
Statutory Trust accounts
Our Statutory Trust Accounts help you comply with statutory requirements.
Essentials
If you are a solicitor, real estate agent, collection agent (QLD), conveyancer, or settlement agent (WA), you may be required by law to deposit funds held on behalf of your clients, into a Statutory Trust Account.
This is a special type of account designed to comply with statutory requirements, and it may require you to provide certain details or documents at account opening.
To help you pull together the account-opening information we’ll need to comply with statutory requirements, please refer to our Statutory Trust Account checklist. We have also put together Statutory Trust Account FAQs to help answer any questions you have.
What do you get?
- Helps you comply with statutory requirements when holding clients’ funds in trust
- 30 free transactions per month
- Statutory Trust – Real Estate Agents account is suitable for real estate agents (in all states) and collection agents (in Queensland)
- Statutory Trust – Solicitors account is suitable for solicitors
- Statutory Trust – Conveyancers and Settlement Agents account is suitable for conveyancers (in all states) and settlement agents (in Western Australia).
Fees and interest
Credit interest earned will be paid to the relevant statutory bodies in each state/territory.
Fee | Amount |
---|---|
Account-Keeping fee (formerly known as Monthly Service fee) |
$0.00 |
Number of free transactions per month |
30 |
Read more about fees and charges (PDF 830KB)
Allowable transaction methods may vary between States/Territories and account types.
Eligibility requirements
- 18+ years old (applicant plus all signatories)
- Operating in Australia with an Australian address
- Must be a member of a professional association and required by law to deposit funds held on behalf of clients in statutory trust accounts
- Needs an eligible business transaction account from which fees and charges can be debited.
Please select your industry
Statutory Trust questions
A Statutory trust account is required in certain industries where funds need to be held on behalf of clients for particular purposes (e.g. Settlements and rental rolls). There are no listed beneficiaries for a Statutory Trust Account and there are no trust deeds. A Statutory Trust Account is not an operating account for running your day to day business. Some legislation refers to Statutory Trust Accounts as “general trust accounts”.
Yes, if your business belongs to an industry that is required to have Statutory Trust Account, such as one of the industries below:
- Real Estate/Property Agent
- Law Firm/Solicitor
- Conveyancer
- Settlement Agent (in Western Australia only)
- Collection Agent (in Queensland only)
AND you are required by law/state/territory legislation to deposit funds held on behalf of your clients in a trust account with a financial institution to meet regulatory requirements.
- If you are a Real Estate Agent/Property Agent then you need to open Statutory Trust – Real Estate Agents account.
- If you are a Law Firm/Solicitor then you need to open Statutory Trust – Solicitors account.
- If you are a Conveyancer then you need to open Statutory Trust – Conveyancers account.
- If you are a Settlement Agent in Western Australia then you need to open Statutory Trust – Settlement Agents account.
- If you are a Collection Agent in Queensland then you need to open Statutory Trust – Collection Agents account.
Firstly, you will need to open one of our business transaction accounts (Westpac Business One Plus), for bank or government fees and charges, and debit interest relating to the Statutory Trust Account to be charged.
If you already have existing business transaction account with us, then you can use the existing business transaction account for bank or government fees and charges, and debit interest relating to the Statutory Trust Account to be charged.
Statutory Trust Accounts are governed by state/territory legislation, you need to ensure that you comply with the requirements for your industry and state/territory, these may include:
- Limitations on account access (e.g. no cash transactions)
- Naming conventions for your account, including identification numbers that may be issued
- Documentation to support our application
- A requirement to redirect fees and interest.
Standard Trust Account Questions
Yes, if you have trust deed (legal document that created the trust), trustee and beneficiaries for the standard trust account. The trust deed will show the name of trustee and beneficiaries. A standard or ordinary trust account is not a Statutory Trust Account.
- Business or company where it is set up as trust for an entity, for example ABC Pty Ltd as trust for XYZ family trust
- Accountant
- Tax Agent
- Travel Agent
- Insurance Broker
- Immigration Agent.
Certified copy of the trust deed
OR
Certified extract of the trust deed where the extract includes details of the trust purpose, name of the trust, trustees and names of the beneficiaries (or class of beneficiaries).
Selected Westpac Business Transaction accounts and Westpac Business Savings accounts.
Things you should know
Deposit Accounts for Business Customers Terms and Conditions (PDF 830KB)
Statutory Trust accounts are only available to members of professional associations who are required by law to deposit funds on behalf of their clients to a trust account with a financial institution. Approval of applications is at the discretion of the bank.