Couples share an email. So do husband and wife directors, and family trusts run from one kitchen table. It works until a system needs to know which of them it’s talking to.
Seamlss needs a separate email address and mobile number for every person: each client, each director you’re checking for AML, each of your staff. So does the government. Each myGov account must have a unique email address, and myID rejects a second person on the same address with “This email is taken” (myID help).
Why one address per person
Each person logs in with their own code, verifies their own ID and signs their own engagement letter. With a shared address you can’t tell who did what, and one person can open, sign or verify as the other. That matters most where it’s least comfortable to talk about: separations, and financial abuse inside a family. A login that belongs to one person protects them.
It also keeps your records clean. Every request, signature and ID check has one owner.
Option 1: a + alias of the shared address (try this first)
Add a plus sign and a word before the @. Mail sent to [email protected] still lands in [email protected], but every system, Seamlss included, sees it as a separate address. The client doesn’t need a new account or a new inbox.
This works with Gmail and Google Workspace (Google), Microsoft 365 business email, where it’s on by default (Microsoft), Proton Mail (Proton) and FastMail. It generally works with Outlook.com and Hotmail too.
Before you use it, email the alias and ask the client to confirm it arrived. A few work email systems have it turned off.
Option 2: a free alias in their email settings
Some providers let the client add a proper second address to the same inbox:
- Outlook.com, Hotmail and Live: at account.microsoft.com, open How you sign in and add an email. It’s free and lands in the same inbox (Microsoft).
- iCloud Mail: up to three free @icloud.com aliases, under Settings at icloud.com/mail (Apple).
- Yahoo Mail: doesn’t use the + sign. Where it’s available, disposable addresses are under Settings, More Settings, Mailboxes (Yahoo).
Option 3: business email
For directors with an email on their own domain, the simplest answer is their own address, such as [email protected]. Whoever manages the domain can add a mailbox or a free alias in Google Workspace (up to 30 per user) or Microsoft 365, or a forwarder in cPanel hosting. A + alias usually works here too.
Telstra, Optus, TPG and other Australian internet provider email
Most Australian internet providers have stopped offering email or closed it:
- TPG, iiNet, Internode and Westnet email ended in November 2023 (iTWire).
- Dodo and iPrimus email closed in May 2026 (iPrimus).
- Optus isn’t issuing new email addresses.
- Telstra says BigPond email isn’t closing, but extra addresses generally aren’t available.
For anyone on one of these, a free Gmail or Outlook.com address is the easiest fix. It also means their email doesn’t depend on who they buy internet from.
Don’t use full stops to make an alias
Gmail ignores full stops in @gmail.com addresses, so jo.smith and josmith reach the same inbox. Nobody else does. In Outlook, Hotmail, iCloud, Yahoo and business email, adding or moving a full stop makes a different address, and it may belong to someone else. A client’s tax return or ID request could end up with a stranger.
An earlier version of this article suggested full stops for Outlook and Hotmail. That was wrong, and we’ve corrected it. Use a + alias or a proper alias instead.
Talking to clients about it
Most clients accept it once they hear why: nobody else can log in, sign or verify as them. Their bank login and their myGov account already work this way. If a client pushes back, a second address takes minutes to set up and costs nothing.
The steps for your team are in our help guide: Each person needs their own email and mobile.
See what your onboarding could look like
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