A business name holder can authorise someone else to lodge business name transactions with ASIC on their behalf.
A business name holder can authorise anyone to be an authorised lodger. They do not need to be an ASIC registered agent.
The authorised lodger will need to link the business name to their own ASIC account, using the business’s ASIC key.
About authorised lodgers
If a business name holder wants someone to lodge transactions with ASIC on their behalf, they can authorise a person to do that for them. That person is called an authorised lodger. They will lodge transactions through our ASIC Connect online system.
A single registered business name can have more than one authorised lodger.
A business name holder can authorise anyone to be an authorised lodger. For example, it could be their accountant, a lawyer, a relative or a friend. The person does not need to be an ASIC registered agent.
The authorised lodger is an individual person, not a business or firm. But it can be someone who works for a business or firm. You can also have more than one authorised lodger who all work for the same business or firm. However, when the authorised lodger sets up their ASIC online account, they need to use their personal details.
An authorised lodger can only lodge transactions in ASIC Connect for the business name they are linked to.
How someone can be authorised
The business name holder needs to provide permission for someone to become their authorised lodger. They do this by providing the ASIC key to the person they wish to be their authorised lodger.
This is a private arrangement between the business name holder and the person – ASIC is not involved in this.
Once the business name holder has provided the ASIC key, the authorised lodger needs to link the business to their own ASIC Connect account.
Steps for an authorised lodger to link a business name to an ASIC Connect account
Request the business’s ASIC key
To request the business’s ASIC key, the person can:
ask the business name holder for it, or
ask ASIC to send it to you using a letter of authority.
You will need to enter the business’s ASIC key into ASIC Connect before you can lodge transactions for the business name.
Sign up to ASIC Connect and link the business name to your account
If you do not already have an ASIC Connect account, you will need to sign up for one. You will then need to link the business name to your account. Find out how to do this:
An authorised lodger can ask us for help to link a large number of business names (20 or more) to the user accounts of more than one employee. For example, if you work in an accounting business, you might want several accountants to be linked with your clients’ business names.
You can do this by contacting us using our online enquiry form.
You will need to include:
your full name and contact details
your ASIC registered agent number (if you have one)
a statement confirming you are authorised to act on behalf of each of the business names
the ASIC Connect username (email address) for each account
the business names to be linked and their ASIC keys
either the ABNs of the business names or the previous state or territory registration number and registration
details of the business name holder.
Receiving notifications
We send emails to the nominated business email address in ASIC Connect.
If you want your authorised lodger to receive email notifications, use their email address.
If you want to receive email notifications yourself, use your own email address.
If a business name is not yet registered
You can authorise anyone to lodge an application for business name registration on your behalf. If you want that person to be an authorised lodger, you can provide the ASIC key to that person once the business name is registered.
