{"id":"F2023L01323","name":"Social Security (Special Disability Trust —Trust Deed, Reporting and Audit Requirements) Determination 2023","slug":"social-security-special-disability-trust-trust-deed-reporting-and-audit-requirements-determination-2","collection":"legislative_instrument","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":442116,"registerId":"F2023L01323-fast-fetch-1775957214929","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-12","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Social Security (Special Disability Trust —Trust Deed, Reporting and Audit Requirements) Determination 2023","content":"---\nmeta-content-style-type: text/css\nmeta-content-type: application/xhtml+xml; charset=utf-8\nmeta-keywords: \"[SEC=OFFICIAL]\"\n---\n\n?xml version=\"1.0\" encoding=\"utf-8\" standalone=\"no\"?>\n\n![Commonwealth Coat of Arms of Australia](image.001.jpeg)\n\n \n\nSocial Security (Special Disability Trust —Trust Deed, Reporting and Audit Requirements) Determination 2023\n\n\nI, Matt Flavel, acting Secretary of the Department of Social Services, make the following determination.\n\nDated 22 September 2023  \n\n\nMatt Flavel  Acting Secretary  Department of Social Services    \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nContents\n\nPart 1—Preliminary   \n\n1 Name\n\n2 Commencement\n\n3 Authority\n\n4 Definitions............................................1\n\n \n\nPart 2—Trust Deed Requirements   2\n\n5 Form of the trust deed......................................2\n\n6 Provisions which must be included in the trust deed and the form of those provisions 2\n\n7 Provisions which cannot be included in the trust deed...................3\n\n \n\nPart 3—Reporting Requirements   3\n\n8 Qualifications of persons preparing financial statements..................3\n\n9 Information that must be included in financial statements.................4\n\n10 Income tax returns........................................5\n\n11 Statutory declaration......................................5\n\n \n\nPart 4—Auditing Requirements   5\n\n12 Audit period...........................................5\n\n13 Qualification of persons preparing audit...........................5\n\n14 Information that must be included in audit..........................6\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nPart 1–Preliminary\n\n1  Name\n\n  This instrument is the Social Security (Special Disability Trust —Trust Deed, Reporting and Audit Requirements) Determination 2023.\n\n2  Commencement\n\n  This instrument commences on 1 October 2023.\n\n3  Authority\n\n  This instrument is made under subsections 1209P(2), 1209S(4) and 1209T(7) of the Social Security Act 1991.\n\n4  Definitions\n\n  In this instrument:\n\nAct means the Social Security Act 1991.\n\nAustralian Accounting Standards means the accounting standards issued by the Australian Accounting Standards Board.\n\nAustralian Auditing Standards means the auditing and assurance standards issued by the Auditing and Assurance Standards Board.\n\nmodel trust deed means the document titled ‘Model Trust Deed for Special Disability Trusts’ published by the Department of Social Services, as existing on 1 October 2023.\n\nNote   The ‘Model Trust Deed for Special Disability Trusts’ is available on the Internet — see [www.dss.gov.au](http://www.dss.gov.au).\n\nrelevant financial year means:\n\n(a)    in relation to a reporting requirement – the financial year about which the trustees are required to give financial statements under subsection 1209S(1) of the Act; or\n\n(b)    in relation to an audit requirement — the financial year for which a person has requested an audit.\n\ntrustee corporation means each of the bodies corporate listed in Schedule 9 to the Corporations Regulations 2001.\n\nPart 2–Trust deed requirements\n\n5  Form of the trust deed\n\n  For paragraph 1209P(2)(a) of the Act, the form of the trust deed required for a special disability trust is the model trust deed, in writing.\n\n6  Provisions which must be include in the trust deed and the form of those provisions \n\n(1)  For paragraph 1209P(2)(b) of the Act, the provisions which must be included in the trust deed are provisions dealing with the matters mentioned in column 2 of the following table.   \n\n| Item | Matter | Clause of model trust deed |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n| 1 | Date on which trust is made | P.1 |\n| 2 | Parties to the trust | P.2 |\n| 3 | Description of the Principal Beneficiary | 1.1 |\n| 4 | Declaration of trust | 1.2 |\n| 5 | Name of trust | 1.3 |\n| 6 | Application of operative provisions | 1.4 |\n| 7 | Duration of trust | 1.5 |\n| 8 | Exclusion of settlors | 1.7 |\n| 9 | Primary and other purposes of the trust | 2.1 |\n| 10 | Priority of Principal Beneficiary | 2.2 |\n| 11 | Power to accumulate income | 2.4 |\n| 12 | Contributions | 3.1 |\n| 13 | Non‑acceptable contributions | 3.2 |\n| 14 | Restrictions on use of trust funds | 3.3 |\n| 15 | Prohibition on borrowing | 3.4 |\n| 16 | Further prohibitions with regard to related parties | 3.5 |\n| 17 | Prohibition on lending to Principal Beneficiary | 3.6 |\n| 18 | Donor register | 3.7 |\n| 19 | Qualifications of the trustee | 5.1 |\n| 20 | Extent of trustee responsibility | 5.5 |\n| 21 | Powers of trustee | 6.1 |\n| 22 | Standard of care | 6.2 |\n| 23 | Investment strategy | 6.3 |\n| 24 | Requirement to keep accounts | 8.1 |\n| 25 | Financial statements and reporting | 8.2 |\n| 26 | Audit requirements | 8.3 |\n| 27 | Amending the trust | 9.2 |\n| 28 | Definitions | 9.3 |\n| 29 | Interpretation | 9.4 |\n| 30 | Applicable law | 9.5 |\n| 31 | Execution | E.1 |\n\n\n(2)   For paragraph 1209P(2)(c) of the Act, a provision dealing with a matter mentioned in column 2 of an item of the table in subsection (1) must be in the form of the clause of the model trust deed mentioned in column 3 of that item.\n\n7  Provisions which cannot be included in the trust deed\n\n  For paragraph 1209P(2)(d) of the Act, the following provisions cannot be included in the trust deed:\n\n(a)    a provision that is inconsistent with a clause of the model trust deed mentioned in the table in subsection 6(1);\n\n(b)    a provision that has the effect of overriding a clause of the model trust deed    mentioned in that table.\n\nPart 3–Reporting requirements\n\n8  Qualifications of persons preparing financial statements\n\n  For paragraph 1209S(2)(a) of the Act, financial statements about the trust must be prepared by a person who:\n\n(a)    is either\n\n(i)            a member of CPA Australia, Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand or the Institute of Public Accountants; or\n\n(ii)            an employee of a trustee corporation who is engaged by the trustee corporation as an accountant or financial planner; and\n\n(b)    is not an immediate family member of:\n\n(i)            the principal beneficiary of the trust; or\n\n(ii)            a residual beneficiary of the trust; or\n\n(iii)            a trustee of the trust.\n\n9  Information that must be included in financial statements\n\n(1)      For subsection 1209S(3) of the Act, the financial statements about the trust must include:\n\n(a)    a profit and loss statement for the relevant financial year; and\n\n(b)   a balance sheet with applicable notes for the relevant financial year; and\n\n(c)    notes that disclose:\n\n(i)            the basis on which the financial statements were prepared, including whether they comply with the requirements of the Act and the trust deed; and\n\n(ii)            the material accounting policies applied in the financial statements and the nature and extent of any changes in those accounting policies, including the reasons why applying the new accounting policy provides more relevant and reliable information; and\n\n(d)    if necessary, a depreciation schedule for each class of trust assets for the relevant financial year.\n\n(2)      Financial statements given in accordance with section 1209S of the Act and this Part must give a true and correct view in all material particulars of the trust’s financial position and performance as at 30 June of the relevant financial year.\n\n(3)      The financial statements about the trust must include a statement to the effect that, for the relevant financial year:\n\n(a)    all amounts paid out of the trust (other than amounts paid for reasonable administration expenses and taxation) were paid:\n\n(i)            to meet reasonable care and accommodation needs of the principal beneficiary; or\n\n(ii)            for other purposes, ancillary to meeting the reasonable care and accommodation needs of the principal beneficiary, that are necessary or desirable to facilitate the meeting of those needs; or\n\n(iii)            for other purposes that are primarily for the benefit of the principal beneficiary; and\n\n(b)   no amount was paid out of the trust for:\n\n(i)            purposes other than those mentioned in subparagraph (a)(i),(ii) or (iii); or\n\n(ii)            services provided to the principal beneficiary by an immediate family member of the principal beneficiary.\n\n10  Income tax returns\n\n(1)      Subject to subsection (2), the financial statements about the trust must be accompanied by a certified copy of the trust’s income tax return, completed and lodged in accordance with the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 for the relevant financial year.\n\n(2)      If section 95AB of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 applies to the trust’s income, a certified copy of the trust’s income tax return is not required.\n\n11  Statutory Declaration\n\n  The financial statements about the trust must be accompanied by a statutory declaration made by all trustees of the trust to the effect that all information given in accordance with section 1209S of the Act and this Part is true and correct in all material particulars.\n\nPart 4–Auditing requirements\n\n12  Audit period\n\n  For paragraph 1209T(2)(b) of the Act, the audit must relate to the period specified by the person requesting the audit under subsection 1209T(3) of the Act, being a period of 1 to 5 financial years in the period of 5 financial years ending on the 30 June last preceding the request.\n\n13  Qualifications of persons preparing audit \n\n  For paragraph 1209T(5)(a) of the Act, the audit must be prepared by a person who:\n\n(a)    is a member of:\n\n(i)            CPA Australia; or\n\n(ii)            the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia; or\n\n(iii)            the National Institute of Accountants; and\n\n(b)    is not the person who prepared, or is preparing, any of the financial statements about the trust for the relevant financial year; and\n\n(c)    is not an immediate family member of:\n\n(i)            the principal beneficiary of the trust; or\n\n(ii)            a residuary beneficiary of the trust; or\n\n(iii)            a trustee of the trust.\n\n\n\n\n14  Information that must be included in an audit\n\n(1)      For subsection 1209T(6) of the Act, an audit must include the following information:\n\n(a)    a statement to the effect that the trust’s financial statements give a true and fair view of the trust’s financial position and performance as at 30 June of the relevant financial year;\n\n(b)    if the person requesting the audit under subsection 1209T(3) of the Act requests the audit for the purpose of determining whether the trust has met the requirements of all of the provisions of the trust deed — a statement indicating whether the trust has met the requirements of all of the provisions of the trust deed;\n\n(c)    if the person requesting the audit under subsection 1209T(3) of the Act requests the audit for the purpose of determining whether the trust has met the requirements of specified provisions of the trust deed — a statement indicating whether the trust has met the requirements of those specified provisions of the trust deed.\n\n(2)      Information mentioned in subsection (1) must comply with the relevant Australian Auditing Standards.\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":5,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This instrument implements and specifies procedural requirements under subsections 1209P(2), 1209S(4) and 1209T(7) of the Social Security Act (see s 3). It prescribes the required form of the trust deed (s 5), mandatory deed clauses (s 6), reporting content (Part 3) and auditing rules (Part 4). It does not itself expand or narrow who may qualify as a Special Disability Trust principal beneficiary; it formalises form, reporting and audit mechanics rather than changing substantive eligibility or entitlement rules."},"complexity_factors":["Mandatory use of a model trust deed and clause‑level conformity (Part 2: ss 5–7) narrows drafting flexibility and requires strict compliance.","Detailed financial reporting content and statements about permissible payments, including prohibition on payments for services from immediate family (Part 3: s 9(1)–(3)).","Prescribed qualifications for persons preparing financial statements and for auditors, including specified professional memberships and restrictions on immediate family involvement (Part 3: s 8; Part 4: s 13).","Requirement to lodge or accompany certified income tax returns unless s 95AB of the Income Tax Assessment Act applies (Part 3: s 10).","Statutory declaration by all trustees confirming material accuracy of reports (Part 3: s 11) increases trustee-level legal attestations.","Audit scope and period are defined but flexible (1–5 financial years within a 5‑year window) and audits must follow Australian Auditing Standards (Part 4: ss 12, 14(2)).","Cross-references to external standards and Acts (definitions: Australian Accounting Standards, Australian Auditing Standards; Authority: s 3 referencing ss 1209P/1209S/1209T of the Social Security Act) create multiple compliance regimes to reconcile.","Exceptions for trustee corporations’ employees to prepare statements (Part 3: s 8(a)(ii)) add an operational nuance to preparer qualifications.","Prohibition on inserting inconsistent or overriding clauses (Part 2: s 7) means legal review is likely required when amending or adopting deeds."],"plain_english_summary":"This Determination requires Special Disability Trusts to use the Department’s model trust deed and forbids clauses inconsistent with that model, and it sets minimum reporting and audit rules for trustees. \n\nIt affects trustees, principal beneficiaries and donors by imposing mandatory deed terms, trustee-prepared financial statements, certified tax returns (unless exempt), a trustees’ statutory declaration and audits by qualified accountants. Trustees bear the compliance costs; the Department (acting under ss 1209P, 1209S, 1209T of the Social Security Act) prescribes acceptable form and reporting standards."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"Unauthenticated. Configure AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY or use a provider module. Learn more: https://ai-sdk.dev/unauthenticated-ai-gateway","source":"analysis-cron"},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation remains tightly focused on its original purpose: establishing operational requirements for Special Disability Trusts under the Social Security Act 1991. It does not expand beyond the specific matters delegated by the parent Act (trust deed requirements, reporting, and auditing)."},"complexity_factors":["Moderate cross-referencing to the Social Security Act 1991 (specifically sections 1209P, 1209S, and 1209T) and the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936","31 specific mandatory clauses that must be included in trust deeds, mapped to a separate 'model trust deed' document not contained within the instrument itself","Multiple qualification requirements for preparers of financial statements and auditors with specific professional body memberships and independence restrictions","Conditional logic regarding when tax returns must accompany financial statements (section 95AB exception)","Conditional audit scope depending on the purpose of the audit request (full deed compliance vs specified provisions only)","Defined terms section with 6 definitions, including reference to external documents (Australian Accounting Standards, Australian Auditing Standards, Corporations Regulations 2001)"],"plain_english_summary":"This Determination tightens rules for Special Disability Trusts, requiring use of the Department’s model trust deed and stronger financial oversight so trusts don’t jeopardize a beneficiary’s disability pension. \n\nIt affects families and trustees who run these trusts, plus accountants and auditors who prepare and verify trust accounts. The measures boost transparency and guard funds for the care and accommodation of people with severe disability."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/social-security-special-disability-trust-trust-deed-reporting-and-audit-requirements-determination-2","history":"/api/acts/social-security-special-disability-trust-trust-deed-reporting-and-audit-requirements-determination-2/history","analysis":"/api/acts/social-security-special-disability-trust-trust-deed-reporting-and-audit-requirements-determination-2/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/social-security-special-disability-trust-trust-deed-reporting-and-audit-requirements-determination-2/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/social-security-special-disability-trust-trust-deed-reporting-and-audit-requirements-determination-2/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/social-security-special-disability-trust-trust-deed-reporting-and-audit-requirements-determination-2/documents"}}