{"id":"C2004A04634","name":"Superannuation (Financial Assistance Funding) Levy Act 1993","slug":"superannuation-financial-assistance-funding-levy-act-1993","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"79 of 1993","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":38531,"registerId":"commonwealth-C2004A04634-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-01","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Short title [see Note 1]","content":"##### 1 Short title \\[see Note 1\\]\n\n  This Act may be cited as the Superannuation (Financial Assistance Funding) Levy Act 1993.","sortOrder":0},{"sectionNumber":"2","sectionType":"section","heading":"Commencement [see Note 1]","content":"##### 2 Commencement \\[see Note 1\\]\n\n  This Act commences on the same day as Part 23 of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993.","sortOrder":1},{"sectionNumber":"3","sectionType":"section","heading":"Object of Act","content":"##### 3 Object of Act\n\n  The object of this Act is to impose levies on superannuation funds and approved deposit funds for the purpose of funding financial assistance under Part 23 of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 to certain funds that have suffered loss as a result of fraudulent conduct or theft.","sortOrder":2},{"sectionNumber":"4","sectionType":"section","heading":"Application of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act","content":"##### 4 Application of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act\n\n  Section 9, and Division 2 of Part 1, of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 apply in relation to this Act in a corresponding way to the way in which they apply in relation to that Act.","sortOrder":3},{"sectionNumber":"5","sectionType":"section","heading":"Interpretation","content":"##### 5 Interpretation\n\n  In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears:\n\n> fund means a regulated superannuation fund or an approved deposit fund, but does not include a self managed superannuation fund.\n\n> levy means levy imposed by regulations under section 6 of this Act.","sortOrder":4},{"sectionNumber":"6","sectionType":"section","heading":"Regulations may impose levies","content":"##### 6 Regulations may impose levies\n\n  (1) If the Minister makes a determination under Part 23 of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 to grant financial assistance to a fund, the regulations may impose a levy or levies on each fund other than:\n    (a) the first‑mentioned fund; or\n    (b) another fund in respect of which such a determination was made in the same financial year.\n  (1A) If the Minister makes more than one determination in a financial year under Part 23 of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 to grant financial assistance, the regulations may impose a levy on each fund that is not a fund in respect of which a determination was made in the same financial year.\n  (1B) Regulations made for the purposes of subsection (1A) imposing a levy in respect of more than one determination must specify all the funds in respect of which determinations are made and the proportion of the levy that each fund represents.\n  (2) Each levy must be identified in the regulations by a unique number.\n  (3) Regulations imposing a levy in respect of one or more determinations may specify that either or both of the following are payable:\n    (a) a maximum amount of levy;\n    (b) a minimum amount of levy.","sortOrder":5},{"sectionNumber":"7","sectionType":"section","heading":"Basis for prescribing amount of levy","content":"##### 7 Basis for prescribing amount of levy\n\n  (1) Subject to subsection (2):\n    (a) the rate or rates of a levy that are imposed because of one or more grants of financial assistance under Part 23 of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993; and\n    (b) the maximum amount of levy, and the minimum amount of levy, that is payable;\n  are to be fixed on the basis that the amount of revenue to be raised by the levy or by the levy and any previous levy imposed because of the same grant or grants of financial assistance is not to exceed the amount of levy needed to recoup the Commonwealth for the amount of that financial assistance.\n  (2) The rate or rates of a levy imposed in a financial year are not to be such that the total of the amounts payable in respect of the levy, or the total of those amounts and any amounts payable in respect of a previous levy imposed in the same financial year, would exceed 0.05% of the sum of the values at the end of the previous financial year of all the assets of the funds on which the levy or levies are imposed.\n  (3) In making regulations fixing the rate or rates of a levy, regard is to be had to subsections (1) and (2) but the validity of a regulation is not affected merely because it fixes a rate or rates of levy in excess of the maximum rate or rates required because of those subsections.","sortOrder":6},{"sectionNumber":"8","sectionType":"section","heading":"Amount of levy","content":"##### 8 Amount of levy\n\n  (1) The amount of a levy imposed on a fund is worked out using the formula:\n\n![](image.002.png)\n\n  where:\n\n> Applicable rate means the rate (expressed as a decimal fraction) that, under the regulations, is the rate of the levy applicable to the fund.\n\n> Value of assets means the value of the assets of the fund at the end of the last financial year of the fund before the day on which the regulation imposing the levy took effect.\n\n  (1A) However:\n    (a) if there is a maximum amount of levy that is payable and the amount worked out under subsection (1) is more than that maximum amount—the amount of levy imposed on the fund is the maximum amount; or\n    (b) if there is a minimum amount of levy that is payable and the amount worked out under subsection (1) is less than that minimum amount—the amount of levy imposed on the fund is the minimum amount.\n  (2) The applicable rate must not exceed 0.0005.","sortOrder":7},{"sectionNumber":"9","sectionType":"section","heading":"Levies may discriminate between classes of funds","content":"##### 9 Levies may discriminate between classes of funds\n\n  (1) Regulations imposing a levy:\n    (a) may provide different rates of the levy for different classes of funds; but\n    (b) must not otherwise discriminate between different funds.\n  (2) Regulations imposing a levy may define what constitutes a class of funds for the purposes of the levy but must not define a class in such a way that the levy would discriminate between States or parts of States.","sortOrder":8},{"sectionNumber":"10","sectionType":"section","heading":"Regulations","content":"##### 10 Regulations\n\n  The Governor‑General may make regulations prescribing matters:\n    (a) required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed; or\n    (b) necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act.","sortOrder":9}],"analysis":{"summary":{"complexity_score":5,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The Act closely matches its stated object. It is narrowly focused on imposing levies to fund financial assistance to super funds that suffer fraud or theft losses, with clear caps and cost-recovery limits. There is no evidence of scope creep — the mechanism, exclusions, and safeguards all align with the original intent of creating an industry-funded compensation backstop."},"complexity_factors":["Mathematical formula for calculating individual levy amounts based on asset values requires numeracy to understand","Interaction with a separate piece of legislation (Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993, Part 23) means you cannot fully understand this Act in isolation","Multiple subsections dealing with edge cases (e.g., multiple determinations in one financial year) add layering","Distinction between different fund types (regulated super funds, approved deposit funds, SMSFs) requires background knowledge","Cap calculations involve percentages of aggregate industry asset values, which are abstract and difficult for laypeople to intuitively grasp","Regulatory delegation — key operative details (levy rates, amounts) are left to regulations rather than the Act itself, meaning the Act alone does not tell you the full picture","Provisions about levy validity even when rates exceed maximums (s7(3)) create a potential tension that requires careful reading"],"plain_english_summary":"## Superannuation (Financial Assistance Funding) Levy Act 1993\n\n### What does this law do?\n\nThis Act creates a mechanism to **make superannuation funds collectively pay for losses suffered by other super funds** that have been victims of **fraud or theft**.\n\nHere's how it works in plain terms:\n\n1. **When a super fund is robbed or defrauded**, the government (under a separate law) can step in and grant that fund financial assistance to make affected members whole.\n2. **To recoup that money**, the government can impose a special levy (a charge) on *all other* regulated super funds and approved deposit funds (savings accounts held with super funds).\n3. The levy is essentially **industry self-funding** — the broader super industry foots the bill when one of its members is victimised.\n\n### Who does it affect?\n\n- **Superannuation fund trustees and operators** — they are the ones who actually pay the levy.\n- **Super fund members** — indirectly, since levy costs may affect fund returns or administration.\n- **Importantly, self-managed super funds (SMSFs) are excluded** — only large, regulated funds are subject to the levy.\n\n### Key rules and limits\n\n- The levy is calculated as a **percentage of each fund's total assets** — bigger funds pay more.\n- There is a **hard cap**: the total levy in any one year cannot exceed **0.05%** of the combined assets of all affected funds. This protects the industry from being overcharged.\n- The levy can never raise **more money than the government actually paid out** in assistance — it is purely cost-recovery, not profit-making.\n- A fund that was itself the victim receiving assistance **does not have to pay** the levy.\n- Minimum and maximum levy amounts can be set, providing further protection for very small or very large funds.\n- Levies can apply differently to **different classes of funds** (e.g., by fund size or type), but must treat all funds within a class equally and **cannot discriminate based on which State a fund is in**.\n\n### Why does it matter?\n\nThis law ensures that **if fraud or theft devastates a super fund**, affected members can be compensated without the taxpayer permanently bearing the cost. The superannuation industry collectively absorbs the loss. It acts like a compulsory industry insurance scheme, activated only when the government decides to grant assistance."},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[{"type":"other","section":"6(1)(b)","severity":"medium","reasoning":"The exemption for co-determined funds in the same financial year creates a perverse inverse relationship: the more funds suffer loss from fraud or theft in a given year, the fewer funds are available to be levied, potentially undermining the very recoupment objective stated in section 3. At the extreme, if all funds suffered loss in one year, no levy could be imposed at all.","confidence":0.78,"description":"Funds that received financial assistance in the same financial year as another assisted fund are exempt from the levy, meaning if many funds suffer fraud simultaneously, the levy base shrinks precisely when the funding need is greatest."},{"type":"self_contradicting","section":"7(3)","severity":"high","reasoning":"Section 7(1) and (2) establish binding rate caps — the levy must not exceed what is needed to recoup the Commonwealth, and must not exceed 0.05% of assets. Section 7(3) then states that validity is not affected merely because rates exceed those maxima. This renders the caps aspirational guidance rather than enforceable limits at the regulation-making stage, directly contradicting their mandatory language ('are not to be' / 'is not to exceed'). The provision simultaneously mandates a cap and immunises its breach.","confidence":0.91,"description":"Regulations may lawfully fix levy rates exceeding the statutory maximum, and such regulations are explicitly stated to be valid despite breaching the rate ceiling prescribed by subsections (1) and (2)."},{"type":"self_contradicting","section":"8(2)","severity":"medium","reasoning":"Section 7(3) saves regulations that fix excessive rates from invalidity, implying such regulations can operate. However, section 8(2) imposes an absolute ceiling of 0.0005 on the 'applicable rate' used in the levy formula. If an excessive rate is prescribed but is then capped at 0.0005 by s8(2) in application, the saving provision in 7(3) is rendered practically meaningless — the regulation survives but cannot operate beyond the s8(2) ceiling anyway. The interplay produces a logical redundancy that obscures whether excess-rate regulations have any operative effect.","confidence":0.72,"description":"Section 8(2) caps the applicable rate at 0.0005 (i.e. 0.05%) at the individual fund level, which is consistent with section 7(2), but section 7(3) allows regulations fixing rates above the maximum to remain valid, creating a hard cap in section 8 that cannot be overridden by the same regulation whose invalidity section 7(3) purports to prevent."},{"type":"other","section":"6(1A) and 6(1B)","severity":"low","reasoning":"The levy is imposed on funds other than those that received assistance. Requiring regulations to specify the proportions attributable to the assisted funds serves a transparency purpose, but those funds pay nothing. The proportion each assisted fund 'represents' of the levy has no operative legal consequence for any party since exempt funds owe no levy. The provision creates an administrative obligation with no clear legal effect on the levy computation for the funds actually paying.","confidence":0.61,"description":"Subsection (1B) requires that regulations made under (1A) imposing a levy in respect of more than one determination must specify all funds in respect of which determinations are made and the proportion each represents, but this information is about the assisted (exempt) funds — not the funds being levied — creating a potentially purposeless disclosure requirement."},{"type":"circular_definition","section":"5 (definition of 'levy') read with 6","severity":"low","reasoning":"The definition adds no independent meaning. 'Levy means levy imposed by regulations under section 6' — removing the definition and substituting 'levy' with its definition yields 'levy imposed by regulations under section 6 imposed by regulations under section 6'. The Act relies entirely on the ordinary meaning of levy and the regulatory instrument for substantive content, making the definition tautological.","confidence":0.82,"description":"The definition of 'levy' circularly defines it as 'levy imposed by regulations under section 6', which provides no substantive content and requires reference back to section 6, which itself only says regulations 'may' impose a levy without defining what a levy is."}],"contradictions":[{"severity":"high","section_a":"7(1)","section_b":"7(3)","confidence":0.93,"description":"Section 7(1) mandates that levy rates must be fixed so that revenue raised does not exceed the amount needed to recoup the Commonwealth. Section 7(3) expressly provides that a regulation is not invalid merely because it fixes rates in excess of that maximum."},{"severity":"high","section_a":"7(2)","section_b":"7(3)","confidence":0.91,"description":"Section 7(2) states that levy rates 'are not to be' such that total amounts payable would exceed 0.05% of total fund assets — framed as a prohibition. Section 7(3) saves regulations from invalidity even if they breach this prohibition, directly contradicting the mandatory character of the prohibition."},{"severity":"medium","section_a":"6(1)","section_b":"6(1A)","confidence":0.67,"description":"Section 6(1) contemplates that where multiple determinations exist in the same financial year, a levy 'or levies' (plural) may be imposed under subsection (1) alone. Section 6(1A) separately provides for the case of multiple determinations in a financial year, suggesting (1A) is the exclusive mechanism for that scenario. However, the drafting does not clearly exclude (1) from also operating in a multiple-determination year, creating ambiguity about whether one or both subsections authorise levies in that scenario, potentially permitting double levy imposition."},{"severity":"low","section_a":"9(1)(b)","section_b":"9(2)","confidence":0.58,"description":"Section 9(1)(b) prohibits regulations from otherwise discriminating between different funds (beyond class-based rate differences). Section 9(2) permits regulations to define classes of funds but prohibits class definitions that discriminate between States or parts of States. If a class is defined by geography short of State-level discrimination (e.g. by postcode or city), this would appear permissible under 9(2) but could amount to discrimination between individual funds contrary to 9(1)(b), creating an unresolved tension between the two subsections."}]},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The Act remains tightly focused on its original purpose of funding financial assistance for fraud/theft victims through industry levies. It has not expanded beyond this specific safety-net function."},"complexity_factors":["Heavy reliance on external legislation: The Act is essentially a shell that delegates all substantive operation to regulations and cross-references Part 23 of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 for the financial assistance mechanism.","Mathematical formula with conditional caps: Section 8 contains a formula for calculating levies, plus nested conditions for minimum/maximum amounts, plus an absolute rate cap (0.0005).","Multiple levy scenarios: Sections 6(1), 6(1A), and 6(1B) create different regulatory pathways depending on whether there is one determination or multiple determinations in a financial year.","Dual constraints on levy rates: Section 7 imposes both a 'recoupment' basis (revenue not to exceed assistance granted) and a percentage-of-assets ceiling (0.05% of total industry assets), with a validity savings clause.","Anti-discrimination provisions with exceptions: Section 9 permits discrimination between classes of funds but prohibits geographic discrimination, requiring careful regulatory drafting."],"plain_english_summary":"**What this law does:**\n\nThis law creates a mechanism to help superannuation funds that have been ripped off. If a super fund loses money due to fraud or theft, the government can provide financial assistance to that fund. To pay for this help, the law allows the government to charge a special levy (a type of tax or fee) on *other* super funds.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n\n*   **Superannuation funds and approved deposit funds** (pooled retirement savings vehicles) — these are the ones that pay the levy.\n*   **Self-managed super funds** — these are explicitly excluded and don't have to pay.\n*   **Funds that suffered fraud/theft** — these receive the financial assistance and are exempt from paying the levy that funds their own bailout.\n\n**How it works:**\n\n*   When the Minister decides to grant financial assistance to a victim fund under Part 23 of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993, regulations can impose a levy on all other eligible funds.\n*   The levy is calculated as a percentage of each fund's assets (capped at 0.05% of total industry assets per financial year, and individual rates cannot exceed 0.0005 or 0.05%).\n*   The levy can have minimum and maximum amounts per fund.\n*   Different rates can apply to different classes of funds (for example, large funds vs small funds), but the classification can't discriminate between States.\n\n**Why it matters:**\n\nThis creates a mutual assistance scheme within the superannuation industry. Instead of leaving individual funds to collapse when hit by fraud, the industry collectively chips in to stabilise the affected fund. It spreads the risk across the entire sector, protecting ordinary people's retirement savings from being wiped out by criminal activity affecting their specific fund."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"A positive credit balance is required for all requests, including BYOK, so fallback providers remain available. Add credits at https://vercel.com/d?to=%2F%5Bteam%5D%2F%7E%2Fai%3Fmodal%3Dtop-up to continue.","source":"analysis-cron"}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/superannuation-financial-assistance-funding-levy-act-1993","history":"/api/acts/superannuation-financial-assistance-funding-levy-act-1993/history","analysis":"/api/acts/superannuation-financial-assistance-funding-levy-act-1993/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/superannuation-financial-assistance-funding-levy-act-1993/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/superannuation-financial-assistance-funding-levy-act-1993/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/superannuation-financial-assistance-funding-levy-act-1993/documents"}}