What changed in ArtGuard, month by month.
What changed in ArtGuard, month by month, in plain English: what it means for your file, not how we built it. Last updated 3 November 2026. Your firm-wide risk assessment, your policies and your judgement on each sale stay yours.
Clearer sanctions and PEP information, and a few fixes to scheduled re-screening.
October was about the detail around the check: what the site says about the lists, where replies go, and keeping scheduled re-screens reliable.
ImprovedImprovements
Screening
- The site says which lists ArtGuard uses. The ArtGuard website now states which sanctions lists and which PEP roster the checks use, and how often each is refreshed. 27 October 2026
Gallery pages
- No HMRC penalty information on gallery pages. Gallery pages no longer show HMRC penalty information. 30 October 2026
Your account
- Passwords need at least 12 characters. A new password now needs at least 12 characters. Passwords you already have keep working until you change them. 14 October 2026
- Replies go to ArtGuard's own inbox. Replies to ArtGuard emails now go to ArtGuard's own support inbox. 12 October 2026
FixedFixes
Re-screening
- Scheduled re-screens complete for short names. A scheduled sanctions and PEP re-screen could fail to finish for some short names and be recorded as not screened. It now completes. 8 October 2026
Buyer replies in one place, clearer PEP records, easier-to-read screens.
September made the file easier to read and the buyer's side of the conversation easier to follow.
NewWhat's new
Buyer replies
- Replies from a buyer appear on the pending checks. If a buyer replies about a check, the reply shows at the top of your pending checks with a prompt to call or email them. Mark it handled, with a note if you want one, and earlier replies stay under a Previous replies toggle. 15 September 2026
ImprovedImprovements
PEP screening
- A cleared PEP result says why. When a near-name match on the PEP roster is cleared, the record now states the rule that cleared it, so the result and the evidence no longer read as if they disagree. 14 September 2026
Team
- Invited colleagues show as waiting until they accept. A colleague you invite shows as Invited, waiting for them to accept, and the seat counts once they have accepted. 24 September 2026
Readability
- Text is easier to read across the app. Pale grey text and small labels across the app were darkened so they are easier to read. 3 September 2026
The £10,000 threshold, and wording to help with the ask.
August brought the product in line with the amended Regulations and gave you words for the conversation with the buyer.
Regulation updateRegulation updates
Threshold
- The art-market threshold now reads £10,000. The figure in the app and on the site changed from 10,000 euros to £10,000, following the Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (Amendment) Regulations 2026 (S.I. 2026/621), in force from 30 June 2026. Check the Regulations against your own firm-wide risk assessment. 21 August 2026
ImprovedImprovements
The ask
- Suggested wording for the buyer, spoken and written. For each pending check you can copy the wording for a phone call or the desk, or a separate version to paste into a completion or invoice email, each with its own copy button. 22 August 2026
Results
- The driving licence cross-check shows on the result. Where a driving licence was captured as part of a check, the result now shows the licence cross-check, including checks the buyer completed on the web link. 16 August 2026
ArtGuard opens: send a link, the buyer verifies, you keep the record.
July was the launch month. Galleries and dealers can sign up, send a buyer a secure link and keep the result on the buyer's file.
NewWhat's new
Buyer checks
- Run a buyer check from a link. Sign up, send your buyer a secure link, and they verify their identity on their phone. You review the identity and screening result and keep it on the buyer's file. 8 July 2026
Sign-in
- Sign in with Google. You can sign up and sign in to ArtGuard with your Google account. 15 July 2026
Team
- Invite colleagues to the gallery's account. Colleagues can be invited to the account, so the whole gallery works from one set of buyer files. 15 July 2026
Find a gallery
- A public directory of UK galleries. artguard.uk now has a Find a gallery directory of UK galleries and dealers, linked from the footer. 20 July 2026
ImprovedImprovements
Activity log
- The log says which link the buyer opened. The activity log now says whether the buyer opened the text message link or the email link. 14 July 2026
FixedFixes
Buyer files
- Old links to a merged buyer file still work. When two records for the same buyer are merged, an old link to either one now opens the surviving buyer file instead of saying it cannot be found. 13 July 2026
Pending checks
- The 'buyer is having trouble' note clears when they make progress. The note that a buyer may be stuck on a check no longer stays on after a short hiccup once they have moved on. 10 July 2026
ArtGuard supports your judgement; it never replaces it. This page describes what the Money Laundering Regulations 2017, HM Treasury’s notices and HMRC’s own published guidance say, with the source for each point, so you can read it yourself. It is not legal advice, and nothing here is advice about what HMRC will accept. ArtGuard is not affiliated with or endorsed by HMRC, HM Treasury, the Office for Digital Identities and Attributes or any AML supervisor. Check the current version of each document before you rely on it.
One link. One dated record for the file.
Send your buyer a link. They verify their identity on their phone. You receive the identity result, the sanctions and PEP screening with the list versions it ran against, and a dated evidence file. £39 + VAT a month for 15 checks, £2.50 + VAT for each one after, no minimum term, first month free.
Run one check with usNot a regulator, not a lawyer.
ArtGuard supports your judgement; it never replaces it. Your firm-wide risk assessment, your policies and the decision on each sale remain yours, and HMRC remains your supervisor.
Read the plain notes