The Government has made amendments to the Private Ancillary Fund Guidelines 2009 and the Public Ancillary Fund Guidelines 2011, which set minimum standards for the governance and conduct of ancillary funds and their trustees.
The amendments to the Guidelines incorporate a number of changes to the existing guidelines, including:
- updating the Private Ancillary Fund Guidelines 2009 to reflect improvements incorporated in the later made Public Ancillary Fund Guidelines 2011;
- introducing portability into the Private Ancillary Fund Guidelines 2009;
- updating both sets of Guidelines to reflect the introduction of the Australian Charities and Not–for-profits Commission (ACNC);
- removing red tape by ensuring that material provided to the ACNC is not also requested separately by the Australian Taxation Office and allow smaller private funds to seek a review instead of an audit;
- updating the investment strategy rules to, amongst other things, ensure funds must consider both their status as a registered charity and conflicts of interest in preparing and maintaining a strategy;
- allowing ancillary funds to provide loan guarantees over borrowings of deductible gift recipients;
- providing further guidance on calculating the distribution in relation to social impact investments; and
- giving the Commissioner of Taxation the power to lower the annual minimum distribution rate of a fund in appropriate circumstances.
"The Government consulted on a draft exposure and has made these changes following the consultation process," Minister O’Dwyer said. "The Government will, at a future date, assess whether the Commissioner’s discretion to amend the minimum distribution rates is a viable longer–term solution."
The Private Ancillary Fund Guidelines 2009 and the Public Ancillary Fund Guidelines 2011 are available on the Federal Register of Legislation and have effect from 5 May 2016.