The ASIC industry funding levy recovers the cost of regulating mortgage-broking credit licensees through an annual levy. A licensee confirms its business activity figures, then checks and pays the levy notice issued by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). A credit representative’s position depends on the legal entity and any other regulated activities it undertakes.
For a brokerage, the first check is whose licence appears on the notice. That identifies the entity responsible for the return and separates its ASIC liability from charges passed on under an aggregator or licensee agreement.
What the ASIC Industry Funding Levy Funds
The ASIC industry funding levy pays for ASIC’s regulatory work across the industries it supervises. This includes enforcement and surveillance, as well as guidance and education. ASIC explains the model on its industry funding page.
Fees for service cover a different event: an entity asks ASIC to perform a particular service, such as processing certain applications. The Compensation Scheme of Last Resort (CSLR) has a separate levy. ASIC’s guide to invoices and levy notices distinguishes industry funding notices from CSLR notices and other invoices.
The Cost Recovery Implementation Statement (CRIS) gives estimated costs and levies. ASIC then finalises levies using actual regulatory costs. A subsector’s total estimated cost is shared under its levy rules. Each brokerage’s amount depends on its own assessment.
Keep the return year and the assessment year together. An estimate for one financial year cannot establish the final liability for another.
Who Reports and Who Receives the Notice
The credit licensee submits the industry funding metrics for its credit activities. ASIC’s industry funding FAQs confirm that representatives do not submit those metrics in their representative capacity.
A representative can have a separate reporting duty through another regulated capacity, such as being a public company or a large proprietary company. Check the entity’s full position before treating representative status as a complete exemption.
ASIC’s subsector decision guide places an Australian credit licence (ACL) holder in the credit-intermediary subsector when its licence authorises credit activities other than as a credit provider. Match the legal name and entity identifier on the notice to that licence. Then check the financial year and each subsector listed. A licence cancelled during a year can still produce a levy for that year.
A charge labelled “ASIC levy” on an aggregator statement needs a separate check. If the licensee passes a cost to representatives, inspect the agreement and the charge calculation. The contractual charge and ASIC’s levy notice are different records. The Australian credit licence guide explains the operating-model choice behind that distinction.
Prepare the Credit Intermediary Activity Return
For the 2025-26 return, ASIC’s business activity metric checklist identifies two prefilled credit-intermediary measures:
- The number of credit representatives at the end of the financial year.
- The number of days during that year the entity held the relevant credit licence authorisation.
A credit representative is a person authorised in writing to conduct specified credit activities on the licensee’s behalf. Reconcile the count against appointment and cessation records. Reconcile the licensed days against the licence and any changes to its authorisations.
Hypothetical Return Reconciliation
Suppose a fictional licensee’s records show eight credit representatives at the start of the year. It appoints two during the year and one representative’s authorisation ceases before year-end. Assuming those records cover every relevant appointment, the closing count is nine: eight plus two minus one.
If the relevant authorisation exists throughout a 365-day financial year, the licensed-days figure is 365. These are the figures to reconcile with the prefilled return. The count is a year-end measure, not the total number who worked at any time during the year.
Incorrect measure: the brokerage substitutes its annual trail receipts or the dollar value of its loan book for its representative count. Correct measure: it verifies nine credit representatives and the relevant licensed days against its records.
ASIC’s checklist directs licensees to correct representative details through Form CL30 for appointments or Form CL31 for cessations. If prefilled information is wrong, correct the underlying record before submitting the return. ASIC also provides 1300 300 630 for licence or registration corrections.
Retain the reconciliation with your mortgage brokerage compliance records, so another authorised person can trace the reported figures to the source documents.
Use the ASIC Industry Funding Portal
The ASIC industry funding portal is the ASIC Regulatory Portal. You need an account connected to the correct entity and permission to perform the transaction. A login alone does not establish that access.
For a company, a director or secretary can establish the entity connection and invite an employee, compliance officer or agent with suitable access. ASIC’s portal access instructions and user guides explain registration, entity connections and permissions. Use that help if the entity is missing or the transaction is unavailable.
Follow ASIC’s annual reporting instructions to lodge the return:
- Select the entity and check its identifier against the licence records.
- Start the industry funding transaction for the required financial period. Confirm the entity details and billing contacts.
- Check each relevant subsector and reconcile its prefilled figures. Correct discrepancies before continuing.
- Review the completed return and declarations. Submit only when you are authorised and the information is accurate.
- Save the submission reference and PDF copy. Confirm the saved return contains the correct entity, period and reported figures.
For a levy notice, select the entity and open the notice from its dashboard. Use “View all invoices” if you need an older notice, then select the industry funding notices tab. Check the entity and levy period in the PDF before arranging payment.
Check the Assessment and Invoice
Credit intermediaries pay a minimum levy plus a graduated component based on their credit representatives, with the prescribed licensed-days adjustment. This is not a flat fee charged equally to every mortgage broker.
ASIC’s 2025-26 credit-sector CRIS estimates a $1,000 minimum plus $120 per credit representative. Its 2024-25 final levy summary shows a $1,000 minimum plus $89 per representative. The estimate and final schedule cover different years and cannot be used interchangeably.
For a hypothetical full-year licensee with nine representatives, the rounded 2024-25 schedule gives $1,000 plus nine times $89, or $1,801. ASIC’s summary rounds amounts, so use the actual notice for payment. For a part-year licence, check the statutory adjustment instead of simply reducing the whole invoice by the fraction of the year licensed.
Match the notice to the saved return and the final levy schedule for its financial year. Check the representative count, licensed days and any additional subsector charges. Record the amount and due date, then use the payment reference printed on that notice. Keep the payment receipt with the assessment.
ASIC’s levy notice and payment instructions state that payment is due 30 business days after issue. They provide BPAY, electronic transfer and portal credit-card options. Allow the stated processing time so payment reaches the correct account by the deadline.
Resolve an Incorrect or Unaffordable Notice
If the notice uses unexpected figures, compare it with the lodged PDF and underlying appointment records first. Use ASIC’s contact service to raise the discrepancy, supplying the entity identifier, notice number and submission reference. Include the records that explain the correction you seek. An unexpected notice can also reflect another subsector or an authorisation held earlier in the year.
Before waiting for a response, check the notice’s review instructions and the industry funding collection legislation. A correction enquiry does not itself establish that payment or review deadlines have stopped. ASIC’s penalty guidance explains late-payment charges and penalties for false or missing metrics.
If financial hardship prevents payment, apply through the portal’s payment-plan transaction before the due date. ASIC requires supporting hardship evidence. A waiver is a separate application for exceptional circumstances. Follow its payment instructions if seeking a waiver: ASIC says it cannot waive an amount already paid. Its levy-notice guidance also explains the route for reviewing a waiver decision.
Keep the enquiry or application reference with the notice. Confirm ASIC’s response and any revised payment arrangement before treating the liability as resolved.
