New updates to online services for SMSF auditors to begin next year
The ATO has reminded the need for practitioners to transition to online services for business as new updates for SMSF auditors begin to roll out in the next year.
As practitioners approach the end of the year, the ATO has flagged the need to transition to online services for SMSFs.
“The electronic superannuation audit tool (eSAT) is decommissioning in early March 2022,” the ATO said.
“Once it is decommissioned, you’ll be unable to use eSAT to lodge with us the new or amended Auditor Contravention Reports (ACRs) and Audit Complete Advices (ACAs). You’ll be limited to only accessing your history on eSAT as they’re saved on your device.
“Transition to online services for business as soon as possible so you can familiarise yourself with the new way to lodge ACRs and ACAs.
“We’re expecting to deliver these updates in the first half of next year and will keep you informed of their progress.”
The ATO noted it is already in the process of developing enhancements to online services for business based on previous auditor feedback.
The new updates will include the ability to prepopulate auditor details into ACR and ACA form and improved messaging to make it easier to download a copy of your ACR onto your device.
There will also be an increase in the number of draft ACR forms auditors can save and how long they can be saved for, along with increasing the free text field boxes to improve on-screen text visibility.
Tony Zhang
Tony Zhang is a journalist at Accountants Daily, which is the leading source of news, strategy and educational content for professionals working in the accounting sector.
Since joining the Momentum Media team in 2020, Tony has written for a range of its publications including Lawyers Weekly, Adviser Innovation, ifa and SMSF Adviser. He has been full-time on Accountants Daily since September 2021.