The Australian Financial Complaints Authority or AFCA is an external dispute resolution scheme for consumers who are unable to resolve complaints with member financial services organisations. AFCA is not a government department or agency, and we are not a regulator of the financial services industry. We are a not-for-profit company, limited by guarantee that is governed by a Board of Directors, which includes equal numbers of industry and consumer representatives.

AFCA is an independent external dispute resolution (EDR) scheme that deals with consumer and small business disputes about financial firms. AFCA is an alternative to going to court, which can be expensive. AFCA's Constitution and Rules provide a comprehensive transparency and reporting framework to ensure we are publicly accountable. We also provide quarterly reports to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).

For superannuation complaints, AFCA's determinations are final and binding subject to appeal to the Federal Court only on a question of law. For some trustee services complaints, AFCA's determinations are final and binding when made, with no appeal rights. Other than by reference to the courts, it is not possible to appeal a determination. When determining a complaint, the AFCA decision maker must do what is fair in all the circumstances, and take into account: legal principles, previous relevant determinations of AFCA or predecessor schemes.

There are time limits for lodging a complaint with AFCA. In most cases you have two years to lodge a complaint with us after you have received a final response to your complaint from your financial firm.

Please review the information in External Dispute Resolution (EDR) Policy which must be followed prior to lodging a complaint with AFCA.

For more information, go to: https://www.afca.org.au