Trust account audit requirements
Under the Property Stock and Business Agents Act 2002, licensees records in relation to the handling of trust money must be audited.
Note: Audit documentation relating to the 2008/2009 financial year will not be mailed to licensees. The required documentation should be downloaded from this web page.
General information
Who is required to submit an audit?
The following people must submit an audit of their trust account to the Office of Fair Trading, if they received or held trust money during the financial year ending 30 June 2009:
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a licensee
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a former licensee, or
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a personal representative of a licensee.
When must the audit be lodged?
The audit must be lodged within 3 months after the end of the audit period. The audit for most agents must be lodged with the Commissioner for Fair Trading no later than 30 September 2009.
If a trust account audit is not lodged by the due date, licensees could be disqualified from holding a licence and possibly prevented from renewing a licence.
In most cases, it is the licensed corporation that receives and is responsible for trust funds. Therefore, in most cases, a trust account audit must be lodged by the licensed corporation. However, if an individual licensee receives and is responsible for trust money, then a trust account audit must be lodged by the individual licensee.
Who can conduct the audit?
Auditors must be registered with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) or be qualified under s.115(1)(b) of the Act.
Check that an auditor is registered by searching for their details on the ASIC website.
Frequently asked questions
Go to the Frequently asked questions - Audit requirements 2009 in PDF format (size: 111k) for answers to common questions about the audit process and requirements.
Top of pageAudit for 2008/09 financial year
To prepare an audit report for trust money held during the 2008/09 financial year, download the following two documents:
If additional pages are required to complete the audit, they can be downloaded separately:
Audits must be submitted to:
Commissioner for Fair Trading
Office of Fair Trading
c/- Real Estate Audit Section
Locked Bag 5066, Parramatta NSW 2124
If you have any queries about the audit requirements, contact the Office of Fair Trading, Real Estate Audit Section on 9895 0200.
If no trust money held in 2008/09
If a licensed corporation or an individual licensee has not held any trust money during 2008/09, then a statutory declaration to this effect must be lodged.
This means that every licensee, both corporations and individuals, must lodge either a trust account audit or a statutory declaration. Completed statutory declarations must be returned within 3 months after the end of the audit period, ie by 30 September 2009.
To prepare a statutory declaration relating to trust money not being held during the 2008/09 financial year, download the appropriate document from the following two:
If a licensee does not lodge a correct statutory declaration by the due date they can be served with a fine of up to $1,100 or court action resulting in a fine up to $11,000. Licensees must complete the statutory declaration before a Justice of the Peace or a solicitor.
Audits for other financial years
If a licensee has an outstanding audit commitment for any of the previous three financial years, the required documentation is provided below.
For the 2007/08 financial year, download the appropriate document/s from the following:
For the 2006/07 financial year, download the appropriate document/s from the following:
For the 2005/06 financial year, download the appropriate document/s from the following:
If audit documentation relating to an alternative audit year is required, contact the Real Estate Audit Section of the Office of Fair Trading on 9895 0200.
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