The trustee of a superannuation fund may maintain reserves of the entity subject to the governing rules (i.e. the trust deed) of the SMSF. Refer Section 115 of Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993.

The most common method of getting money into a SMSF reserve is to allocate part of the fund's earnings.  For example if a member's balance generated 15% in earnings, 10% could be allocated to the members account balance and 5% to the reserve.

Contributionscan also be allocated to a reserve within the SMSF. Contributions must be allocated to a members account within 28 days of the end of the month, or if this this is not reasonably practicable, within a reasonable period. Refer Regulation 7.8 (2) of Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Regulation 1994.