Do Immigration Consultants Have to Keep Your Money in a Trust Account?

The Two Legitimate Ways Consultants Handle Your Money

There are two ways a legitimate immigration consultant should handle your money:

1. Direct payment to government: you pay the government agency (IRCC in Canada, Home Affairs in Australia) directly through its online portal. The consultant guides you but does not touch your money.
2. Trust account: if the consultant collects your money, it must be held in a separate trust account — a dedicated bank account used only for client funds not yet earned by the consultant.

Anything else — cash payments, personal bank accounts, informal arrangements — is a red flag.

Canada — CICC Trust Account Requirements

In Canada, the CICC By-laws require that if an RCIC holds client money, it must be held in a trust account. In summary:

• The trust account must be completely separate from the RCIC's operating account.
• The account must be held at a Canadian financial institution.
• The RCIC is the trustee on the account (it is not in the client's name).
• Funds stay in trust until they are earned by the RCIC (e.g. once services are rendered).
• The RCIC must give you a written receipt when they receive your funds.
• You can request an accounting of your funds at any time.

In practice, IRCC application fees are usually paid online by the applicant directly. Most RCICs do not collect these fees — the client pays IRCC and provides proof of payment. This is the cleanest approach.

Australia — OMARA Position and State Law

In Australia the position is different. The Migration Agents Code of Conduct sets out how agents must deal with clients' money, and where an agent collects funds, state trust-accounting and consumer-protection laws may also apply. In practice:

• Standard compliant practice: migration agents direct clients to pay the Department of Home Affairs directly and do not collect application fees.
• If an agent does collect fees: those funds must be kept separate and properly accounted for, and may be subject to state trust-accounting rules.
• Professional fees vs application fees: the agent's own professional fee can be paid into their operating account once earned, but government application fees should be paid directly to Home Affairs or held separately on your behalf.

Best practice: use an agent who directs you to pay Home Affairs directly. This removes any ambiguity about whether your money is protected.

The Safest Approach: Pay Government Fees Directly

The safest and most transparent approach is:

• You pay government fees directly to IRCC (Canada) or Home Affairs (Australia) through their official online portals.
• You pay the consultant's fee separately into their operating account once they have invoiced you for work done.
• You keep proof of payment for all government fees and provide it to the consultant.

There is then no question about what money belongs to whom, and you keep direct control over all payments to government.

Red Flags in How a Consultant Handles Payment

Be very cautious if they:

• ask you to send money to a personal bank account;
• ask you to pay in cash and do not provide a receipt;
• ask you to pay the government fees to them so they can “submit it for you” (government fees must be paid online by you directly);
• refuse to explain where your money is held;
• mix your payment with other clients' payments and cannot account for each amount separately;
• spend your money before services are rendered (e.g. using client deposits for office rent).

What to Do If You Have Already Paid Into a Personal Account

If you have paid money into a consultant's personal account, act immediately:

1. Request a written receipt stating the amount, date, and purpose of the payment.
2. Request an itemised accounting of how your money has been or will be used.
3. Ask for proof that money intended for government fees has actually been paid to the government (a receipt or confirmation from IRCC or Home Affairs).
4. If they cannot provide these, stop all contact and report them to CICC (Canada), OMARA (Australia), or your local police.