The ATO will act against those who exploit the early super release schemeCredit:Jim Rice
An ATO spokesperson confirmed the crackdown,saying a"number of reviews[are] underway with individuals to confirm whether they met the eligibility criteria".
No fines have been issued so far but the ATO is actively monitoring more than 5000 applicants from the first round of applications,asking them to review their eligibility before deciding to re-apply to access their super for a second time,the spokesperson says.
The tax office has also stopped payments to temporary residents who applied in the first tranche and they have been told they are not eligible to apply again for a second tranche payment.
If an applicant knowingly makes a false or misleading statement to access the scheme they could be fined. Withdrawals would also be treated as assessable income,on which tax would have to be paid.
The ATO spokesperson says penalties will be applied on a case-by-case basis,but the tax office does not intend to apply penalties in circumstances of genuine mistakes or misunderstandings.
To be eligible under the financial hardship scheme,super fund members must have been made redundant after December 31,experienced a 20 per cent drop in hours or in the turnover for sole traders. Those eligible for welfare assistance,such as JobSeeker,Youth Allowance or Parenting Payment,are also eligible.
News of the clampdown comes as a new survey reveals at least one-in-20 members of one large industry super fund who accessed their super early may have done so without fully meeting one of the key early release qualifying conditions.