Checking a mortgage broker's credentials on ASIC Connect

Anyone engaging in credit activities in Australia — which includes arranging home loans as a mortgage broker — must be covered by an Australian Credit Licence, commonly abbreviated to ACL, unless a specific exemption applies. In practice, most individual mortgage brokers are not themselves the direct holder of an ACL. Instead, the large majority operate as a credit representative: an individual or business formally authorised by an ACL holder, usually an aggregator or brokerage, to carry out credit activities on that licensee's behalf, under that licensee's supervision.

Neither status is automatically "better" than the other — both ACL holders and credit representatives are subject to the same National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009 conduct obligations, including the Best Interests Duty covered in a separate article, and a credit representative's conduct sits under the responsibility of the ACL holder that authorised them. What matters from a borrower's point of view is whether the authorisation is genuine and current, since a broker cannot lawfully arrange credit without one or the other being active.

The most reliable way to check is directly through ASIC, Australia's corporate and financial services regulator, rather than a website badge or business card. ASIC maintains public professional registers, searchable free through ASIC Connect, that let anyone look up a credit licensee or credit representative by name or by licence and representative number. A genuine, currently authorised broker should be able to give you that number without hesitation, and it should match what comes up in the public register — including which ACL holder they are currently authorised under, since a broker who has changed employer or aggregator needs a fresh authorisation, not a past one that has since lapsed.

A few things are worth checking specifically when looking someone up. First, that an authorisation is listed as current, not historical — the register also shows past authorisations that have ended, which is not the same as an active one. Second, that the name and licensee match what the broker has told you, since credit representative arrangements can change when a broker moves firms. Third, if you are dealing with a business rather than an individual, that the business itself holds a valid ACL or is itself an authorised credit representative, since both individuals and businesses can appear on the register in their own right.

It is also worth knowing that a current authorisation is only one part of the picture — it confirms someone is legally permitted to arrange credit and is subject to the associated conduct obligations, but it does not by itself tell you about a broker's experience or fit for your situation, which is a separate judgement. Checking membership of an industry body such as the Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia or the Finance Brokers Association of Australia is a further, optional step some borrowers take, though it is not a legal requirement in the way ACL or credit representative status is.

This article is general information, not financial or credit advice, and is not a recommendation of any particular broker, lender, or licensee. Verifying a broker's current authorisation directly through ASIC's public register remains the most reliable step available to any borrower, and our directory lists Australian mortgage and finance brokers by area as a starting point for comparison.

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