Abandoned AML cases: are you still billed?
Firms report a market pattern: a case is opened, the client never finishes, and an invoice still arrives. Treat that as a question for the contract; it is not a fact about every product.
Quick answer
Before you sign, ask whether a fee attaches when the link is sent, when the client starts, or only when a result exists. Ask whether a quiet file keeps a subscription alive. On FreeAML the firm suite is A$0, so an abandoned matter does not become a firm seat. The client pays a check that is run; this page does not promise to reverse a completed check, and it does not describe another vendor’s invoice.
People search “AML abandoned case billing” when a firm sent a link three weeks ago, the client never finished, and a bill arrived anyway. Checked against AUSTRAC’s obligations and compliance page on 4 October 2026. This is general information, not legal advice. This page does not reproduce that guidance. How client-pays checking works is pay-as-you-go AML checks. One vendor’s pricing page on this site is AML Guard pricing. The sector map is /tranche-2.
The question is when a fee is born
Abandoned-case billing is a complaint firms make about some vendors. It is market-signalled pain, not a ruling, and not a description of AML Guard or anyone else on this page. The useful question is the moment a dollar attaches.
If that moment is “we created a case”, an unfinished client still costs money. If the firm is also on a seat subscription, the quiet file is not even the main charge. Read the contract for both.
- Link sent. Ask if that act alone is a fee, before the client opens anything.
- Client starts. Ask if a half-finished attempt is billed.
- Result exists. Ask if this is the only moment a check fee appears.
- Months later. Ask if a subscription keeps charging after the matter died.
Put the question in the contract, not in a guess
Billing moments firms should ask about. This table does not reproduce any vendor’s price list.
| Moment | Question | On FreeAML |
|---|---|---|
| Case opened | Does a firm fee exist before the client acts? | The firm suite is A$0. It is not a seat. |
| Client abandons | Is an unfinished attempt a charge? | Do not assume a refund rule this page does not state. |
| Result returned | Who pays that result? | The client pays the check that ran. |
| File goes quiet | Does a subscription continue? | The suite does not bill dormant matters as seats. |
Where the billing page stops
This page is the abandoned-case question. It is not the general client-pays explanation, and it is not a vendor price sheet. Those are pay-as-you-go AML checks and AML Guard pricing.
What the client pays
On FreeAML the firm suite is A$0. The firm emails the client a link. Verification is client-pays. On the public list a personal KYC check is A$20 and a company or trust KYB check is A$40. Use KYB when the customer is a company or a trust. The firm suite does not include a monthly seat for files the client never finished. Confirm the live amounts on FreeAML pricing. FreeAML does not refund a completed check or describe another vendor’s invoice.
📚 Related Resources
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Frequently Asked Questions
The suite stays A$0. The client pays the check that runs.
The firm suite is A$0. The client pays. Personal KYC is A$20. Company or trust KYB is A$40. The firm emails the link.
View pricingQuestions: team@freeaml.com.au