The Original Solution - Perfect but only in "Special Circumstances"

The original solution to the problem of excess contributions was to confer a discretion on the Commissioner of Taxation which permitted the Commissioner to "disregard or reallocate" all or part of any concessional or non-concessional contribution. Unfortunately, the Commissioner, before the discretion could be exercised, had to find that there were "special circumstances".  The requirement for special circumstances proved to be a very high hurdle which most taxpayers failed.