While the ongoing cost of holding an AFSL depends on the nature, scale and complexity of your business, there are some general and inescapable costs every AFSL holder needs to consider.
In broad terms, those costs fall into two categories: ASIC fees and business-specific operating costs.
At the regulator level, there are at least two published cost lines that many AFSL holders should expect to budget for. First, ASIC industry funding levies can be significant. Based on the 2024-25 ASIC industry funding levy settings, licensees that provide personal advice to retail clients on relevant financial products were subject to a minimum levy of $1,500 plus $2,398 per adviser. By contrast, licensees that provide only general advice were subject to a flat levy of $4,854, and those that provide only personal advice to wholesale clients were subject to a flat levy of $543.
Second, many AFSL holders dealing with retail clients will also need AFCA membership. For the 2025-26 financial year, AFCA’s annual registration fee for licensees is $402.29, including GST, although AFCA updates its fee schedule from time to time.
The harder part to estimate is the operating cost of running the licence properly. In our February 2026 article on the real costs of self-licensing, we set out some useful indicative ranges based on the practical cost drivers many AFSL holders face. We note that professional indemnity insurance often starts at around $12,000 per year, audit and compliance costs commonly range from $10,000 to $20,000 per year, and smaller retail AFSL holders often budget around $20,000 to $30,000 or more each year in ongoing operating costs. Larger or more complex models can exceed $30,000 to $50,000 or more per year.
These are not statutory fees, and they will vary based on your services, adviser numbers, client mix, claims history, controls, and business model. They are still useful as a guide because they show that the real cost of holding an AFSL is not just the application fee or ASIC invoice. It is the combined cost of staying licensed, staying compliant, and managing supervision and governance over time.