HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has refreshed its public Supervised Business Register as of 22 September 2026, providing a vital tool for consumers and businesses to verify if a firm is legally compliant with UK anti-money laundering (AML) laws.
The register lists every firm supervised by HMRC under the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017. Trading in a regulated sector without being registered is a criminal offence, and the latest update follows a significant escalation in government enforcement activity this month.
Which businesses must be registered?
HMRC maintains the central register for specific industries where the risk of financial crime is considered high. While professional bodies such as the Law Society or accountancy regulators supervise their own members, HMRC is the statutory supervisor for several key sectors.
Businesses required to register with HMRC include:
- Estate and Letting Agents: Including letting agents where a single monthly rent exceeds the equivalent of €10,000.
- High-Value Dealers: Any business that handles cash payments for goods worth €10,000 (approximately £8,500) or more.
- Art Market Participants: Those dealing in, or acting as intermediaries for, the sale of works of art valued at €10,000 or more.
The public can verify a firm’s status by downloading the register as an ODS file from the official GOV.UK website. Businesses are required to keep their registration details current every 12 months as an ongoing requirement of operation.
Enforcement and the 2026–2029 Strategy
The update to the register follows the 15 September 2026 launch of a new UK Anti-Money Laundering strategy. This three-year plan involves a £550 million investment and the recruitment of 500 new enforcement officers to crack down on unregistered trading and financial non-compliance.
The consequences for businesses operating “under the radar” are severe. HMRC published a refreshed list of non-compliant businesses on 10 September 2026, highlighting firms that have already faced sanctions. Penalties for failing to register or follow AML procedures can include unlimited fines and criminal prosecution leading to up to two years in prison.
Those who suspect a business is operating in a regulated sector without supervision can report them anonymously via the “report tax fraud or avoidance” tool on the GOV.UK website.