Australia-wide
Can my bank close my account because of my medicinal cannabis prescription?
There is no law on thisThe short answer
It can happen, and no Australian law says a lawful prescription is a reason a bank cannot use. What limits a closure is the account's own terms and conditions, plus — for a bank that has adopted the Banking Code of Practice — a promise of reasonable notice where an account in credit is closed. Banks do not generally have to give you a reason, and they rarely do. The complaint path is the bank's internal dispute resolution process, and then the external one, AFCA.
What the law actually says
There is no Australian statute about medicinal cannabis and banking. Three things actually govern a personal account.
What does not exist anywhere in Australia: a rule that a bank must explain a closure, or a cannabis-specific account-closure ban.
What the law says here — and what is still to be confirmed
The material below has not been checked against the instruments it describes. It is set out rather than withheld so you can see exactly what is open, and so a professional reviewing this page knows what to check.
- The contract. An account exists under its terms and conditions, and those terms let the bank end them. The general shape of consumer terms is that closure is the bank's call; the clause in any particular bank's terms has not been checked here. open the terms and conditions of the major retail banks and record what their closure clauses actually say, so this says more than the general shape.
- The Banking Code of Practice. A bank that has adopted the Code promises, at clause 41 of the current version, that if it closes an account under its terms and conditions and the account is in credit, it will, if appropriate, give reasonable notice of the closure, will, if appropriate, pay the credit balance where it has the details to do so, and may charge a reasonable estimate of the costs of closing. Two things to notice: the promise runs to notice and money, not to reasons, and ‘if appropriate’ is doing real work inside it. the Code is revised periodically — confirm the current version, its adoption list, and that the clause number has not moved before relying on this.
- Discrimination law, probably not. The Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (Cth) makes it unlawful to discriminate on the ground of disability in the provision of goods and services, which is the Part that reaches banking. Whether refusing service over a lawfully prescribed medicine is discrimination ‘on the ground of a disability’ is not a question any reported Australian case has answered, and this page does not claim it is. confirm the operative provision and its exemptions as they apply to banking, and that there is no reported case on point.
What happens if it goes wrong
The damage of a closure is rarely the account itself — it is everything hanging off it. Direct debits for rent, insurance and phone plans fail; payroll has nowhere to land; the person left explaining a missed payment to a third party is you.
What is still to be confirmed about the consequences
The material below has not been checked against the instruments it describes. It is set out rather than withheld so you can see exactly what is open, and so a professional reviewing this page knows what to check.
- The ladder is short: complain to the bank first through its internal dispute resolution process, and if that does not fix it inside the bank's stated time, take it to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority, the external scheme every bank must belong to. Moving your incoming payments quickly matters more than winning the argument. confirm AFCA's current approach to account-closure complaints and what it can order.
What to carry
- A copy of the account's terms and conditions as they were when you opened it
- The closure letter or message, kept verbatim
- A list of every direct debit and automatic payment tied to the account
What to say
- Ask for the closure reason in writing — a bank may decline, but the request itself is evidence
- Ask for the internal dispute resolution reference number when you complain
- Ask the bank, in the same complaint, what it will do about payments that bounce before the account closes
What not to do
- Do not let direct debits bounce while arguing — redirect them the same week
- Do not close every other account at the same bank in reaction; move them deliberately if you move them
- Do not claim discrimination in a complaint without advice about what the ground actually is
Sources
- Banking Code of Practice — cl 39-41, information about and closure of accounts guidance checked 2026-09-27
- Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (Cth) — Part 2, s 24, goods, services and facilities legislation checked 2026-09-27
- Australian Financial Complaints Authority — banking disputes regulator checked 2026-09-27
Cite this page
Know Your Script, ‘Can a bank close your account over a prescription?’ (Australia-wide), https://www.knowyourscript.com.au/banking/bank-account-closure/ (not yet checked against primary sources — not for citation).
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