big changes are coming… anti money laundering

From 1 July 2026, Lawyers and Conveyancers who facilitate the sale and purchase of a property must have an Anti Money Laundering / Counter Terrorism Financial program that specifies how they will carry out due diligence for Purchasers and Vendors during their transaction.

The comes as a result of legislation passed by the Australian Federal Government, with AUSTRAC being the lead agency responsible for monitoring and compliance.

Any risk of money laundering must be reported to AUSTRAC, Australia’s financial intelligence unit and AML/CTF regulator.

The way the requirements are designed mean we will need to verify the identity of our clients and ensure that the funds they are using in the transaction comes from legitimate sources.

This legislation will impact Lawyers and Conveyancers requiring them to implement systems into their practices, along with their clients who will be required to provide evidence of funds being contributed to the transaction and where/how these funds have been obtained by the client.

This will be another change, that will become the norm over time, that clients will be required to adjust to, in balancing personal privacy vs legislative requirements, that both Lawyers and Conveyancers will have no discretion in undertaking.