What Australia’s New Tranche 2 AML/CTF Laws Mean For You

You might have recently heard about Australia’s Tranche 2 Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing (AML/CTF) reforms. These new laws are rolling out to close regulatory gaps and protect businesses from financial crime.

While these changes introduce new compliance requirements for professional service providers, they also mean a few minor adjustments for you, our valued clients. Here is a quick, straightforward guide to what is changing and how it affects our work together.

What is Tranche 2?

Historically, AML/CTF laws primarily applied to banks, financial institutions, and casinos. From 1 July 2026, the Federal Government is extending these obligations to "gatekeeper" professions. This includes:

• Lawyers and conveyancers

• Accountants and tax agents

• Real estate agents and property developers

• Trust and company service providers

  Because we provide services that fall under these new regulations, we are required by law to implement stricter risk assessment, monitoring, and verification procedures.

  
  

How Does This Affect You?

Our day-to-day commitment to delivering excellent service hasn't changed, but our onboarding process will look a little more detailed. Moving forward, you can expect the following:

• Enhanced Identity Verification: Before we can begin work on certain transactions (like buying property, setting up trusts, or managing corporate structures), we will need to verify your identity. This is similar to the "Know Your Customer" (KYC) checks you complete when opening a bank account.

• Documentation for Entities: If you are operating through a company or trust, we will need to ask for documentation to verify the ultimate beneficial owners or controllers of that structure.

  
  

Keeping Your Information Safe

We understand that providing identity documents can feel personal. Please rest assured that your privacy and data security remain our highest priorities. All information collected under these new regulations will be handled securely and strictly in accordance with privacy laws.

These reforms are an important step in keeping Australia’s business landscape safe and transparent. We appreciate your cooperation and understanding as we transition into this new compliance framework together.

Have questions? If you have an upcoming project or transaction and want to know exactly what onboarding documents you’ll need, please don't hesitate to reach out to our team.