Key Highlights

  • Deregistration comes after final tax, audit and the final return.
  • ASIC's criteria include no business, no liabilities and assets under $1,000.
  • The corporate trustee should be treated as the last step.

Many SMSFs use a company as trustee. When the fund closes, the company often has no further purpose, and trustees naturally want to tidy it away. But deregistration has conditions of its own, and the order of events matters. Getting it wrong can leave the company exposed or can leave assets stranded.

This article combines evergreen guidance with a current ASIC page on voluntary deregistration that was modified on 2 October 2026, together with the ATO's wind-up and change-notification pages.

What the ATO says about the corporate trustee

The ATO's wind-up guidance says that if a corporate trustee was set up only for the SMSF, trustees should notify ASIC that it needs deregistering. That notification comes after the fund's own wind-up steps, including final tax, audit and lodgment of the final return. The ATO's change-notification page adds that if a corporate trustee becomes ineligible, for example through insolvency or ASIC deregistration, the fund must restructure, with six months to do so, or wind up and roll benefits into an APRA-regulated fund. Deregistering the company before the fund has been wound up is therefore a trap.

ASIC's conditions for voluntary deregistration

ASIC's page sets out when a company may apply for voluntary deregistration. All of the following must apply: all members agree; the company is not carrying on business; its assets are worth less than $1,000; it has no outstanding liabilities, such as unpaid wages; it is not involved in legal proceedings; and it has paid all fees and penalties owed to ASIC. If a solvent company does not meet these requirements, ASIC suggests winding it up as a solvent company instead, and an insolvent company should get professional accounting and legal advice.

Before applying, ASIC says, the company should dispose of all its assets, because otherwise they usually vest in ASIC or the Commonwealth after deregistration. Any licences held must also be cancelled, though that is unlikely for most trustee companies.

The application process

ASIC says the application is made online using Form 6010. If the company wants to avoid its next annual review fee, ASIC says to apply at least two weeks before it is due. If the application is approved, ASIC confirms by letter and publishes a notice. About two months after publication the company may be deregistered. ASIC's page notes that the application fee is non-refundable; however, the fee figure displays as a placeholder on the page as accessed, so trustees should check the current amount with ASIC.

A third party such as a creditor can ask ASIC to defer deregistration for an initial 30 days, and to extend or stop it they must have started or plan to start legal proceedings. A company that changes its mind can contact ASIC and explain why it should not be deregistered.

Putting the sequence together

A sensible order for a corporate-trustee fund is as follows. First, complete the SMSF wind-up: pay members, finish the audit, lodge the final return and receive the ATO's confirmation. Second, keep the company alive until those steps are done, since it holds the fund's bank account and records. Third, close the company's own affairs, including any company tax and ASIC fees. Fourth, apply for voluntary deregistration if the ASIC criteria are met.

ASIC's page does not specifically address trust property, so trustees should not assume that a company which was a trustee can be deregistered with trust assets still in its name. ASIC's separate guidance on trust property exists, and legal advice is sensible if any asset remains titled to the company.

Records still matter

The ATO's auditor guidance recommends keeping records, including wind-up records, for at least 10 years after lodging the final annual return. Deregistration does not change that; trustees should arrange who will keep the fund's records and how they can be retrieved. The ATO's wind-up page lists record custody as part of an exit plan.

A hypothetical example

Suppose a company was formed as sole trustee of a two-member fund. After the ATO confirms the wind-up, the directors check that the company has no other business, no liabilities and nominal assets, then lodge Form 6010. If a small asset remains in the company's name, they would deal with it first. This is hypothetical and not advice.

Takeaway

Treat the corporate trustee as the last domino. Finish the SMSF wind-up and obtain the ATO's confirmation, confirm the company meets ASIC's criteria, and then apply to deregister. Trustees unsure about company or trust-property issues should seek legal advice.