Regulator AUSTRAC has released guidance to help hundreds of thousands of new entities that will need to comply with Australia's expanded anti-money laundering/counter-terrorism financing (AML/CTF) regime by 1 July 2026.
Currently, Australian law requires financial institutions, remittance providers, and digital currency exchanges to report suspicious activity.
Their reporting requirements will also be stepped up under changes to the laws, coming into force for current entities on 31 March 2026.
The original laws were introduced in 2006, designed to sharpen Australia's response to money-laundering and terrorism funds funneling through official financial channels.
The laws were amended in 2024 to step up those requirements as well as expand to other service providers, including:
- real estate agents and property developers
- dealers in precious stones, metals, and products
- lawyers
- conveyancers
- accountants
- trust and company service providers
Since that time, AUSTRAC has been consulting industry bodies, aiming to provide advice on how businesses can meet their obligations in a cost-effective way that scales to the size and complexity of their operations.
What do the new laws require?
The new obligations require businesses to enrol and register with AUSTRAC, as well as develop and maintain a program tailored to their operations.
They also require staff training as well as a commitment to conduct customer due diligence, report certain transactions and suspicious activity, and make and keep records.
Law Society bodies in the states and territories are providing advice to their members, while property exchange platform PEXA has also been working on guidelines for its users.
On Friday, AUSTRAC released official guidance to assist new reporting entities to understand their obligation and to outline the law changes to existing institutions.
It has also provided risk insights and indicators for each of the newly regulated sectors as well as further support for digital currency exchanges.
Criminals 'increasingly sophisticated'
AUSTRAC CEO Brendan Thomas said the law changes are designed to make Australia better equipped to combat money laundering and terrorism financing threats posed by increasingly sophisticated criminal enterprises.
"By working together to close the gaps we will create a hostile environment for organised crime and reduce its impact on the community," he said.
He said businesses can expect more resources to follow, such as sector-specific guidance and starter kits for AML/CTF programs.
"We've been clear about our expectations and what businesses need to do to meet their obligations before 1 July, but we don't expect businesses to do it alone," Mr Thomas said.
"We want to see real efforts to comply and real cooperation to protect Australia's financial system and community from harm."
The new reforms guidance advice is available via AUSTRAC's website.
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