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Register your SMS Sender ID with ACMA (Australia)

This guide explains how to register your alphanumeric SMS Sender ID with the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), so guests see your business name instead of "Unverified".

 

Overview

From 1 July 2026, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) requires every branded SMS sender name used in Australia to be listed on the SMS Sender ID Register. This applies to any Australian property sending SMS from RMS using an Alphanumeric Sender ID on the 2-Way SMS module.

You do not lodge the registration with ACMA yourself. ACMA accepts registrations through your message provider, so RMS submits the registration on your behalf once you supply your business details. Your nominated Authorised Representative then approves the registration directly with ACMA. 
You will need to complete the RMS Sender ID registration form in the Steps section of this article. 

✎ Please Note: Properties that send SMS from a phone number rather than a business name are not affected and do not need to register.
⚠ Important: Until your Sender ID is registered, guests receive your messages labelled as "Unverified" instead of your business name. Australian mobile phones group all Unverified messages into a single thread alongside suspected scam messages, so guests are less likely to see or trust them. Your Sender ID setting in RMS and your message content are unchanged, and messages are still delivered. Only the sender name shown to the guest is affected.

 

Before you start

Most registrations that fail do so because the Sender ID or the business details do not meet the requirements. Check both before you submit.

Sender ID requirements

Your Sender ID must:

  • Be 3 to 11 characters long.
  • Contain at least one letter. It cannot be numbers only.
  • Use Latin/ASCII characters only.
  • Use letters, numbers, and the symbols + - & _ only.
  • Contain no spaces anywhere.
  • Not start or end with a space or underscore.
  • Not use generic terms such as SMS, INFO, or OTP.
  • Closely align with your business name, brand, trademark, or website domain.
★ Tip: The 11-character limit is tight, so a long property name will need shortening. "Ocean View Resort Torquay" will not pass, but "OceanView" will. Remove spaces rather than truncating mid-word, and keep the part of the name a guest would recognise.

 

Business details

ACMA verifies your business against the Australian Business Register (ABR). Before you submit, confirm that:

  • Your business name exactly matches the name shown on the ABR for the Australian Business Number (ABN) you are supplying. Check it on ABN Lookup.
  • Your ABN, business name, and website all belong to the same legal entity.
  • Your authorised contact or service of notice email address on the ABR is current. ACMA uses the ABR to confirm who is authorised to approve the registration.
  • Your Authorised Representative holds authority for that entity on the ABR. They will receive the approval email from ACMA.

Do not use abbreviated, shortened, or partial business names, and check for spelling errors or missing words. If the business name cannot be verified against the ABR, the registration will be rejected.

 

Steps

  1. Confirm your proposed Sender ID meets every requirement listed above.
  2. Confirm your business name, ABN, and website on ABN Lookup and correct any discrepancies with the ABR first.
  3. Complete the RMS Sender ID registration form. You will be asked for your business or property name, ABN, company address, RMS Client ID, Authorised Representative name and email address, company website, company phone number, and the Sender ID you want to register.
  4. Submit the form. RMS submits the registration to ACMA on your behalf through our message provider.
  5. Watch for an email from ACMA to your nominated Authorised Representative. They must verify and approve the registration through the ACMA Assist portal.
  6. Allow 1 to 2 weeks from form submission for ACMA to confirm the registration with your Authorised Representative.
  7. Once ACMA confirms registration, enter your Sender ID in RMS. See Alphanumeric Sender ID for 2-Way SMS for the steps, or follow the summary below.
✎ Please Note: There is no bulk registration process. Each property registers individually, including properties that belong to an enterprise group. The same Sender ID cannot be registered more than once against the same ABN, so each entity needs its own unique Sender ID.

 

Enter your Sender ID in RMS

Wait for confirmation from ACMA before completing these steps. Sending with an unregistered Sender ID results in guests seeing "Unverified".

  1. Go to Setup > Property Options > Property Information.
  2. Edit the Property.
  3. Select the Features tab.
  4. Enter your registered Sender ID in the SMS From Name field.
  5. Select Save/Exit.

 

Common reasons a registration is rejected

Reason How to avoid it
Sender ID too long Shorten to 11 characters or fewer while keeping the recognisable part of your business name.
Sender ID contains a space Remove all spaces. Use a hyphen or underscore between words if needed.
Sender ID is numbers only Include at least one letter. A phone number is not a valid alphanumeric Sender ID.
Business name does not match the ABR Copy the business name exactly as it appears on ABN Lookup for the ABN you supply.
Website belongs to a different entity Supply the website registered to the same legal entity as the ABN.
Duplicate Sender ID Provide a unique Sender ID for each entity. The same Sender ID cannot be registered twice against one ABN.
Authorised Representative not authorised on the ABR Nominate a person who holds authority for the entity on the ABR and whose contact details are current.

 

If you would prefer not to register

Registering a Sender ID is optional. If you would rather not register, you can send SMS from an RMS-managed dedicated Australian mobile number instead. RMS handles the compliance for that number, guests can reply, and replies return to the Message Centre. To arrange this, submit a support ticket.

✎ Please Note: A Sender ID is a name rather than a number, so guests cannot reply to messages sent from it. Two-way messaging is not available while a Sender ID is in use, and guest opt-out requests must be managed manually.

 

Further information

ACMA publishes guidance for businesses on the SMS Sender ID Register, including how registration works and what happens to unregistered sender IDs. See Sending text messages with your business or organisation name on the ACMA website. RMS can only advise on what happens within RMS, so seek independent advice on anything outside of that.

 

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