Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Compliance

Australia’s anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing laws help detect, deter and disrupt money laundering, terrorism financing and other serious financial crime.

From 1 July 2026, law practices providing certain regulated legal services are required to comply with obligations under Australia’s anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing regime.

These obligations may require us to verify the identity of our clients, understand the nature and purpose of the legal services requested and, in certain matters, obtain information about the source of money or assets involved.

Emigrate Lawyers is committed to meeting its legal and professional obligations and protecting the integrity of the legal services we provide.

When do the AML/CTF laws apply?

The AML/CTF requirements do not necessarily apply to every legal service or every matter.

They apply when a law practice provides a service classified as a designated service under the applicable legislation. Depending on the nature of your matter, this may include certain services involving:

buying or selling real estate;
managing client money, accounts, securities or other assets;
establishing or managing companies, trusts or other legal arrangements;
buying or selling businesses;
carrying out certain transactions on behalf of a client; or
providing other professional services regulated under the AML/CTF legislation.

Whether the requirements apply will depend on the particular work we are asked to perform.

What does this mean for you?

Where the AML/CTF laws apply to your matter, we may be required to collect information about:

your identity;
the nature and purpose of your matter;
the legal services you require;
other people or entities involved in the matter;
who owns or controls a company, trust or other entity;
the source of money or assets involved in a transaction; and
any relevant money laundering, terrorism financing or proliferation financing risks.

This process is known as customer due diligence, or CDD.

For most clients, the process should be straightforward and may involve verifying your identity and answering a small number of questions.

More detailed information may be required where a matter involves companies, trusts, overseas parties, third-party funds, complex ownership arrangements or significant financial transactions.

A request for information does not mean that we have concerns about you or your matter. It means that we are taking the reasonable steps required to understand who we are acting for and, where relevant, the circumstances surrounding a transaction.

What information may we request?

The information we require will depend on the type of client, the services being provided and the level of risk associated with the matter.

We may ask you to provide:

Proof of identity

This may include:

a passport;
an Australian driver licence;
a proof-of-age card;
a Medicare card;
a birth certificate;
evidence of your residential address; or
other reliable identification documents.

Electronic identity verification may also involve facial biometric matching between your identity document and an image or video of your face.

Personal and contact information

We may request confirmation of your:

full legal name;
date of birth;
residential address;
telephone number;
email address;
occupation; and
country of citizenship or residence.

Company, trust or entity information

Where we are acting for, or dealing with, a company, trust, partnership, association or other entity, we may request:

company registration documents;
ASIC records;
trust deeds;
partnership agreements;
organisational documents;
details of directors and officeholders;
details of shareholders, trustees or beneficiaries; and
information identifying the individuals who ultimately own or control the entity.

Source of funds

We may ask where the money used in a transaction has come from.

Examples include:

personal savings;
employment income;
business income;
the sale of property or another asset;
a bank or private loan;
an inheritance;
a gift from a family member or third party;
investment proceeds; or
funds transferred from overseas.

Supporting documents may include bank statements, loan documents, contracts of sale, payslips, tax records, probate documents or evidence of a gift.

Source of wealth

In some circumstances, we may need to understand how your overall wealth or assets were accumulated.

This may include wealth obtained through:

employment;
business ownership;
investments;
property ownership;
inheritance;
family wealth; or
the sale of assets.

Politically exposed person status

We may ask whether you are a politically exposed person, commonly referred to as a PEP, or a close family member or known associate of a PEP.

A PEP may include a person who holds, or has previously held, a prominent public position in government, the judiciary, the military, a government-owned organisation or another significant public institution.

Being identified as a PEP does not imply wrongdoing. It may, however, require us to conduct additional due diligence.

Electronic identity verification

Emigrate Lawyers uses Dye & Durham to assist with certain online compliance checks, including:

verification of identity;
company and business searches;
beneficial ownership checks; and
politically exposed person screening.

Where an electronic check is required, we will arrange the verification and send you a secure link.

You will ordinarily be asked to follow the instructions provided through the secure portal, which may include capturing an image of your identification document and an image or video of your face.

We will review the verification results and may contact you if further information or supporting documents are required.

Depending on the matter, we may also request documents such as bank statements, company records, trust deeds, loan agreements or transaction documents.

We understand that requests for identity and financial information may feel personal or unfamiliar. We will only request information that is reasonably required for the relevant compliance purpose.

Will the verification process delay your matter?

We will take reasonable steps to make the process as efficient as possible.

You can help avoid delays by providing requested information promptly and ensuring that the information and documents supplied are complete, accurate and current.

Further checks may be required where:

information is provided late;
your circumstances change;
the parties or entities involved in the matter change;
funds are received from a different source;
new risks are identified; or
the information provided cannot be independently verified.

In some matters, we may be unable to commence or continue providing a designated service until the required customer due diligence has been completed.

Ongoing customer due diligence

Our obligations may continue after your initial identity verification has been completed.

Depending on the nature and duration of your matter, we may need to:

keep your information current;
request updated identification documents;
obtain additional information about a transaction;
confirm changes to company or trust ownership;
review the source of funds;
undertake further screening; or
ask questions about unusual or unexpected activity.

Please tell us promptly if any information previously provided to us changes.

How will your information be used?

Information collected for AML/CTF purposes may be used for:

identity verification;
customer due diligence;
risk assessment;
regulatory compliance;
fraud and financial crime prevention;
the provision of legal services;
record-keeping; and
other purposes permitted or required by law.

We will handle your personal information in accordance with our professional obligations, the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and other applicable laws.

We may be legally required to retain AML/CTF records for the period prescribed by law. Depending on the applicable requirement, records may need to be retained for up to seven years.

Further information about how we collect, store and use personal information is available in our Privacy Policy.

Reporting obligations

In certain circumstances, the AML/CTF laws may require a law practice to provide reports or information to the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre, known as AUSTRAC.

The law may also restrict us from informing a person that certain information has been reported to AUSTRAC or that a report is being considered.

Nothing on this page limits any obligation we may have under the AML/CTF legislation or any other applicable law.

Legal professional privilege

The AML/CTF regime contains provisions concerning legal professional privilege.

The application of legal professional privilege depends on the nature of the communication, document or information involved. Not every communication between a lawyer and client is necessarily protected by legal professional privilege.

We will manage legally privileged information in accordance with our professional obligations and applicable law.

Will there be a cost?

Electronic identity verification, company searches, beneficial ownership checks, PEP screening and other external compliance searches may involve third-party charges.

Where applicable, these charges may be treated as disbursements or external expenses associated with your matter, in the same manner as other third-party costs.

We will provide information about applicable charges where required under our costs disclosure arrangements.

What happens if you cannot provide the information?

Where we cannot obtain or verify information that we are legally required to collect, we may be unable to:

accept your instructions;
open your matter;
begin providing a designated service;
continue acting for you;
receive, hold or transfer money;
complete a transaction; or
perform particular legal work.

We may also be required to stop acting where continuing to act would cause us to breach our legal, professional or ethical obligations.

Please contact us as early as possible if you are having difficulty obtaining a requested document or completing an electronic verification check. We will consider whether another reliable verification method is available.

How you can assist us

To help us progress your matter efficiently, please:

respond promptly to requests for AML/CTF information;
provide clear, complete and current copies of requested documents;
ensure that the name on your identification documents matches the name used in your matter;
tell us early if a company, trust, partnership or overseas entity is involved;
disclose who ultimately owns or controls any relevant entity;
tell us if funds will be provided by another person;
tell us if funds will come from an overseas account;
advise us if funds arise from a loan, gift, inheritance, business sale or property sale;
notify us if your circumstances or transaction arrangements change; and
ask us for clarification if you do not understand a request.

We are here to assist

We appreciate your cooperation with these compliance requirements.

Our objective is to make the verification and due diligence process as straightforward as reasonably possible while meeting our legal obligations and helping protect Australia’s legal and financial systems from misuse.

Please contact Emigrate Lawyers if you have questions about our AML/CTF onboarding, identity verification or customer due diligence process.

You can also read the Law Institute of Victoria’s client guide:

Download the LIV AML/CTF Client Information Brochure

Disclaimer

The information on this page is general information only. It does not constitute legal advice and should not be relied upon as advice concerning your individual circumstances.

The application of the AML/CTF laws depends on the nature of the client, the matter and the legal services being provided. You should obtain advice from one of our lawyers about your particular circumstances.

Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation.

Last updated: July 2026