Estate Agents Hit With Over £800,000 in Fines as HMRC Cracks Down on AML Failures

HM Revenue & Customs has released its latest roster of businesses sanctioned for failing to comply with money laundering regulations, revealing that estate agents make up almost half of all penalties issued during the period.

The newly published data, covering enforcement action between 1 April and 30 September 2025, shows that a total of 369 penalties were imposed across all sectors under HMRC supervision, with combined fines amounting to £1,881,237. Of those, 170 penalties were levied against estate agency businesses, representing £835,842 of the total value.

HMRC said that most of the penalties stem from businesses operating without being properly registered for anti-money laundering (AML) supervision. In total, 332 of the fines listed were issued to firms that continued trading despite lacking the required AML registration.

Sector under scrutiny

Estate agents emerged as the single largest group penalised in the latest round of enforcement. HMRC also imposed 134 penalties on accountancy service providers, with those fines totalling £513,930. Additional penalties were issued to money service businesses and other regulated sectors.

The tax authority noted that a number of firms received reduced penalties after voluntarily contacting HMRC to disclose breaches, highlighting the benefits of early engagement and self-reporting.

Estate agency businesses are legally obliged to register for AML supervision and to have appropriate systems and controls in place to help prevent money laundering and terrorist financing. HMRC oversees both estate agency businesses (EABs) and letting agency businesses (LABs) through its Economic Crime Supervision teams.

An HMRC spokesperson said: “Anti-money laundering supervision is a vital line of defence for businesses against criminal exploitation. We are committed to helping businesses protect themselves and we take action against the minority who fail to fulfil their legal obligations, as these penalties clearly show.”

By fLEXI tEAM