ARNECC-Aligned Client Identity Verification Template for Mandurah Conveyancers: A Reusable VOI Protocol Your File Notes Can Defend

A new vendor calls your Mandurah office. They live interstate, the property is a deceased estate, and they want settlement moved up. Their ID looks fine on screen — but the photo is a phone-camera shot of a Medicare card, and you have never met them. Under the ARNECC Model Participation Rules, your firm carries the verification-of-identity obligation regardless of how convenient the workaround feels. This template gives your team a single, reusable protocol to follow on every file so the file note is consistent, dated, and defensible.

Why it matters now

Under the Electronic Conveyancing National Law, Subscribers must comply with the Participation Rules made by the Registrar in each jurisdiction. ARNECC’s Model Participation Rules — the template from which each State Registrar derives its binding rules — require Subscribers to verify the identity of their client and to retain evidence of that verification. Client identity theft is the threat class these rules were written to address: a fraudster impersonating a registered proprietor (frequently in absentee-owner or deceased-estate matters) to deal with land they do not own. The current ARNECC Model Participation Rules (Version 7, January 2024) sit on the ARNECC publications page and are the calibration reference for the WA Participation Rules administered by Landgate.

The 5-minute view

ARNECC publishes the Model Participation Rules; each State and Territory Registrar determines a binding version for its jurisdiction under section 23 of the Electronic Conveyancing National Law
The current Model Participation Rules are Version 7, published January 2024 (per the ARNECC publications page)
In Western Australia, the binding rules are determined by the WA Registrar of Titles and administered by Landgate
Subscribers are responsible for verifying the identity of their client and retaining the supporting evidence — the obligation does not transfer to PEXA or to the counterparty’s representative
Client identity theft commonly presents in absentee-owner, deceased-estate, and remote-settlement files where face-to-face verification is inconvenient
A consistent, documented VOI protocol — applied identically across every file — is the operational control that makes the obligation auditable
The ARNECC Model Participation Rules Guidance Notes are published alongside the rules on the ARNECC site and inform reasonable-steps interpretation

What DRMO does about it

The Identity Verification Protocol Template is a productised L1 deliverable: a single PDF template plus a written walkthrough your settlement team can put into use the same day. It is structured around the ARNECC Model Participation Rules’ verification-of-identity requirement and is designed for the Mandurah conveyancing context — mixed face-to-face and remote files, frequent deceased-estate and absentee-owner matters, and a settlement team that needs one protocol rather than five. The template does not provide legal advice; it provides operational support for an obligation your firm already carries, in a format that produces a consistent file note on every transaction. This is the L1 entry point to the DRMO Identity Verification capability; firms wanting protocol customisation or staff workshopping engage at L3.

The deliverable

PDF template: ARNECC-aligned Verification of Identity protocol, formatted for use as a file-note cover sheet
Step-by-step verification checklist covering document categories, capture conditions, and evidence retention
Decision branches for face-to-face, video, and agent-assisted verification scenarios
Red-flag annex listing common identity-theft indicators on absentee-owner and deceased-estate files
Walkthrough PDF (separate document) explaining how to deploy the template across an existing settlement workflow
Delivered via email within 1 business day of payment
Licensed for unlimited internal use within a single firm

CTA

Buy the Identity Verification Protocol Template — AUD $149

A self-serve productised template. No discovery call required. Suitable for any WA conveyancing or settlement firm that wants a single, consistent VOI protocol applied across every file.

For firms wanting the template adapted to their workflow and walked through with their settlement team, the DRMO Identity Verification capability is also available as a consultative engagement.

Sources

Australian Registrars’ National Electronic Conveyancing Council — Model Participation Rules (Version 7, January 2024): https://www.arnecc.gov.au/publications/model-participation-rules/
Australian Registrars’ National Electronic Conveyancing Council — domain root for the Electronic Conveyancing National Law framework and Guidance Notes: https://www.arnecc.gov.au/
Landgate (Western Australian Land Information Authority) — WA-specific Participation Rules administration: https://www.landgate.wa.gov.au/

DRMO capability references: