Enrolment is the first legal step for every newly regulated practice. It is done through AUSTRAC Online, it is free, and for practices already providing designated services the formal deadline of 29 July 2026 has now passed, which means late enrolment should happen today, not next quarter.
Who must enrol
Every business that provides a designated service must enrol as a reporting entity. Enrolment is per legal entity: the company or partnership that provides the service enrols, not each staff member. If you are a sole practitioner, you enrol your business.
Before you start
- Your ABN and registered business details
- The designated services you provide (be accurate: this drives AUSTRAC's expectations of you)
- Details of your AML/CTF compliance officer: name, position and contact details
- An estimate of your business structure and service volume
The enrolment steps
New businesses that start providing designated services after commencement must enrol within 28 days of starting to provide them.
- Create an AUSTRAC Online account for the business
- Complete the enrolment form: entity details, designated services, business structure
- Nominate your AML/CTF compliance officer: this person must sit at management level and be fit for the role
- Submit and keep the confirmation: your enrolment details feed your program document
After enrolment
Enrolment is not compliance: it is step one. AUSTRAC expects your written AML/CTF program, risk assessment, customer due diligence workflow, reporting discipline, staff training and seven-year record-keeping to follow immediately. Keep your enrolment details current: changes to your compliance officer, services or structure must be updated.
Official sources
Confirm the current rules against these primary sources.
Questions
I missed the 29 July 2026 enrolment deadline. What now?
Enrol immediately. The deadline applied to practices already providing designated services at commencement, but the obligation does not expire with the date: a practice providing designated services without enrolling is in breach every day it continues. Late voluntary enrolment is far better than discovery by AUSTRAC.
Does each partner or staff member enrol separately?
No. The reporting entity is the business that provides the designated service. Staff operate under the business's program; the compliance officer is notified as part of the business enrolment.
Is there a fee to enrol with AUSTRAC?
No. AUSTRAC enrolment is free. Be cautious of third parties charging to 'register' you: enrolment is done directly through AUSTRAC Online.
General information for Australian professionals, not legal advice. It does not replace the AML/CTF Act, the Rules or AUSTRAC guidance. See our editorial standards.
Keep reading
- Your AML/CTF program3 min
What an AML/CTF program must contain for a small Australian practice: its ML/TF risk assessment, risk-based policies, governance, training, evaluation and evidence that the controls operate.
- CDD explained4 min
Customer due diligence under the amended AML/CTF Act: verifying individuals and entities, finding beneficial owners (UBOs), PEP and sanctions screening, risk rating, and when enhanced due diligence applies.
- SMRs & tipping off3 min
Suspicious matter reporting for newly regulated Australian practices: what forms a suspicion, SMR deadlines, what goes in the report, and the section 123 tipping-off offence every staff member must understand.