Criminal networks seek to exploit vulnerable members of the community. They target and recruit them as money mules to launder their proceeds of crime and reintegrate the funds back into the economy. This creates distance between the networks and the crime, and helps to avoid detection by law enforcement.
Criminal networks primarily target international students and non-permanent residents through face-to-face contact or online platforms. They use a variety of means to recruit them as money mules, offering them a way to make money while living in Australia. Criminal networks can also use these methods to recruit others outside of the student cohort.
This guide has been developed to assist government agencies and financial service providers, including remittance service providers and digital currency exchanges, to understand and identify signs of criminal networks exploiting vulnerable members of the community as money mules.
Financial service providers can use the behavioural and financial indicators in this guide to review their profiling and transaction monitoring programs to identify, target and disrupt financial transactions associated with money mule activity. If financial service providers see a combination of these indicators or observe other activity that raises suspicion, they should consider submitting a suspicious matter report to AUSTRAC.
Download the financial crime guide – Combating the exploitation of international students as money mules (PDF, 3.08MB).
This guidance sets out how we interpret the Act, along with associated Rules and regulations. Australian courts are ultimately responsible for interpreting these laws and determining if any provisions of these laws are contravened.
The examples and scenarios in this guidance are meant to help explain our interpretation of these laws. They’re not exhaustive or meant to cover every possible scenario.
This guidance provides general information and isn't a substitute for legal advice. This guidance avoids legal language wherever possible and it might include generalisations about the application of the law. Some provisions of the law referred to have exceptions or important qualifications. In most cases your particular circumstances must be taken into account when determining how the law applies to you.