After registration, the ATO will issue an ABN for the SMSF. At this stage, the fund’s details are also placed on the Australian Business Register http://abr.business.gov.au/ and on the Super Fund Lookup www.superfundlookup.gov.au.
If a member applies to rollover their superannuation benefits to their SMSF from another super fund, the other fund will use Super Fund Lookup to check the status of the SMSF, and subsequently whether the SMSF is eligible to receive the transfer.
When an SMSF is first registered, within several days it will show a status of ‘Registered’ on Super Fund Lookup. A ‘Registered’ SMSF is: eligible to receive transfers, rollovers, directed termination payments and contributions; is regulated by the ATO; has not been issued with a Notice of Compliance (or a Notice of Non-Compliance). Importantly, an SMSF with a ‘Registered’ status that meets SIS standards qualifies for concessional tax rates.
Following this, several days later, the Notice of Compliance will issue and change the status of an SMSF from ‘Registered’ to ‘Complying’.
Please note: The change in status from ‘Registered’ to ‘Complying’ previously occurred when the SMSF lodged its first annual return.