An entity that accepts instructions from customers to transfer money or property to a recipient. Also commonly known as a ‘money transfer business’. This does not include a business operating as a financial institution such as a bank or credit union.

A ‘registered remittance service provider’ is registered with AUSTRAC. It is against the law to provide remittance services in Australia without being registered.

An entity that provides any designated services listed under section 6 of the AML/CTF Act. This includes services related to: 

• financial services
• gambling
• bullion
• virtual assets
• real estate
• conveyancing
• dealers in precious metals, stones and products
• lawyers
• accountants
• trust and company service providers.  

Additional virtual asset-related services will also come under AML/CTF regulation from 31 March 2026.

Learn more on Designated services for newly regulated entities.  

All reporting entities must meet obligations under the AML/CTF Act. 

For the purposes of the AML/CTF Act, residency depends on the type of entity.

An individual is a resident of a particular country only if the individual is ordinarily resident in that country.

A company is a resident of a particular country only if:

• the company is incorporated in that country, or
• an individual controls the company and the individual is a resident of that country.

A trust is a resident of a particular country only if:

• any of the trustees is a resident of that country, or
• an individual controls the trust and the individual is a resident of that country, or
• a person benefits or could benefit under the trust (whether directly or through any other companies, partnerships or trusts) and that person is a resident of that country.

A partnership is a resident of a particular country only if a partner is a resident of that country.

A corporation sole is resident of a particular country only if the corporation sole was established in that country.

A body politic of a particular country is a resident of that country.

See

AML/CTF Act 2006 section 14

A serious offence is:

• any offence against a Commonwealth, state or territory law punishable by imprisonment for 2 years or more
• an offence against a law of a foreign country that involves an act or omission, and would be punishable by imprisonment for 2 years or more if it had occurred in Australia, 

See

Subsection 39B(2) of the AML/CTF Act

Structuring is where a person:

• splits a single transaction into 2 or more transactions with the sole or dominant purpose of avoiding a transaction being reported in threshold transaction reports
• travels with cash or monetary instruments in a way that has the sole or dominant purpose of avoiding cross-border movement reporting. For example, a family asking a child to carry cash so that each individual is under the threshold.

Structuring is an offence under the AML/CTF Act. 

See

Threshold transaction reports

Cross-border movement reports

AML/CTF Act 2006 sections 142 and 143

A person or entity providing remittance services (also known as money transfer) in Australia without being registered with us. It’s against the law to provide remittance services in Australia without being registered.

A financial institution means any of the following:

1. an ADI
2. a bank
3. a building society
4. a credit union
5. a person specified in the AML/CTF Rules.

The AML/CTF Rules made under paragraph (e) may specify different persons to be financial institutions for the purposes of different provisions of the Act.

See

AML/CTF Act 2006 section 5

A correspondent banking relationship involves one financial institution (the correspondent) providing banking services to another financial institution (the respondent), where both institutions are based in different countries.

Under this arrangement, correspondent banks may provide the respondent bank a wide range of services, including but not limited to: 

• cash management (for example, interest-bearing accounts in a variety of currencies)
• international wire transfers
• cheque clearing
• payable-through accounts
• foreign exchange services.

See Correspondent banking relationships and section 5 of the AML/CTF Act

A shell bank is a corporation that:

• is incorporated in a foreign country
• is authorised to carry on a banking business in its country of incorporation
• has no physical presence in the country in which it is incorporated, and
• isn’t an affiliate of another corporation that’s incorporated in a particular country, authorised to carry on banking business in its country of incorporation, and has a physical presence in its country of incorporation.

Physical presence means the corporation carries on a banking business at a physical place in that country and has at least one full-time employee who performs banking-related duties there. It involves meaningful decision-making and management.

See section 94A of the AML/CTF Act

For initial customer due diligence, reliance means relying on customer identification and verification that has been conducted by a third party. The third party can be a reporting entity or a foreign business subject to AML/CTF regulation. 

See Reliance on customer identification procedures by a third party.