Reporting periodReporting period

Reporting period

Quarterly reporting periods are based on the year of income of the superannuation entity not a calendar year basis. Quarters are defined as four periods of three whole months each.

Important!

The financial information requested in these quarterly forms is to be reported as at the last day of the reporting period on a financial year to date basis of the superannuation entity, rather than for the individual quarter alone.

Lodgement requirements

Forms required on a quarterly basis are to be lodged within 25 business days after the end of the reporting quarter. The lodgement deadline is predominantly a requirement of the Australian Bureau of Statistics for the purposes of collating and preparing the national aggregates and statistics.

Four sets of quarterly returns are required each year.

Amendments

Where the superannuation entity makes a material adjustment to any data relating to quarter(s) for which a return has been lodged, amended quarterly returns for the quarter (and for any subsequent quarters affected by the adjustment) must be lodged with APRA within 25 business days of the adjustment being made.

Basis of preparation

In completing these forms, unless otherwise specifically stated in the instruction guide for each form:

Basis of accounting (Cash vs Accruals):

The forms should be prepared on a basis consistent with the accounting treatment (cash or accruals basis) adopted by the superannuation entity for annual financial reporting purposes. APRA would ordinarily expect that regulated superannuation entities are ‘reporting entities’, and will therefore apply an accruals basis, in accordance with the requirements of Australian Accounting Standards and the guidance in APRA Superannuation Circular No. V.A.2.

Important!

Once selected, the basis of accounting used must be consistent for all 4 quarterly returns and the corresponding annual return;

Direct vs Indirect investments:

Certain items on the forms distinguish between ‘directly held’ investments and those which are not directly held.

• Directly held investments are those made by the superannuation entity in its own name, as part of the internal investment management function. This includes investments held by a custodian where these are held in Trust for the entity and the superannuation entity retains the decision-making function regarding the making and redeeming of particular investments within the portfolio.
• Investments that are not directly held include underlying investments that are held with external investment managers (such as investments in PSTs or unit trusts), and investments held via individually managed mandates/portfolios where the decision-making function regarding the making and redeeming of particular investments within the portfolio may rest with the investment manager.