Documents |Logins |About Us |Contact Us |Client Portal

APPLY NOW

Questions & Answers – Transfer Balance Account Report (TBAR)

ESUPERFUND Search Popup ESUPERFUND Learning Modules Printing
+ Expand ALL
+ What is the Transfer Balance Account Report (TBAR)?

From 01 July 2017, the Government introduced a lifetime limit on the total amount of superannuation benefits that you can transfer into a tax-free Retirement Phase Pension Income Stream. This limit is known as the Transfer Balance Cap (TBC).

The following table sets out the General Transfer Balance Cap (TBC) since its introduction on 1 July 2017:

Period General Transfer Balance Cap (TBC)
From 1 July 2017 to 30 June 2021 $1.6 million
From 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2023 $1.7 million
From 1 July 2023 $1.9 million

For more information on the Transfer Balance Cap, please click here.

Due to the Transfer Balance Cap measure, the ATO has imposed a new reporting obligation on SMSF Trustees so as to record and track the movements in the member’s Transfer Balance Account and apply provisions should the member breach the Transfer Balance Cap (TBC). This new event-based reporting framework is called the Transfer Balance Account Report (TBAR). It is a separate form from the SMSF Annual Return.

+ What is my Personal Transfer Balance Cap after indexation?

From 1 July 2023, the general Transfer Balance Cap (TBC) increases to $1.9 million. The increase is a result of indexation in line with average weekly ordinary time earnings (AWOTE). Your entitlement to indexation will be determined by the proportionate method which measures the percentage of unused cap in your Transfer Balance Account. After the indexation, there won't be a single cap that applies to all individuals. Every individual will have their own Personal Transfer Balance Cap, depending on their circumstances.

The ATO will calculate your entitlement to indexation and your Personal Transfer Balance Cap after indexation. You can view your Personal Transfer Balance Cap using the ATO online services through myGov. Alternatively you may contact the ATO on 13 10 20 directly to obtain this information.

+ Does my SMSF need to complete the Transfer Balance Account Report (TBAR)?

If your SMSF has a member who is accessing a Retirement Phase Pension Income Stream, you will be required to comply with the new Transfer Balance Account Report (TBAR) framework.

The following types of Pension Income Streams are considered as Retirement Phase Pension Income Streams:

Accumulation, and Transition to Retirement Income Stream / Pension (TRIS) where the member is under 65 and still working are NOT in the Retirement Phase and therefore are not required to comply with the Transfer Balance Account Report (TBAR) Framework.

+ Does ESUPERFUND attend to the lodgement of TBAR for my SMSF?

Yes. We are pleased to advise that ESUPERFUND attends to the preparation and submission of the TBAR on your behalf at no additional cost.

+ I have a Retirement Phase Income Stream (e.g. Defined Benefit Pension) with another Super Provider, can ESUPERFUND attend to TBAR for that external Pension?

No. ESUPERFUND only attends to TBAR for Retirement Phase Income Streams established by us. If you have a Pension with another Superfund, please contact them directly.

+ What is the reporting frequency for my SMSF and the reporting due date under the TBAR Framework?

Until 1 July 2023, the TBAR reporting frequency and deadlines were determined by the Total Superannuation Balances (TSB) of each member. Certain SMSFs were required to report TBAR on a quarterly basis.

Starting 1 July 2023, ALL SMSFs are now obligated to report most events that impact a member's transfer balance within 28 days after the end of the quarter in which the event occurs. This requirement applies regardless of the TSB.

A transition period is in place for unreported events that occurred before 30 September 2023, you have until 28 October 2023 to report them.

+ What information do I need to provide to ESUPERFUND?

Reportable TBAR Events

Here are some common events that typically need to be reported under the TBAR Framework, along with whether additional information is required from you:

Event Reportable? Information Required from Trustees?
Commencement of a new Retirement Phase Pension Income Stream. Yes No. ESUPERFUND has all the information.
Rollout from a Retirement Phase Pension to another Superfund if processed by ESUPERFUND via Superstream. Yes No. ESUPERFUND has all the information.
Transferring member’s balance in the Retirement Phase Pension back into the Accumulation Account of the SMSF (known as rollback). Yes No. ESUPERFUND has all the information.
Lump sum withdrawals (i.e. not pension withdrawals) made from the member’s Retirement Phase Pension. Yes Yes. By 28 days after the end of the quarter in which the event occurs.
You have commenced a TRIS previously and have since entered the Retirement Phase due to reaching age 65 / declaring retirement. Yes Yes. As soon as you reach age 65 / declare retirement with ESUPERFUND.
Responding to an Excess Transfer Balance Determination issued by the ATO since the member exceeded the Transfer Balance Cap. Yes As soon as you have removed the excess via lump sum withdrawals
Responding to a Commutation Authority issued by the ATO since the member failed to respond to the Excess Transfer Balance Determination within 60 days of its issue date. Yes As soon as you have removed the excess via lump sum withdrawals

For more information on the Reportable Events and Reporting Due Date, please click here.

Unreportable TBAR Events

Here are some common events that are typically not reportable under the TBAR Framework:

Event Reportable? Reasons
Pension withdrawals No Pension withdrawals do not affect the balance of your Transfer Balance Account and are not required to be reported under TBAR.
Lump sum withdrawals from the Accumulation account No Lump sum withdrawals from the Accumulation account do not affect the balance of your Transfer Balance Account and are not required to be reported under TBAR.
Additional contributions No Additional contributions made after the commencement of your existing Pension are allocated to your Accumulation Account and are not required to be reported under TBAR.
SMSF-related expenses / Refund of excess contributions No These transactions do not affect the balance of your Transfer Balance Account and are not required to be reported under TBAR.
Change of Pension balance due to investment earnings / losses No Investment earnings and losses on your superannuation interests do not affect the balance of your Transfer Balance Account and are not required to be reported under TBAR.
Re-valuing Pension balance on 1 July each year
+ I made lump sum withdrawals (i.e. not pension withdrawals) from the member’s Retirement Phase Pension, how do I provide the information to ESUPERFUND?

In order to collect information from you, please click here to visit the Client Portal – TBAR page. On that page, you can view the TBAR events that are already known to ESUPERFUND.

If there are additional reportable events (i.e. lump sum withdrawals made from the member’s Retirement Phase Pension), please refer to the following table for the Actions Required:

Scenario Actions Required
Lump sum withdrawals (i.e. not pension withdrawals) made from the member’s Retirement Phase Pension in a prior Financial Year. Please click on the “Add TBAR events” button to provide the information on the Client Portal – TBAR page directly.
Lump sum withdrawals (i.e. not pension withdrawals) made from the member’s Retirement Phase Pension in the current Financial Year.

(1) The preferred way is to code the lump sum in the Interim Checklist – Bank section for the current Financial Year.

Here are the steps to follow:

  • Step 1: Log in to the ESUPERFUND Client Portal, and then navigate to the "Checklist". Access the Interim Checklist for the current Financial Year by clicking on "View Checklist" and proceed to the "Bank" tab.
  • Step 2: Click "View" next to the relevant bank account to access the transaction coding screen for the current Financial Year.
  • Step 3: Code the transaction as "Pension & Withdrawal." In the pop-up window, choose "Lump Sum" as the "Withdrawal type," and select a specific Pension Account from the "Member Account" dropdown menu. Finally, click "Submit" to save the changes.

Once the transaction has been fully entered and appears in green (indicating completion), it will automatically be mirrored to the Client Portal – TBAR page.

(2) Alternatively, please click on the “Add TBAR events” button to provide the information on the Client Portal – TBAR page directly.
+ I made a lump sum withdrawal from Pension in a manual bank account in the current Financial Year. How do I add this transaction to the Interim Checklist – Bank section?

To add a transaction via the Interim Checklist, please follow these steps:

  • Step 1: Log in to the ESUPERFUND Client Portal, and then navigate to the "Checklist". Access the Interim Checklist for the current Financial Year by clicking on "View Checklist" and proceed to the "Bank" tab.
  • Step 2: If necessary, click on the "Add Bank Account" button to create a new bank account first.
  • Step 3: Click "View" next to the relevant bank account to access the transaction coding screen for the current Financial Year.
  • Step 4: You can either add transactions individually or import them in bulk.
  • Step 5: Code the transaction as "Pension & Withdrawal." In the pop-up window, choose "Lump Sum" as the "Withdrawal type," and select a specific Pension Account from the "Member Account" dropdown menu. Finally, click "Submit" to save the changes.

Once the transaction has been fully entered and appears in green (indicating completion), it will automatically be mirrored to the Client Portal – TBAR page.

+ The event has been prepopulated on the Client Portal – TBAR page, can I still edit the transaction?

If the event has been reported to the ATO, please contact our office via the Client Portal Inbox.

However, if the event is pending review by ESUPERFUND, the necessary actions may vary depending on when it occurred:

  • If it occurred in a prior Financial Year, please contact ESUPERFUND via the Client Portal Inbox. We will need to assess the required changes and determine if they might impact the Superfund's tax return for that prior year.
  • If it occurred in the current Financial Year, you may edit and submit the transaction coding in the Interim Checklist – Bank section directly. Any changes submitted in the Interim Checklist will be reflected on the TBAR page simultaneously.
+ I coded a lump sum withdrawal from Pension in the Prior Year Checklist, why is it not listed on the Client Portal – TBAR page?

It's important to note that only transactions coded in the Interim Checklist of the current Financial Year are automatically replicated on the Client Portal – TBAR page in real time. Transactions coded in the Prior Year Checklist are typically reviewed once annually.

For any reportable transactions that may have been missed in a Prior Year, please simply click on the “Add TBAR events” button to provide the information on the Client Portal – TBAR page directly.

+ What are the differences between lump sum withdrawals and pension withdrawals?

We advise that lump sum withdrawals cannot be used to meet the minimum pension requirement of your Pension.

If you intend to withdraw only the minimum pension amount during the Financial Year, the amount withdrawn must be treated as a pension withdrawal. Pension withdrawals are not required to be reported under TBAR.

If your withdrawals exceed the minimum pension amount during the Financial Year, you may treat the excess as either pension withdrawals or lump sum withdrawals. The differences between these two withdrawal types are explained on our website here. Lump sum withdrawals made from a Retirement Phase Pension are required to be reported under TBAR.

+ I received the TBAR lodgement reminder from ESUPERFUND but I have no reportable events, what should I do?

If you have no reportable events (e.g. there are no lump sum withdrawals / rollovers to another Superfund and you have never exceeded the Transfer Balance Cap), then you can simply disregard the reminder. You do not need to notify ESUPERFUND / the ATO if there are no events to report.

+ I have already reported some events to the ATO by myself, what should I do now?

If you have already reported any events to the ATO by yourself, please contact ESUPERFUND via the Client Portal Inbox immediately and advise the value you reported. We will then contact the ATO to cancel the event reported by ESUPERFUND to avoid double reporting.

+ How long does it take for the ATO to update my Transfer Balance Account Balance on myGov?

Please allow for at least 28 business days for the ATO to update the information in their system. After this period, you can view your Transfer Balance Account Balance using the ATO online services through myGov or contact the ATO on 13 10 20 directly.

SMSF Setup| Contact Us| About Us| Disclosures| FSG| Privacy| Broker| Interest Rates 

ESUPERFUND Pty Ltd as Trustee for ESUPERFUND Trust ABN 37 842 535 715

esuperfund
Follow Us: Esuperfund Facebook Esuperfund LinkedIn

General Advice Warning

No Advice Express or Implied: The contents of this website are of a general nature only and have not been prepared to take into account any particular investor's objectives, financial situation or particular needs. ESUPERFUND does not provide financial product advice or recommend any financial products either expressly or implied. ESUPERFUND expressly states that it does not recommend, represent as suitable, or endorse any financial product or service available through ESUPERFUND. This applies equally to those financial products which are established for your SMSF when you become a client of ESUPERFUND. Any information provided in relation to any financial product or service available through ESUPERFUND is factual information only about the operation of the account and how data is made available to ESUPERFUND. Where this website refers to a particular financial product then you should obtain a Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) relating to that product and consider the PDS before making any decision about whether to acquire the product. We also recommend that you should seek professional advice (see below) from a financial adviser before making any decision to purchase any financial product referred to on this website. While the sources for the material are considered reliable, responsibility is not accepted for any inaccuracies, errors or omissions.

Seek Professional Advice from a Financial Adviser: ESUPERFUND is a no advice model and does not provide financial, legal or tax advice to clients. We recommend that you seek appropriate professional advice in view of your personal circumstances. A licensed financial adviser will consider your personal situation and make a recommendation suitable to your financial needs. All information detailed on our website is purely factual and is general in nature. Accordingly, you should not rely on it. It should always be remembered that Trustees are legally responsible for all the decisions made even if you obtain advice from a Financial Planner. Whilst a Financial Professional can provide advice and assistance you are ultimately responsible for the Fund.

Fees: Fees relating to operating your SMSF with ESUPERFUND are detailed on our fee page here. When setting up a SMSF it is important to understand that additional fees may apply that must be carefully considered prior to making a decision to setup a SMSF including an ATO Supervisory Levy, Company Trustee Setup Fee (where applicable), and Investment Fees.