Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements

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OCCUPATIONAL SUPERANNUATION STANDARDS REGULATIONS (AMENDMENT) 1991 NO. 58

STATUTORY RULES 1991 No. 58

ISSUED BY AUTHORITY OF THE TREASURER

OCCUPATIONAL SUPERANNUATION STANDARDS ACT 1987

OCCUPATIONAL SUPERANNUATION STANDARDS REGULATIONS (AMENDMENT)

LEGISLATIVE BASIS FOR THE REGULATIONS

Section 22 of the Occupational Superannuation Standards Act 1987 (the Act) provides in part that the Governor-General may make regulations for the purposes of the Act, and, in particular, prescribing methods for determining the reasonable benefit limits and for determining whether a part of an eligible termination payment or of the value of a superannuation pension or an annuity is within or exceeds those limits.

BACKGROUND

Part IIIA of the Act, which commenced on 1 July 1990, establishes arrangements for reasonable benefit limits under the Act. In that Part 'reasonable benefit limits' is defined, in relation to an eligible termination payment. a superannuation pension or annuity. as the limits calculated in accordance with the regulations.

Coinciding with the commencement of Part IIIA of the Act, the Occupational Superannuation Standards Regulations were amended to prescribe the method by which the Insurance and Superannuation Commissioner determines a person's reasonable benefit limit and whether a benefit received by a person was within or in excess of that limit.

Among the regulations inserted was regulation 4K, which sets out the time periods by which the Commissioner must make his determination and review of his determination in each case (the Commissioner reviews his determination when supplied with information not available at the time of the original determination, or as the result of an application for review by the person to whom the determination was issued).

As currently drafted, regulation 4K requires the first of the Commissioner's determinations to be issued by 1 April 1991, and on an ongoing basis after that date. This result is achieved by drawing a distinction between benefits which were notified to the insurance and Superannuation Commission before 1 February 1991 and notifications on or after that date. The former must have determinations issued within the period worked out by adding 9 months to the date on which the Commissioner received the notification, and then subtracting the period between 1 July 1990 and the date the notification was received. Effectively, this means that determinations for all notifications received before 1 February 1991 must be issued by 1 April 1991. Determinations for notifications received after 1 February 1991 must be issued within 60 days of the day on which the notification as received by the Commissioner.

DETAILS OF THE REGULATIONS

The Regulations extend the time period for the first of the Commissioner's determinations from 1 April 1991 to 30 June 1991 by changing the reference to 1 February 1991 to 1 May 1991 and allowing 12 months, rather than 9 months, after the notification, reduced in the existing manner.

DATE OF OPERATION

The Regulations are effective from the date of Gazettal.