Australian Financial Complaints Authority stops issuing membership certificates from the 2025-26 financial year and moves verification to its online firm search

The Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) has decided to stop issuing membership certificates from the 2025-26 financial year, meaning members will no longer receive a certificate after paying the annual registration fee for that year. Membership status will instead be verified through AFCA’s website-based financial firm search, which will become the primary method for confirming membership. The change follows consultation with, and support from, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, selected members and legal advisers, with legal advice confirming there is no legal requirement for AFCA to provide membership certificates. AFCA cited combatting fraudulent use of certificates, reducing administrative burden for members and AFCA teams, and strengthening consumer confidence in firms’ membership status; the financial firm search provides real-time information and includes financial firms, authorised credit representatives and superannuation funds. Aggregator members and authorised credit representatives that previously relied on certificates to verify membership have been asked to review and update their processes to use the search tool, while members remain entitled to use AFCA’s name, logo and contact details in line with AFCA guidelines. Annual 2025-26 fees will be invoiced from the end of May, and AFCA said it is engaging with industry to support the transition. For payment confirmation, members can check invoice status in the member portal or request a receipt when paying by Westpac PayWay, noting that payments can take up to ten days to process.