The Financial Claims Scheme: how deposits are guaranteed

APRA states that deposits "are protected up to a limit of $250,000 for each account holder at each bank, building society and credit union". It covers transaction, savings and cheque accounts, term deposits and mortgage offset accounts, in Australian dollars. Foreign-currency accounts are not covered.

The institution has to be incorporated in Australia and authorised by APRA. That includes foreign-owned banks incorporated here; it does not include branches of foreign banks operating in Australia, which is one reason to check which licence a brand sits under.

The limit applies to each account holder, whether a person or an entity, at each licensed institution. It is not per account and not per brand: two term deposits with the same bank count together, and APRA’s guidance says a joint account is split equally between its holders for the scheme, with each holder’s share then added to their other deposits at that institution before the $250,000 limit is applied. A joint account does not give a holder a second limit.

Several brands can share one licence. Westpac, St.George, Bank of Melbourne and BankSA are one ADI, so deposits across those brands count towards a single limit. Each bank page on this site shows the brand’s parent where the reviewed facts record one, and every bank page carries a link to APRA’s scheme pages.

APRA says the scheme "can only be activated by the Australian Government" after an institution fails, and that once it is activated APRA "will endeavour to make payments to the majority of account holders within seven calendar days". That is an aim, not a deadline. Payment is by electronic transfer to another account, by cheque, or into an account APRA sets up, in Australian dollars. APRA and the institution tell account holders about any steps they need to take.

The limit is per institution, so eligible deposits at two separately licensed ADIs each have their own $250,000 limit, counting everything the same holder has at each. Ownership does not change the cover: a customer-owned bank and a shareholder-owned bank are protected the same way, within the limit.