ASIC has sounded the alarm on a wave of unofficial renewal notices that resemble its own paperwork.
The Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) has issued fresh guidance for companies and business name holders after identifying letters and emails from third‑party firms that appear to relate to annual company reviews or business name renewals but are not official ASIC communications.
ASIC said the correspondence in question was being sent by external providers that offer to manage routine registry obligations in exchange for a fee.
It noted that some of these firms were legitimate ASIC-registered agents, while others used public information from ASIC’s registers to target businesses coming up to renewal.
The regulator said it was concerned that the design and timing of some notices could easily be mistaken for official reminders, particularly when they reference ASIC‑regulated tasks, such as lodging annual statements or renewing a business name.
ASIC noted that third‑party providers were entitled to charge for their services but stressed that any fee they quoted would usually be on top of ASIC’s own charge.
Where the amount requested does not clearly separate the ASIC component from the service fee, businesses may end up paying a hefty premium for a basic administrative task.
At the same time, the regulator emphasised there was no obligation to use these services.
Companies and business name holders can complete annual reviews and renewals themselves online via ASIC Connect or the company officeholder portal.
Red flags and basic checks
In its alert, ASIC outlined several warning signs that would indicate a renewal or review letter may be from a third‑party provider.
It said unsolicited documents may be formatted to look like invoices even when no payment is due, use urgent language or short deadlines, or refer to renewals that are not yet due.
ASIC said some notices also offered a “discount” for quick payment or present a single fee that did not show the split between ASIC’s fee and the service charge.
ASIC advised businesses to pause before paying anything and verify who they were dealing with.
It recommended checking the sender’s details and stressed that genuine ASIC emails would be sent from addresses ending in @asic.gov.au.
ASIC said logging in directly to ASIC Connect or the company officeholder portal was another way to confirm whether a renewal or annual review was actually due and added that requests for payment well ahead of the normal due date should also be treated cautiously.
[Related: ASIC pursues steeper fines against payday lenders]
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