Fees and Costs Disclosed

Objective of this reporting standard

This Reporting Standard sets out requirements for the provision of information to APRA relating to the disclosed fees and costs of superannuation products, investment menus and investment options.

It includes Reporting Form SRF 706.0 Fees and Costs Disclosed and associated specific instructions.

Authority

1. This Reporting Standard is made under section 13 of the Financial Sector (Collection of Data) Act 2001.

Purpose

2. Information collected under this Reporting Standard is used by APRA for the purposes of prudential supervision and publication. It may also be used by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission.

Application

3. This Reporting Standard applies to each registrable superannuation entity (RSE) licensee (RSE licensee) in respect of each RSE, defined benefit RSE and eligible rollover fund (ERF) within its business operations[1].

Commencement

4. This Reporting Standard applies to reporting periods ending on and after 30 June 2023.

Reporting periods

5. Reporting periods under this Reporting Standard are each year ending 30 June.

Information required

6. RSE licensees must provide information required by this Reporting Standard in respect of:

(a) 30 June 2024; and

(b) each subsequent 30 June.

7. An RSE licensee to which this Reporting Standard applies must provide the information required by paragraph 6, within 28 calendar days after the end of the relevant reporting day.

8. An RSE licensee to which this Reporting Standard applies must provide the information required by paragraph 6 on a forward-looking basis.

Ad-hoc information required

9. Where an RSE licensee makes a change to information relating to fees and costs that the RSE licensee is required to disclose to members, resulting in a change to information reported under this Reporting Standard, on or after 1 July 2023, the RSE licensee must provide updated information required by this Reporting Standard as at the date of the change, within 28 calendar days after the end of the calendar quarter in which the change occurred for the periods ending 30 September, 31 December and 31 March.

Quarterly attestation required

10. An RSE licensee must provide APRA an attestation that the information it last provided APRA under this Reporting Standard was still accurate as at the end of every calendar quarter (i.e. the periods ending 30 September, 31 December, 31 March and 30 June each year) or that the RSE Licensee has, or will be, providing updated information to APRA in accordance with paragraph 9.

11. An RSE licensee to which this Reporting Standard applies must provide information required under paragraph 10, within 28 days after the end of each calendar quarter.

Notices

12. If, having regard to the particular circumstances of an RSE, defined benefit RSE or ERF, APRA considers it necessary or desirable to obtain information more or less frequently than as provided by paragraph 6, APRA may, by notice in writing, change the reporting day for the particular RSE, defined benefit RSE, PST or ERF.

13. Where APRA has changed the reporting day under paragraph 12, the RSE licensee must provide the relevant information within the time specified by the notice in writing.

14. APRA may grant, in writing, an RSE licensee an extension of a due date with respect to one or more RSEs, defined benefit RSEs, PSTs or ERFs within its business operations, in which case the new due date for the provision of the information will be the due date on the specified notice of extension.

Note: For the avoidance of doubt, if the due date falls on a day other than a usual business day, an RSE licensee is nonetheless required to submit the information required no later than the due date.

Form and method of submission

15. The information required by this Reporting Standard must be given to APRA in electronic format using an electronic method available on APRA’s website or by a method notified by APRA prior to submission.

Quality control

16. The information provided by an RSE licensee under this Reporting Standard must be the product of systems, procedures and internal controls that have been reviewed and tested by the RSE auditor of the RSE, defined benefit RSE or ERF to which the information relates[2]. This will require the RSE auditor to review and test the RSE licensee’s systems, procedures and internal controls designed to enable the RSE licensee to report reliable information to APRA. This review and testing must be done on:

(a) an annual basis or more frequently if necessary to enable the RSE auditor to form an opinion on the reliability and accuracy of information; and

(b) at least a limited assurance engagement consistent with professional standards and guidance notes issued by the Auditing and Assurance Standards Board as may be amended from time to time, to the extent that they are not inconsistent with the requirements of Prudential Standard SPS 310 Audit and Related Matters (SPS 310).

17. All information provided by an RSE licensee under this Reporting Standard must be subject to systems, processes and controls developed by the RSE licensee for the internal review and authorisation of that information. It is the responsibility of the Board and senior management of the RSE licensee to ensure that an appropriate set of policies, procedures and controls for the authorisation of information submitted to APRA is in place.

Authorisation

18. When an officer or agent of an RSE licensee provides the information required by this Reporting Standard using an electronic format, the officer or agent must digitally sign the relevant information using a digital certificate acceptable to APRA.

19. If the information required by this Reporting Standard is provided by an agent who submits the information on the RSE licensee’s behalf, the RSE licensee must:

(a) obtain from the agent a copy of the completed form with the information provided to APRA; and

(b) retain the completed copy.

20. An officer or agent of an RSE licensee who submits the information under this Reporting Standard for, or on behalf of, the RSE licensee must be authorised by either:

(a) the Chief Executive Officer of the RSE licensee; or

(b) the Chief Financial Officer of the RSE licensee.

Minor alterations to forms and instructions

21. APRA may make minor variations to:

(a) a form that is part of this Reporting Standard, and the instructions to such a form, to correct technical, programming or logical errors, inconsistencies or anomalies; or

(b) the instructions to a form, to clarify their application to the form,

without changing any substantive requirement in the form or instructions.

22. If APRA makes such a variation, it must notify each RSE licensee that is required to report under this Reporting Standard.

Transition

23. An RSE licensee to which this Reporting Standard applies must report under the old reporting standard in respect of a transitional reporting period. For these purposes:

old reporting standard means the reporting standard revoked in the determination making this Reporting Standard; and

transitional reporting period means a reporting period under the old reporting standard:

(a) that ended before 1 July 2023; and

(b) in relation to which the RSE licensee was required, under the old reporting standard, to report by a date on or after the date of revocation of the old reporting standard.

Note: For the avoidance of doubt, if an RSE licensee was required to report under an old reporting standard, and the reporting documents were due before the date of revocation of the old reporting standard, the RSE licensee is still required to provide any overdue reporting documents in accordance with the old reporting standard

Interpretation

24. In this Reporting Standard:

APRA means the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority established under the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority Act 1998.

Chief Executive Officer means the chief executive officer of the RSE licensee, by whatever name called, and whether or not he or she is a member of the Board of the RSE licensee[3].

Chief Financial Officer means the chief financial officer of the RSE licensee, by whatever name called.

defined benefit RSE has the meaning of a defined benefit fund in subsection 10(1) of the SIS Act.

disclosure means a disclosure made pursuant to Division 2 or Division 3 of Part 7.9 of the Corporations Act 2001.

due date means the relevant due date under paragraph 7, 9, 11, or if applicable, paragraph 14 of this Reporting Standard.

eligible rollover fund (ERF) has the meaning given in subsection 10(1) of the SIS Act.

investment menu has the meaning given in SRS 101.0.

investment option has the meaning given in SRS 101.0.

an investment pathway is provided by a superannuation product, or an investment menu, to an investment option, if it is possible for a member to invest in the investment option through that superannuation product or investment menu.

MySuper product has the meaning given in subsection 10(1) of the SIS Act.

reporting day means a day mentioned in paragraph 6 or, if applicable, paragraph 12 of this Reporting Standard.

RSE means a registrable superannuation entity as defined in subsection 10(1) of the SIS Act that is not a defined benefit RSE, pooled superannuation trust, ERF, small APRA fund or single member approved deposit fund[4].

RSE auditor means an auditor appointed by the RSE licensee to perform functions under this Reporting Standard.

RSE licensee has the meaning given in subsection 10(1) of the SIS Act.

SIS Act means Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993.

SRS 101.0 means Reporting Standard SRS 101.0 Definitions for Superannuation Data Collections.

superannuation product has the meaning given in SRS 101.0.

25. In this Reporting Standard, unless the contrary intention appears, a reference to an Act, Regulation, Prudential Standard, Reporting Standard, Australian Accounting Standard or Auditing Standard is a reference to the instrument as in force or existing from time to time.

26. Where this Reporting Standard provides for APRA to exercise a power or discretion, this power or discretion is to be exercised in writing.