Does Customer due diligence (KYC) on every customer apply to accountants and bookkeepers?
A computed answer from the Rules Mate applicability engine, with the exact condition, the outcome for every structure and size, and the primary source.
Short answer: Yes
Yes. This obligation applies to accountants and bookkeepers whatever their structure or size. The deciding fact: Tranche 2 industry (Accountants & bookkeepers) — AML/CTF reporting entity from 1 July 2026.
The obligation in brief
Customer due diligence (KYC) on every customer. Reporting entities must collect and verify customer identification information before providing a designated service. For non-individuals, beneficial owners (≥25% control or ownership) must be identified.
Trigger: Onboarding a customer for a designated service.
Why accountants & bookkeepers get a different answer
Rules Mate runs its applicability engine across 9 business structures and 6 size bands for each of the 35 industries it maps. For 27 of those industries the answer for "Customer due diligence (KYC) on every customer" is no. Accountants & bookkeepers is one of the 8 where the answer is different: yes.
The deciding fact for accountants and bookkeepers: Tranche 2 industry (Accountants & bookkeepers) — AML/CTF reporting entity from 1 July 2026.
About the industry: Professional accounting and bookkeeping firms. Captured by Tranche 2 when providing designated services such as managing client money or company formation.
Compare a professional services (general) business with 6–19 employees structured as a Pty Ltd company: the obligation does not apply (Requires an AML/CTF designated service).
Answer by business structure and size
Each cell is the engine's outcome for a business in accountants & bookkeepers with that structure and size, assuming it sells to consumers and small businesses and holds customer contact details. "Check" means the obligation turns on a fact the industry does not settle.
| Structure | No employees | 1–5 employees | 6–19 employees | 20–99 employees | 100–499 employees | 500+ employees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sole trader | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Partnership | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Trust | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Pty Ltd company | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Public company | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Not-for-profit (unregistered) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Registered charity | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Super fund | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Foreign company | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Designated services that catch accountants & bookkeepers
| AML/CTF Act reference | Service | Customer for due diligence |
|---|---|---|
| s 6 table 6 items 2–4 | Assisting with the sale or purchase of a body corporate or legal arrangement; holding, controlling or managing client money or property for a transaction; equity or debt financing | The person assisted |
| s 6 table 6 items 5–9 | Selling shelf companies; creating or restructuring companies and trusts; acting as, or arranging for someone to act as, a director, secretary, trustee, partner or corporate power of attorney; acting as a nominee shareholder; providing a registered office or principal place of business address | Varies: for company creation, the proposed beneficial owners and directors; for an express trust, the trustee, settlor and beneficiaries; for nominee and officer services, the nominator |
| s 6 table 6 item 1 | Assisting a person to plan or execute a real estate transaction (not under a court order) | The person assisted |
- Payments for the bookkeeper's own fees are excluded from item 3 (s 6(5C)–(5D)).
- Incidental payments where the practice provides no other designated service, such as a bookkeeper's routine payments for a client, are excluded from item 3.
- Payments to or from government, courts or licensed insurers are excluded from item 3.
AUSTRAC's accountant starter kit is written for small accounting practices. Before relying on it, test the practice against the kit's "who the starter kit is for" criteria, including the 15-personnel limit.
What the obligation requires
- When due
- Before providing the designated service. Ongoing for customer relationships.
- Evidence to keep
- KYC records (identity documents, beneficial ownership), PEP/sanctions screening evidence, EDD documentation.
- Maximum penalty
- Each unverified customer can be a separate contravention — up to $36.4M (body corporate) or $7.28M (individual), maximum per contravention
- Regulator
- AUSTRAC
- Jurisdiction
- Commonwealth (national)
Other obligations where accountants & bookkeepers differ from the norm
- Designate an AML/CTF Compliance Officer: Yes
- Detect + enhance due diligence on Domestic + Foreign PEPs: Yes
- Enrol with AUSTRAC as a reporting entity: Yes
- Maintain a written AML/CTF program: Yes
- Suspicious matter, threshold, and IFTI reporting to AUSTRAC: Yes
- Independent review of AML/CTF program: Yes
- All 23 answers for accountants & bookkeepers
Other industries with a non-default answer
Questions
- Does Customer due diligence (KYC) on every customer apply to accountants and bookkeepers?
- Yes. This obligation applies to accountants and bookkeepers whatever their structure or size. The deciding fact: Tranche 2 industry (Accountants & bookkeepers) — AML/CTF reporting entity from 1 July 2026.
- Is the answer the same for every industry?
- No. For 27 of the 35 industries Rules Mate maps, the answer is no. Accountants & bookkeepers is one of 8 industries with a different answer.
Related
Sources
- AUSTRAC: official source
- Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006
- AUSTRAC guidance
- AUSTRAC: Professional designated services (table 6)
- Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006 (compilation in force 1 Jul 2026)
Computed by the Rules Mate applicability engine from the published obligation corpus; facts last checked 3 October 2026. Rules Mate is not a law firm and this is general information, not legal advice. Confirm your position with the regulator source or a qualified adviser before acting.