The Government has released draft Tax Laws Amendment (2011 Measures No. 2) Bill 2011 that will allow superannuation funds to use tax file numbers (TFNs) to identify members’ accounts from 1 July 2011.

Although members can currently supply their TFN to their fund, it cannot be used as the primary identifier of their accounts or to assist with consolidation of accounts between and across funds. The proposal will be subject to strict privacy guidelines.

Its goal is to reduce the number of “lost” and duplicate accounts.