Get Ready for your Trust Account Audit
By Jodee Williams

EOFY has finished and the next step is to prepare and mark in the diary your trust account audit. Depending on your State or Territory due dates or periods for audits will vary. 

• ACT - within 3 months of the end of an audit period, which is the EOFY unless a fixed period is otherwise authorised by the Commissioner of Fair Trading.
• VIC -  Audits must be submitted within three months after 30 June and within 10 days of receiving the report from the auditor.
• NSW- All audits must be submitted to the Secretary within 3 months after the end of the audit period and no later than 30 September 2019.
• NT - within 3 months after the expiration of each prescribed period (ending 30 June). For further details refer to section 58 & 59 of the NT Agents Licensing Act.
• QLD- The date and period depends on when your license was issued (click here for details). The audit report must be lodge within 4 months after the end of your audit period.
• SA - Lodge within 2 months after the end of the audit period, refer to the SA audit checklist.
• TAS - Within 3 months after the end of the audit year (ending 30 June each year). The audit report must be provided to the Board within 7 days after receiving it from the auditor.
• WA - Calendar year annual audit reports for real estate and real estate business agents must be lodged by 31 March of each year, while financial year annual audit reports for settlement agents and business settlement agents must be lodged by 30 September of each year.

Let's look at what to do next:

1. First and foremost you must reconcile your trust account. The more often you reconcile (ideally daily), the easier it is to identify and rectify any discrepancies and also means you're prepared for unannounced trust account audit.
2. Document your processes to ensure records are consistent and the auditor can easily understand your trust account. Or better still use a compliant Trust Accounting System like MultiArray, providing you with a digital paper trail that is accessible anytime.

3. Finally when accepting cash and cheques - Ensure that cash and cheques are banked as soon as possible after they are received, ideally within 24hours.  Remember to record and issue a receipt to avoid possible disputes. Print and Close your bank sheet in the system when going to the bank as this should match the date and total of the amount deposited.

MultiArray's product specialists can show you how to make your trust accounting easy with workflow automation. Like to know more? Contact us at  support@multiarray.com