Farmers and small business owners join forces to condemn SMSF changes

Farmers and small business have joined forces to raise concerns regarding the Government’s proposed superannuation changes, warning they will adversely impact thousands of hardworking Australian families and small businesses.

The National Farmers’ Federation (NFF) and the Council of Small Business Organisations Australia (COSBOA) are urging Parliament to make sensible changes to the legislation. 

NFF President David Jochinke said by making appropriate amendments, the Treasury Laws Amendment (Better Targeted Superannuation Concessions and Other Measures) Bill 2023 could still achieve its overall aim without causing undue hardship to small businesses.

“Farmers and small business owners are united in our view that this Bill will have unintended consequences on the operations and succession planning of these small businesses across the country, in particular for those who hold a Self-Managed Superannuation Fund (SMSF) to structure their business. 

“In the case of agriculture and small business, older farmers or business owners will often hold their assets in a SMSF and lease the operations to their children, providing both retirement income for them as well as an opportunity for the next generation to enter the business.”

The peak bodies are particularly concerned about the proposed taxation of "unrealised gains" on holdings proposed in the Bill, with the increased tax obligation likely to place undue financial burden on thousands of small businesses.

In evidence provided to the Senate Economics Committee Inquiry into the Bill by the SMSF Association, it was estimated that more than 17,000 SMSF accounts in 2021-22 held farming land.

The NFF said more than 3,500 of those would be immediately impacted by the new tax, and substantially more of the remaining were likely to be captured in the coming years if the Government continued not to apply indexation to the base threshold. 

When accounting for those SMSFs, with assets used for other small businesses beyond just farming, the number of people impacted would be much higher again.

COSBOA Chief Executive Officer Luke Achterstraat has strong concerns on the detrimental impact the proposed tax changes could have on small business owners across the country.

“We urge parliamentarians to consider the real-world impact of these tax changes. Our small business owners deserve policies that support, not hinder, their hard work and contributions to the economy,” Mr Achterstraat said.

“This new tax on the unrealised gains on assets held in the SMSF may see an increased obligation that represents a significant proportion of an owner’s annual income, or even exceed it.

“This may see the older generation left in a terrible situation where they may have to sell their assets to meet this new tax obligation or increase lease rates to their children so much that their own children’s business may become unviable.

“The Government has consistently said this Bill targets the top end of town, people with hundreds of millions of dollars in their super accounts – not hard-working, family-run small businesses.”

The NFF reported these issues had also been raised by other groups who provide financial services and advice to small business and farming families including The Tax Institute, The Financial Advice Association of Australia and The Institute of Financial Professionals Australia.

The NFF and COSBOA are calling on the Government and parliamentarians to listen to these concerns, come together and make sensible amendments to the Bill so Australian families and small businesses aren’t adversely affected.