When OMARA assesses a complaint against a registered migration agent, one of the first things it asks for is the client file. If your file is thin — no record of what was said, no written advice, no trail of instructions — you are defending yourself with your memory against a client's written allegation. That is a losing position, and it is why poor record keeping is one of the most consistent themes running through disciplinary outcomes. This article sets out exactly what the Migration Agents Code of Conduct requires you to record and retain in 2026, with practical file-note templates you can adapt for your own practice.
A note on currency: the Code referenced throughout is the one prescribed by the Migration (Migration Agents Code of Conduct) Regulations 2021 (F2021L01856), in force since 1 March 2022 and current as at the time of writing. The regulatory framework is reviewed from time to time, so always confirm the operative text on the Federal Register of Legislation or the OMARA website before relying on any specific provision.
What is a file note?
A file note is a contemporaneous written record of something that happened on a matter that is not otherwise captured by a document. It is the written memory of your file. The classic example is a phone call: the client rings, gives you fresh instructions or asks a question, you give advice, and the call ends. Unless you write that down, there is no evidence it occurred or what was said.
The Code makes this explicit. Under the record-keeping provisions (section 55), a migration agent must make a contemporaneous written record of oral communications between the agent and a client in relation to immigration assistance — including the oral instructions the client gives you and the oral advice you give the client. "Contemporaneous" is doing real work in that sentence. A note written at the time, or immediately after, carries weight. A note reconstructed three months later when a complaint lands does not, and can look like self-serving reconstruction.
The test to apply to every meaningful interaction: if this matter went to a complaint or an Administrative Review Tribunal review tomorrow, could I prove what was said, what was advised, and what the client instructed? If the answer relies on memory, write a file note.
What the Code requires you to record and retain
The obligations sit across two related parts of the Code: the duty to make records of oral communications, and the duty to maintain a client file.
The client file (section 56)
You must ensure a client file is created and maintained for each client. Crucially, the Code does not leave the contents to discretion — it lists what the file must contain. As at 2026 a client file must include:
- A copy of the client's application or the immigration matter you are acting on;
- Copies of all service agreements and any variations to them;
- Copies of all written communications between you and the client, and between you and any other person, that relate to the client;
- The records of oral communications you are required to make under the oral-communications duty (i.e. your file notes);
- Records of material oral communications with persons or organisations other than the client, to the extent they relate to the client;
- Copies of all invoices and receipts;
- Copies of the personal documents the client provided; and
- Evidence of the safe return of any original documents.
Read that list as a checklist. Every item is a category a complaint investigator can ask you to produce. A file that is missing the service agreement, or has no record of the documents you returned to the client, has a hole in it before anyone alleges anything.
How long to keep records: the 7-year rule
The Code requires that a client file be kept for 7 years after the last action on the file for that client. Note the trigger — it runs from the last action, not from when you opened the file or when the visa was granted. A matter that sits dormant and is then reactivated resets the clock. The Code does not prohibit transferring a client file to another agent, but where you do, document the transfer and ensure the retention obligation is properly handed over.
This interacts with two further duties worth keeping in view. You must keep client documents securely while they are in your possession (or in the possession of anyone in your business), and you must return a client's documents on request — the Code requires the documents the client is entitled to be returned within 14 days of the request (always confirm the current figure on the OMARA/Home Affairs website). Returning originals is exactly the kind of action you should be documenting with a file note and, ideally, a signed acknowledgement of receipt.
File note templates and worked examples
A good file note is short, factual, dated, and attributed. It records what happened, not what you felt. Here are four scenarios that every practice encounters, with the structure of a defensible note for each.
1. Initial consultation
This is the most important note you will make, because it fixes the scope of what the client came to you for and what you told them at the outset.
- Date, time, attendees, channel (e.g. in person / video / phone);
- Client's stated objective — the visa outcome they want, in their words;
- Key facts disclosed — current visa status, history, relationship details, work history, anything material to eligibility;
- Advice given — pathways discussed, prospects, risks, and any matters you specifically warned about;
- Next steps and who does what;
- Fees discussed and whether a service agreement was provided.
2. Advice given
Where you give substantive advice — particularly advice the client may not want to hear (low prospects, a disclosure obligation, a risk of refusal) — record it precisely. "Advised client that the 2014 entry breach must be disclosed at Q.42 and that failure to disclose risks the application being refused on PIC 4020 grounds. Client acknowledged and instructed me to disclose." That note protects you if the client later claims they were never told. The Code's duty to promptly advise clients of material developments means these notes are not optional housekeeping — they evidence compliance with a positive obligation.
3. Client instructions
Instructions change the direction of a matter, so capture them verbatim where you can. "Client instructed by phone to proceed with the 820 onshore lodgement now rather than wait for the police check, accepting the risk of a request for further information." Where the instruction is significant, confirm it back to the client in writing — an email that says "as instructed today, I will…" converts an oral instruction into a documented one and folds neatly into the written-communications category of the file.
4. Fee changes and scope variations
Fees are a complaint magnet, and the Code treats them seriously. A service agreement must be in place in writing, and signed, before you provide immigration assistance, and any variation to fees or scope requires written notice to the client before the agreement is varied. So the file note here is only half the job — the variation itself must be papered. Record the trigger ("client now also requires a sponsorship nomination, outside original scope"), the new fee, the client's agreement, and attach the written variation. For the full mechanics of getting this right, see our guide to fee disclosure and client agreements.
Common failures that lead to complaints
The patterns that recur in disciplinary matters are mundane, which is what makes them dangerous — they are easy to commit and easy to prevent.
- No record of oral advice. The client says "you never told me there was a risk." Without a contemporaneous note, it is your word against theirs, and the absence of a note is itself a Code breach.
- Notes written after the fact. A note dated the day the complaint arrived, covering a conversation from six months earlier, reads as reconstruction and undermines rather than supports you.
- Missing service agreement or fee variations. The single most common fee complaint is "I never agreed to that amount." If the variation was not given to the client in writing, you cannot rebut it.
- No evidence of returned documents. Clients claim you kept their passport or original certificates. Without a signed acknowledgement of return, you cannot prove otherwise.
- Destroying or losing the file early. Purging files before the 7-year window closes leaves you unable to respond to a complaint that can be lodged years after the matter ended.
- Records scattered across email, WhatsApp, and a desktop folder. A file that cannot be produced as a single, complete record on request looks like no file at all to an investigator.
The thread running through all of these is the same: the obligation is not just to have the information, but to be able to produce a complete, contemporaneous, securely-held file on demand. Sanctions for Code breaches range from a caution through to suspension and cancellation — and a cancelled agent generally cannot be re-registered for up to five years. Poor record keeping frequently appears as either the substance of a complaint or the reason an agent cannot defend one.
Where file notes fit in your broader compliance obligations
Record keeping is one pillar of Code compliance, sitting alongside fee disclosure, conflict management, and continuing professional development. If you are auditing your practice against the full set of obligations, work through our OMARA Code of Conduct compliance checklist for 2026 — file notes and the 7-year retention rule both appear on it. And because every interaction needs to land in the right place, the system you use to capture notes matters as much as the discipline of writing them.
Make compliant file notes the default, not a chore
The agents who never have a record-keeping problem are not the ones with the best memories — they are the ones whose tools make a file note the path of least resistance. A purpose-built migration case management system timestamps every note against the matter, keeps the full client file as a single retrievable record, retains it for the required period, and gives you a clean audit trail when OMARA asks for one. Generic legal software was not built around the Code's specific file-content list; see how a migration-native platform compares against the incumbents at LodgeHQ vs Migration Manager or LodgeHQ vs Clio.
LodgeHQ was designed by and for Australian registered migration agents, with the Code's record-keeping obligations built into the way files are structured and retained. If contemporaneous file notes and clean, complete client files are where your practice is exposed, start a free trial and make compliant record keeping the default for every matter you open. This article is general information for registered migration agents, not legal advice — always verify current provisions against the official OMARA and legislation sources before acting.