in through the year.
- During the year. We answer questions, lodge transfer balance reports as events happen, and check contributions and pension payments before 30 June.
- After 30 June. We prepare the accounts, member statements and minutes, send the file to the independent auditor, deal with their queries, and lodge the annual return once the audit is signed.
Like all our work, this runs on Nagaris, the practice platform we work on. Questions reach you by SMS or email and you answer them on your phone. Our year-end records request agent builds your document list from last year's figures, so you're asked only for what the fund actually needs. Our super and SMSF agent drafts the technical checks, such as contribution caps, pension minimums and transfer balance reporting. A qualified accountant reviews every figure and signs off before anything goes to you, the auditor or the ATO. The AI drafts; your accountant decides.
How much does an SMSF accountant cost?
We quote a fixed annual fee after we've looked at the fund, because the work depends on what the fund holds. A fund with cash and listed shares on data feeds takes far less work than one with a geared property, a related-party lease, a 13.22C unit trust and three members in pension phase. The fee covers the work listed above; the independent auditor bills separately, and the ATO's supervisory levy ($259 a year for an established fund; the government announced in August 2026 that it will rise to $295, but that isn't law yet) is paid with the return.
Our SMSF costs guide breaks down every cost of running a fund and explains how to tell whether yours is good value. For your other entities, our business packages are on our pricing page.
What are the key SMSF deadlines?
For 2025–26 annual returns lodged through a tax agent, the main dates are below. Your fund's date depends on its lodgement history, so we confirm it at the start.
| Situation | Annual return due |
|---|---|
| Fund with prior-year returns outstanding at 30 June 2026 | 31 October 2026 |
| New fund, first return lodged through a tax agent | 28 February 2027 (unless the ATO set 31 October at registration) |
| Most established funds | 15 May 2027 |
| Non-taxable or refund funds eligible for the concession | 5 June 2027 |
The auditor must be appointed at least 45 days before the return is due, and the audit must be finished before the return is lodged. Our guide to the SMSF annual return and deadlines covers the full calendar, including transfer balance reporting and the 30 June cut-offs.
Switching SMSF accountants: what happens?
Changing accountants is simpler than most trustees expect. You don't need to close or change the fund, and the audit history stays with the fund.
- You sign our engagement and an authority for us to collect the fund's records.
- We request the records from your previous accountant: prior financial statements, member statements, audit reports, tax returns, minutes, the investment strategy, the deed and any variations, and the software data file if they'll release it.
- We become the fund's tax agent on the ATO's systems, so we can see the fund's lodgement and account history.
- We check opening balances against last year's audited accounts. If something doesn't reconcile, we find out why before we build on it.
- We take it from there. If there's an issue from a previous year, such as a cap breach, a missed pension minimum or an in-house asset problem, we tell you what it is, what it means and how to fix it.
Timing matters a little. Switching before 30 June, or straight after the previous year's return is lodged, avoids two firms working on the same year. If you're mid-year with an overdue return, we'll pick it up wherever it's at.
What should you send us?
For a first review or a switch, send what you have. We'll ask for the rest.
- The trust deed and every variation, and the corporate trustee's company details if there is one
- Last year's financial statements, member statements, audit report and any management letter
- Last year's annual return and the ATO notice of assessment
- The current investment strategy and the latest trustee minutes
- Bank statements for the fund's accounts, and the platform or broker reports for its investments
- Property documents if the fund holds property: contract, lease, loan documents and the latest valuation
- Details of any pension: commencement documents, the transfer balance account reports lodged, payments made this year
- Copies of any death benefit nominations and enduring powers of attorney
Our SMSF setup guide covers what's needed for a new fund.
Watch out: If a member has died, lost capacity or is overseas, tell us at the start. Each one changes who can act as trustee and what has to happen next, and some have tight time limits.
Why trustees choose BPAG
- Fixed fees. You know the cost before we start, and we tell you before doing anything outside it.
- Year-round, not once a year. Caps, pensions and reporting are checked before the deadline, not explained after it.
- The whole family group in one place. Your SMSF, company, trust and personal returns, with one team that can see how they connect.
- Qualified people. Our accountants are Chartered Accountants and CPAs, and we're a registered tax agent bound by the Tax Agent Services Act Code of Professional Conduct.
- Rated 5.0 from 107 Google reviews.
"I started using BPAG 3 years ago and they have been advising my business and myself in an extraordinary way. The team is also caring and they listen to what your needs are." Christian Luis Barbeitos Alvarez, Google review
Start with our self managed super fund guide if you want the full picture of how SMSFs work, or book a free call and we'll look at your fund with you.
Frequently asked questions
Can my accountant also audit my SMSF?
No. The auditor must be independent of the fund, and under the professional independence rules an auditor can't audit a fund whose financial statements their own firm prepared. That's why we prepare the accounts and an approved independent SMSF auditor does the audit. You'll see the auditor's ASIC registration number on your annual return.
Can you set up a new SMSF for me?
We can handle the accounting and registration side of a new fund once you've decided to establish one: the ABN and TFN application, electronic service address, corporate trustee registration, and first-year records. The decision to set up an SMSF, and to roll your super into it, should come from a licensed financial adviser, and the trust deed comes from a deed provider or solicitor.
Do you work with SMSFs outside the areas near your four offices?
Yes. Most SMSF work happens by email, phone and video, so where you live doesn't matter. Trustees answer our questions by SMS or email, upload statements from their phone, and sign minutes and documents electronically without creating an account.
My fund's returns are overdue. Can you still help?
Yes, and the sooner the better. Funds with overdue returns go onto the earliest lodgement date, and the ATO can change the fund's Super Fund Lookup status to regulation details removed, which can stop rollovers and employer contributions. We rebuild the missing years, coordinate the audits in order, and help you deal with the ATO.
Can the fund pay your fees?
Generally yes. Accounting, audit, tax agent and ATO levy costs relating to the fund are fund expenses and are usually paid from the fund's bank account. Costs that relate to a member personally, such as their own tax return, must not be paid by the fund.
What accounting software do you use for SMSFs?
We set up bank and investment data feeds wherever the fund's bank and platforms support them, so transactions arrive through the year instead of in a shoebox in July. Our client files, questions and approvals sit on Nagaris, our practice platform, with client data stored in Australia.
Official sources
General information only, current as at 23 October 2026. It is not personal tax, legal or financial product advice and doesn't take your circumstances into account. Talk to us before you act. Where a recommendation needs a licensed financial adviser or a solicitor, we work alongside them.