From 1 July 2026, accounting firms came under Australia's anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing laws for the first time. For most Numerix clients the practical effect is small: we now have to verify who you are before we do certain kinds of work.
Here is the short version, in plain English.
Current as at 3 August 2026
Parliament extended the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act to accountants, lawyers, conveyancers, real estate agents, and company and trust service providers. The reform is known as Tranche 2. AUSTRAC regulates it, and the obligations started on 1 July 2026.
Australia was one of the last developed economies where these professions sat outside the regime. That gap has now closed, bringing us into line with the international standards set by the Financial Action Task Force. Around 80,000 Australian businesses came into scope on the same day, so every accounting firm in Sydney is working through exactly the same process.
Only some services trigger the rules. AUSTRAC calls them designated services. The split below is the quickest way to work out whether this page affects you.
The rule of thumb: if we set up or administer a company or trust for you, expect to be asked for identification. If we only do your tax return, BAS, or bookkeeping, you probably will not hear from us about this at all.
Enough to confirm you are who you say you are, and to see who ultimately controls an entity. Nothing beyond that.
One current photo ID — driver licence or passport — plus your full name, date of birth, and residential address.
Company name and ACN, registered and trading addresses, and ID for the directors and anyone holding more than 25%.
The trust deed, plus ID for the trustees, the settlor, and the beneficiaries.
We also have to check names against Australian sanctions lists and identify politically exposed persons. That happens on our side and you will not notice it.
Please do not email your ID. Ask us for a secure upload link first. Plain email is not a good place for a passport scan, and it takes us about a minute to send you a safe alternative.
Once, when we take you on or when we first do covered work for you. After that we keep the file current, so expect a short check-in if your structure changes, you appoint a director, or your ID expires.
Existing clients are included — there is no grandfathering in the legislation. In practice, long-standing Numerix clients are usually the fastest to clear, because we already hold most of what is needed.
They go into your client file, encrypted, and only the people working on your affairs can see them. We are required to keep them for seven years after our work for you ends. We do not use them for anything else, and we do not sell or share them. Our privacy policy sets out the detail.
That is a legal condition, not a policy of ours. Get your documents to us early and it will not hold anything up. Leave it to the week of settlement and it will.
The law calls this tipping off and it carries penalties. So if we ask a question that feels oddly specific, that is the regime at work. It is not personal, and it is not a judgement about you or your business.
Meeting these obligations takes time, systems, and ongoing monitoring, so fees apply. We are not going to spring them on you. The amount will be set out in your next engagement letter, before any work starts, so you can see exactly what you are agreeing to.
Give us a call. It is a 15-minute conversation at most, and it is far better to ask now than to find out mid-transaction.
AUSTRAC publishes plain-English guidance for the sectors it regulates at austrac.gov.au.
Yes, if we do covered work for you. The rules apply to existing clients as well as new ones, and there is no grandfathering. The upside is that long-standing clients are usually quick to clear, because we already hold most of the information.
Almost certainly not. Tax returns, BAS, bookkeeping, payroll, and financial statements are not designated services. If you also have a company or trust that we set up or administer, then you are.
For tax-return-only clients, nothing changes. For anything involving a company, a trust, or client money, we cannot act without the checks — so we would have to stop that part of the work. We would rather talk it through than get to that point.
No. Every client of every accounting firm in the country is going through the same process. The obligation sits on us, not on you.
Call us on 1300 595 155 and we will send you a secure upload link. Please do not attach ID to a normal email.
One short call will settle it. If we only handle your tax and bookkeeping, you can stop reading here — and if you have a company or trust, we will tell you exactly what we need.
