New Anti-Money Laundering Rules for Conveyancers: What This Means for You

Published July 2026

Since 1 July 2026, new federal laws have changed the way conveyancers across Australia onboard clients and open new matters. If you are planning a property purchase or sale — or are already in the middle of one with us — this post explains what has changed, why it happened, and what you will need to have ready.

What Is Changing?

Australia has extended its Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing (AML/CTF) laws to cover professional service providers for the first time. Until now, these rules applied mainly to banks, financial institutions, and casinos. From 1 July, conveyancers, lawyers, accountants, real estate agents, and dealers in precious metals and stones are captured as well.

The government agency responsible is AUSTRAC — the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre. For NSW conveyancers, verifying who we are acting for is not new — we have long been required to carry out VOI for NSW Land Registry Services and Revenue NSW. What is new under this framework is that conveyancers have become what the law calls “reporting entities,” which means we are now also obligated to understand the nature of the transaction and — in certain circumstances — report activity to AUSTRAC.

These reforms are known as the Tranche 2 AML/CTF changes, and they have been a long time coming. Australia had lagged behind comparable countries in bringing professional service providers into the AML/CTF regime, and was rated one of the worst-performing developed countries for real estate money-laundering safeguards. The reforms bring us into line with international standards.

Why Does Property Matter for Money Laundering?

Real estate has long been identified as one of the most attractive vehicles for money laundering. Large sums can move through property transactions in ways that are harder to trace than cash, particularly where ownership structures — companies, trusts, or nominee arrangements — obscure who is truly behind a purchase.

Australia’s property market, and Sydney specifically, has been named in international reports as a destination for laundering the proceeds of crime, particularly corruption-related funds from the Asia-Pacific region. These new rules are a direct response to that, and they are designed to make it significantly harder to use a property transaction to move or conceal the proceeds of crime.

What Does This Mean for You?

The most direct impact on you as a client is at the start of a matter. Before we can formally act for you, we are now required by law to verify your identity and confirm who is behind the transaction. In practical terms, this means:

Proof of identity. You will need to verify your identity (VOI). This is not new for us: conveyancers have long been required to verify client identity as part of the standard land transfer process. This is the same type of check your bank performs when you open a new account. What has changed is that this now sits within a broader, more formal compliance framework — so while the check itself will feel familiar, you may notice we ask a little more from you around it. It is straightforward, and we will tell you exactly what we need and how to provide it.

Beneficial ownership. If you are purchasing or selling through a company or trust, we will need to identify the individuals who ultimately own (25% or more) or control that entity. This goes beyond the registered name on the contract — we need to understand who is truly behind the transaction. For most clients this is uncomplicated, but it does require us to ask a few more questions than we have in the past.

Ongoing checks. In some cases we may need to follow up with questions during a matter, particularly where the circumstances of the transaction change. This is part of our obligations under the new law, not a reflection of any concern about you personally.

We appreciate these steps add a layer to what is already a busy and detail-intensive process. We have put systems in place to make it as simple as possible, and we will reach out at the right time with clear instructions on what is needed.

What If We Are Already Acting for You?

If you were already a client of ours before 1 July 2026, you are treated as an existing (“pre-commencement”) client under the law. This means we are not required to carry out the full new identity verification process on you immediately, and there is no interruption to your matter.

That said, we still have ongoing obligations to monitor your matter, and we will need to complete full verification if there is a significant change in the transaction or if it is otherwise required of us by law.

For any new matters opened from 1 July 2026 onward, the new requirements apply from the outset.

Protecting Your Information

Alongside the AML/CTF changes, our practice now also falls under the federal Privacy Act. In practice, this formalises how we already handle your personal information — including the identity documents referred to above — and adds clear standards around how it is collected, stored, and protected.

We manage these requirements as part of our everyday processes, so there is nothing further you need to do. If you would like to know more, our Privacy Policy is available on our website, or you can email us directly for a full copy.

Our Commitment Remains the Same

These changes do not alter the quality or nature of the service we provide. They add a compliance step at the beginning of a matter — one that we are well prepared to manage on your behalf.

If you have questions about what you will need to provide, or are thinking about a transaction and want to know what to expect, please reach out to us directly. We are happy to walk you through it before you formally engage our services.

ConveyAbility — 100 Queenscliff Road, Queenscliff NSW 2096