Use current service guidance
AUSTRAC publishes both real-estate industry guidance and a dedicated designated-services page. The scope review should use the actual role and transaction arrangement. Do not assume that every property activity has the same treatment or that a general description from before the reforms remains current. This guide is an entry point, not a decision for a particular sale, leasehold arrangement or licence to occupy. The latest guidance includes changes in this area. Check the source wording and applicable law before applying an exclusion.
- Real estate: Industry guidance index
- Real estate designated services: Real estate designated services
- Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006: Sections 6, 41, 43 and 47; Part 3
- Brokering service
Check item 1 of table 5 and the actual transaction arrangement.
- Represented party
Identify the party the agent represents.
- Other party
The other side is also a customer for this service.
Brokering can involve two AML customers
For the item 1 brokering service, both sides are customers. Service timing differs between parties. Item 2 direct sales have a different customer definition.
Connected concepts. Lines do not show ownership or a reporting hierarchy.
The customer can include both parties
For brokering under item 1 of table 5, AUSTRAC says both sides of the transaction are customers for AML purposes. A seller’s agent therefore cannot assume only the seller matters. The service begins at different points for the represented party and the other party. By contrast, item 2 covers selling or transferring real estate in the course of a business selling real estate, where an independent real estate agent does not broker the transaction, with the buyer or transferee as customer. A private seller or a business making an incidental sale of its premises does not provide the item 2 service merely by selling that property. An agent who brokers the transaction must separately assess item 1.
- Brokered transaction
A fictional agent brokers a sale under the relevant item 1 service.
- Seller
Identify the represented party and the applicable start point.
- Buyer
Check the other party and its applicable start point.
- Separate scope
A private seller’s position does not remove the agent’s need to assess its own designated service.
The agent’s service has two sides
Hypothetical example. The labelled links explain the arrangement; they do not determine its legal treatment.
Hypothetical example. Agent brokers the sale. Seller: Party to the sale. Buyer: Party to the sale.
Worked example: an unexpected payer
Imagine a property transaction where the expected buyer information is on file, but new payment instructions refer to an unrelated company. In the example, the agency records the change and refers it through its approved process. It does not assume the explanation is criminal or accept it solely because settlement is close. The reviewer identifies what information the agency can obtain and what remains unresolved. This example concerns a practical information change; it does not decide the reporting obligation for every agency or transaction.
Keep the handover clear
The example agency uses a short internal handover that identifies the customer, service, new information and required reviewer. It avoids putting restricted conclusions into a shared customer-facing note. Staff need to know how to raise a concern without promising the customer an outcome they cannot authorise. These are suggested communication arrangements. They do not replace the legal rules or create a universal script. The business should test its process against its actual roles, systems and service types rather than copy a generic diagram unchanged.
Connect the requirements to agency work
Identify the scope, program, CDD and reporting requirements that apply to the agency. Staff should be able to find the relevant instruction when a property transaction changes or information is missing. Avoid making an assessment result sound like approval from AUSTRAC. This guide and any starter kit do not confirm compliance. The business still needs to apply current requirements to its services and keep evidence of its decisions and operating controls.