Ascendancy Group Pty Ltd | ABN 12 622 382 781 · 120 Siganto Dr, Helensvale QLD 4212 · P: 1300 783 823 · E: hello@smsf.group
Important
1. What these terms are about
These Terms of Service ("Terms") set out the rules that apply when you interact with Ascendancy Group Pty Ltd ("the Firm", "we", "our" or "us"), trading as Strategic Super. We are a professional services firm based in Queensland, Australia.
These Terms apply from the moment you first make contact with us. This includes when you send us an enquiry, are referred to us by a third party, or begin discussions about how we might help you. They continue to apply if you decide to engage us for our services.
2. Who these terms apply to
These Terms apply to all persons and entities who interact with the Firm. This includes individuals (also referred to as "natural persons"), companies, trusts, partnerships, and any other type of entity. If you are acting as a representative of an entity, these Terms apply to you personally as well as to the entity you represent.
Throughout these Terms, we use the word "person" to refer to anyone who interacts with the Firm, whether or not they have formally engaged our services. We use the word "client" to refer to a person who has entered into a formal engagement or contract with the Firm for the provision of services.
3. Before you become a client, enquiries and referrals
We understand that in many cases, a person will need to share personal and sometimes sensitive information with us before they have decided whether to engage our services. This can happen during an initial phone call, a video conference, an intake meeting, or through email correspondence.
If you have been referred to us by a third party, such as a solicitor, mortgage broker, financial adviser or other professional, that referral partner may have already shared some information about you with us, with your knowledge.
These Terms apply to you from the point of first contact, even if you have not yet engaged us as a client. This is because we need a clear set of rules in place to govern how we handle your information from the very beginning of our interaction with you.
If you are providing information to us during an enquiry or preliminary discussion, please be aware that we will handle that information in accordance with our Privacy Policy and this document. If, after your initial discussions, you decide not to engage the Firm, we will handle the information you have provided in line with section 12 of these Terms ("What happens to your information if we do not work together").
4. Our policies are part of these terms
The following documents form part of these Terms and should be read together with them:
- Privacy Policy: Our Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, and share your personal information. It is available on our website and upon request. See the Privacy Policy.
- Artificial Intelligence Policy: Our AI Policy explains how the Firm uses artificial intelligence in its operations and in the provision of services. It is available on our website and upon request. See the AI Policy.
By agreeing to these Terms, you also acknowledge that you have had the opportunity to read and understand our Privacy Policy and AI Policy.
5. What we do and how we work
Strategic Super provides administration, accounting, compliance and tax-agent services for self-managed superannuation funds (SMSFs). The specific services we provide to each client depend on the fund's circumstances and are set out in an engagement letter.
Our services may include establishment administration, record keeping, accounts, financial statements, audit coordination, annual return preparation, electronic lodgement, tax-agent work in respect of the fund, and related administration support.
Strategic Super does not provide financial product advice, does not recommend financial products, and does not advise on whether an SMSF suits a person's circumstances. Those questions belong with a licensed financial adviser.
6. Your responsibilities
When you interact with the Firm, whether as a person making an enquiry or as a client, we ask that you:
- Provide accurate and complete information. The quality of the administration and tax-agent work we provide depends on the accuracy and completeness of the information you give us. If your information is incomplete or inaccurate, this may affect the work we can complete.
- Tell us if your circumstances change. If your financial, business or personal circumstances change in a way that could affect the provision of service we provide you, please let us know as soon as reasonably possible.
- Respond to our requests in a timely manner. From time to time, we may need additional information or documents from you. Timely responses help us deliver our services efficiently.
- Read the documents we provide to you. We take care to prepare documents that are clear and understandable. Please take the time to read them, and ask us if there is anything you do not understand.
7. Our responsibilities
When we provide services to you, we will:
- Act with competence and care. Our professionals are qualified and authorised to provide the services they offer. They bring professional skill and judgement to all casework.
- Keep you informed. We will communicate with you about the progress of our work and provide you with the documents and information you are entitled to receive.
- Work within our role. We provide the administration, accounting, compliance and tax-agent services described in your engagement. We do not provide financial product advice.
- Comply with the law. We operate in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), tax-agent obligations, professional standards, and all other laws that apply to our business.
8. Confidentiality
We treat all information you provide to us as confidential. We will not share your personal or financial information with anyone outside the Firm unless:
- You have given us your consent to share it with a specific person or organisation, such as your licensed adviser, accountant, solicitor, auditor, bank, actuary or another authorised professional.
- We are required by law to disclose it, for example, to a regulator such as the Australian Securities and Investments Commission ("ASIC"), the Australian Taxation Office ("ATO"), or a court or tribunal.
- It is necessary to provide our services, for example, where we need to provide information to an independent auditor, a bank, the ATO, a software provider, or another party you have authorised us to work with.
Our confidentiality obligations continue even after our engagement with you has ended. However, they do not extend to information that is already publicly available or that becomes publicly available through no fault of ours.
9. How we use the information you provide
We use the information you provide to us for the purpose of delivering the services you have requested, or for a purpose that is directly related to those services. This includes scoping the fund's administration needs, preparing records and statutory documents, supporting audit and lodgement work, and, when authorised, interacting with third parties on your behalf.
We also use your information as we may be required by to meet our regulatory and compliance obligations.
For more detail about how we collect, use, and handle your information, please refer to our Privacy Policy, which forms part of these Terms.
For information about how we may use artificial intelligence in connection with the information you provide, please refer to our AI Policy, which also forms part of these Terms.
10. Fees and payment
Our fees will be explained to you before we begin providing services. The specific fee arrangements for your engagement will be set out in a separate engagement letter.
Annual administration fees are usually agreed upfront before work begins. Some work may be quoted separately where the fund's circumstances require it, and some third-party costs may pass through at cost. We will tell you the basis on which we charge before you incur any cost.
Unless other payment terms are agreed in writing, our invoices are payable within the timeframe set out in our engagement letter. If an invoice remains unpaid beyond the due date, we reserve the right to suspend or cease providing services until the outstanding amount is resolved.
11. Limitation of liability
To the extent permitted by law, the Firm's liability for any loss or damage arising from or in connection with our services is limited to the fees paid by you for those services, or to the amount recoverable under our professional indemnity insurance policy, whichever is greater.
We will not be liable for any loss that arises from information you have provided to us that was incomplete, inaccurate, or misleading, or from your failure to provide instructions, records, approvals or signatures within a reasonable timeframe.
Nothing in these Terms excludes, restricts, or modifies any rights you may have under the Australian Consumer Law (Schedule 2 of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth)) or any other rights that cannot be excluded by law.
12. What happens to your information if we do not work together
If you make an enquiry or provide information to us but decide not to engage the Firm, we will retain the information you have provided for a reasonable period in line with our record-keeping obligations and our Privacy Policy.
We may need to keep certain records for legal, tax-agent, privacy, insurance or compliance purposes. Retention periods vary depending on the kind of record and the obligation that applies.
If you simply made a general enquiry, we will retain any personal information collected only for as long as is reasonably necessary, after which it will be securely destroyed or de-identified.
You may request the return of any original documents you provided to us. We will return them within a reasonable timeframe, at our discretion and subject to any legal obligations that require us to retain copies.
13. Your right to retrieve your information
Under the Privacy Act, you have the right to request access to the personal information we hold about you. You also have the right to request that we correct information that is inaccurate, out of date, or incomplete.
If you are a client and your engagement with us comes to an end, you may request copies of documents that were prepared for you during the course of our engagement. We will provide these to you within a reasonable timeframe, subject to the payment of any outstanding fees.
We retain ownership of any working papers, internal analysis, and proprietary materials created by the Firm during the course of our engagement. However, you own the original documents you provided to us, and you are entitled to have them returned.
These rights are subject to any applicable exceptions or limitations set out in the Privacy Act or other relevant laws.
14. Ending our relationship
Either you or the Firm may end our engagement at any time by giving written notice to the other party. Where you are a client, any fees for services already provided up to the date of termination will remain payable.
If we end the engagement, we will take reasonable steps to ensure that you are not disadvantaged and that any urgent matters are dealt with before the engagement concludes.
Our obligations in respect of confidentiality, privacy, and record-keeping continue after the end of the engagement, in accordance with these Terms, our Privacy Policy, and relevant laws.
15. Complaints and disputes
If you are unhappy with any aspect of our services, we encourage you to contact us directly in the first instance. We take complaints seriously and will do our best to resolve your concerns promptly and fairly.
The Complaints Officer
PO Box 584
Upper Coomera QLD 4209
E: complaints@smsf.group
Phone: 1300 783 823
We will acknowledge receipt of a complaint within 48 hours (or two business days). However, where this is not possible, acknowledgment will be made as soon as practicable.
Your complaint will be assessed, and you will be advised of the outcome, either by telephone or in writing.
If we are unable to resolve your complaint to your satisfaction, the external body available to you depends on what the complaint is about. Complaints about tax-agent services may be taken to the Tax Practitioners Board. Privacy concerns may be raised with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner. Some financial services disputes may fall within the Australian Financial Complaints Authority's role where AFCA has jurisdiction.
16. Changes to these terms
We may update these Terms from time to time. Changes may be made without prior notice.
However, where changes are material, we will take reasonable steps to inform existing clients and persons we are engaged with, through common communication channels such as email.
The most current version of these Terms will always be available on our website or upon request.
17. Governing law
These Terms are governed by the laws of Queensland, Australia. Any disputes arising under or in connection with these Terms will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Queensland.
18. How to contact us
If you have any questions about these Terms, or about any other aspect of how we operate, please contact us:
Ascendancy Group Pty Ltd
120 Siganto Dr
Helensvale QLD 4212
E: hello@smsf.group
Phone: 1300 783 823