Registrar's Practice Statement No 11 – Publication of a single verification statement

The Personal Property Securities Register (PPSR) is an online register, which allows parties to make registrations in respect of security interests in personal property and in respect of certain prescribed personal property. The Registrar of Personal Property Securities (Registrar) is responsible for establishing and maintaining the PPSR.

Section 156 of the Personal Property Securities Act 2009 (Cth) (PPS Act) requires the Registrar to give a secured party a statement verifying the registration of a financing statement or financing change statement. The statement is called a verification statement.

Section 158 of the PPS Act permits the Registrar to publish a single verification statement in relation to a number of registrations, if the registrations affect a number of secured parties and the Registrar considers that it would be inconvenient for verification statements to be given to each of them.

This practice statement outlines how and when the Registrar will publish a single verification statement under section 158 of the PPS Act.

The Registrar may use the power to publish a single verification statement to avoid the inconvenience that would arise for the Registrar in giving verification statements to multiple secured parties. 

For the Registrar to use the power under section 158 to publish a single verification statement, two requirements must be met:

1. there must be a number of registration events that affect a number of persons who are secured parties (whether before or after the events); and 
2. the Registrar must consider that it would be inconvenient for verification statements to be given by it to each secured party. 

In deciding whether to use the power, the Registrar will consider the number of registered (or formerly registered) secured parties affected and the degree of inconvenience that it would cause to the Registrar to give individual verification statements to each of them.

A single verification statement published under section 158 will be made available on the PPSR website at https://www.ppsr.gov.au/about-us/laws-rules-and-regulations/registrars-notices.

Certain transactions, such as business mergers or acquisitions, or sales of portfolios of contracts, may affect very large numbers of registrations recorded in the PPSR. Secured parties will generally need to lodge a financing change statement to amend the description of the secured party recorded in each individual registration affected by the transaction. That can be achieved by way of bulk transfer of registrations. The Registrar will give the secured party a verification statement in respect of each financing change statement, unless the Registrar exercises the power under section 158.

Section 157 of the PPS Act requires a secured party, in most instances, to give a notice of a verification statement to a person specified in the registration as a grantor. A notice under section 157 does not need to be given if the Registrar has published a single verification statement under section 158. However, inconvenience to secured parties arising from the requirement that they give notices of verification statements to grantors is not a basis on which the Registrar’s power to publish a single verification statement can be used. The power exists only to avoid inconvenience to the Registrar in giving verification statements to all secured parties where there are a number of registration events that affect a number of registered (or formerly registered) secured parties.

A person requesting the Registrar to consider exercising their power to publish a single verification statement for a number of registrations that affect a number of secured parties (such as a bulk transfer) should apply in writing to the Registrar.

A request should include:

1. a description of the proposed registrations, grantors and secured parties, including the total number of affected secured parties (both pre- and post-registration);
2. a description of when the registration of financing statements or financing change statements are proposed to be made; and
3. any other relevant information.

Requests may be sent via email to enquiries@ppsr.gov.au.

Enquiries about any information contained in this practice statement may be directed via email to enquiries@ppsr.gov.au.

Version 1.0

Release Date: 19 December 2024