Ray White Group Agency Compliance Manager, Shaun Doyle, said the changes will require real estate agents to implement formal systems for customer verification, transaction monitoring and suspicious activity reporting.
“From 1 July 2026, real estate professionals will be formally regulated under Australia’s AML/CTF legislation,” Mr Doyle said.
“These are enforceable legal obligations, not optional guidelines. Agents, buyers’ agents, and developers will be required to enrol with AUSTRAC, implement a compliant AML/CTF program, appoint a compliance officer, verify client identities, monitor transactions, report suspicious activity, and retain records for seven years.”
The reforms, known as “tranche two,” will extend the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006 to designated non-financial businesses and professionals, marking a fundamental shift in how agencies operate.
Mr Doyle identified six key requirements that real estate professionals must prepare for ahead of the July 2026 implementation date.
“First, you must enrol and register with AUSTRAC between 31 March and before 1 July 2026,” he said.
“You’ll also need to develop and maintain an AML/CTF program that controls and mitigates the AML risks relevant to your business, and implement customer due diligence processes.”
According to Mr Doyle, sales agents will be required to verify vendor identities before providing services, while buyer’s agents will need to verify purchaser identities.
AUSTRAC is currently reviewing principles around “deferred due diligence” and the sharing of verification information between agents and conveyancers.
“Ongoing customer due diligence will be essential, requiring agents to continue assessing and monitoring customer risk throughout the relationship,” he said.
“Additionally, agents must report any suspicious transactions or behaviours to AUSTRAC, submit an annual compliance report, and retain compliance records for at least seven years.”
To help agencies prepare, Mr Doyle recommends several proactive steps, including appointing a compliance officer, understanding obligations, planning to build an AML/CTF program, and ensuring proper record-keeping systems.
“Think about who you want to nominate to be your compliance officer – it might be a senior team member or you could take the role yourself if you’re a business owner. Larger business owners may want to consider engaging a person with prior expertise,” he said.
Mr Doyle said that Ray White is taking early steps to prepare its network, with plans to partner with AML providers to give business owners the necessary compliance tools.
“We will likely partner with two or three AML providers so that they can provide our business owners with the tools they need to manage compliance requirements,” he said.
“Our network needs to wait for further information before signing up with AML providers to ensure we complete our due diligence.”
