Real estate agents were not covered by the AML/CTF Act before Tranche 2. That ended on 1 July 2026, when the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Amendment Act 2024 brought agents into AUSTRAC’s regulatory net as a Tranche 2 sector.
If you act for a vendor, buyer, lessor or lessee on a real-property transaction, you are providing a “designated service”. That triggers an AML/CTF program, customer due diligence, suspicious matter reporting, and a ream of new disclosure obligations in your client agreements.
Who is caught
- Sales agents acting for vendors
- Buyer’s agents and acquisition advisers
- Property managers handling sales (leasing-only is largely outside the net at commencement)
- Auctioneers conducting real-property auctions
- Project marketers and off-the-plan sales operators
What an AML/CTF program means
A documented program made up of an ML/TF risk assessment and AML/CTF policies (governance, training, oversight, and customer due diligence — every client, every transaction).
- Verify the identity and beneficial ownership of every vendor and buyer you act
- Risk-rate each transaction (foreign buyers, cash sales, unusual structures, PEPs)
- Lodge suspicious matter reports with AUSTRAC within 3 business days (24 hours for terrorism financing)
- Threshold transaction reports for physical cash of $10,000 or more
- Maintain ID, transaction and risk-assessment records for seven years
- Submit an annual compliance report
What is new vs Tranche 1
Tranche 1 (banks, money remitters, casinos) has carried these obligations since 2006. Tranche 2 closes the FATF gap by adding “gatekeeper” professions whose work is structurally exposed to laundering.
What contracts and documents need updating
- Listing authorities and buyer’s-agent appointments — must disclose AML/CTF checks, ID requirements, refusal rights, and data-storage practices
- Sale contracts and deposit handling — clauses dealing with funds where source cannot be verified
- Trust account terms — handling and reporting protocols
- Privacy collection notices — sensitive ID and source-of-funds data
- Subcontractor and conjunctional-agent agreements — flow-down of AML obligations
The deadlines and penalties
Commencement 1 July 2026, phased uplift, AUSTRAC enrolment first. Civil penalties up to 100,000 penalty units per contravention for a body corporate; significant personal liability for directors and licensees.
How an updated Service Agreement helps
Claim Done’s Service Agreement generates a listing or buyer’s-agent appointment in about 5 minutes. It carries the AML/CTF disclosures, ID-verification consent, source-of-funds clauses and refusal/delay rights. $49 flat fee, delivered as a PDF.
Next step
Enrol with AUSTRAC, prepare your ML/TF risk assessment and AML/CTF policies, re-paper your appointments and CRM templates, and train your sales team this financial year.
What changes when it is in writing
Same problem. What a prepared case looks like.