Forfeiture orders: SIS Regulations amended

The SIS Regulations have recently been amended to ensure that the minimum benefit and payment standards do not frustrate the enforcement of forfeiture orders made under various Commonwealth and State acts.

Forfeiture orders (also called confiscation orders) are court orders forfeiting assets which are sourced in the proceeds of criminal activities.

It has been necessary to amend the SIS Regulations as the minimum benefit standards (of SIS Reg 5.08 which provides that account balances cannot be improperly reduced) and the payment standards (set out in SIS Reg 6.17 and 6.22 which provide that benefits can only be accessed in particular ways and that benefits can – subject to some exceptions – only be paid to the member or their legal personal representatives) to ensure that these standards do not prevent the operation of forfeiture orders on superannuation benefits.

Forfeiture orders are issued by courts under specific legislation and are issued only after a person has been convicted of a criminal offence. Additionally, the Court must have made a finding that the relevant super benefit is, or arises from, the proceeds of criminal activities.   However, fines imposed on a person for criminal activity, or compensation orders imposed to compensate the victims of criminal activity, cannot be satisfied against their super benefits.