How to use these guides
Start with whether the Act applies to you. It depends on the services your firm provides, not on your job title or size. If it does apply, the program guides take you through each obligation in the order you need it, and the sector guides pull together what matters for your kind of practice.
Every legal statement carries a chip showing where it comes from:
Act s 51B the law, read in the authorised textAUSTRAC guidance the regulator's published guidance
A solid chip is the law, read in the authorised text on the Federal Register of Legislation. A dashed chip is AUSTRAC's published guidance, or a government estimate. Guidance is useful, but it is not the law. Links to AUSTRAC open in a new window, and linking to AUSTRAC does not mean AUSTRAC endorses these guides.
Dates that have passed are written as history, for example that enrolment was due on 29 July 2026 for firms already providing a covered service on 1 July 2026.
Start here
- 01
Tranche 2 explained for small firms
What the 2024 amending Act did, who it brought in on 1 July 2026, what a small firm must have, and where enforcement stood in September 2026.
Sch 3 item 11 s 51B - 02
Is my business a reporting entity?
The Table 5 and Table 6 services for agents, conveyancers, lawyers and accountants, and what follows if one is yours.
s 5 s 6 - 03
What is not a designated service
Your own fees, incidental payments, leases of 30 years or less, property management, barristers, court orders and the link to Australia.
s 6(5C) s 6(6B) - 04
Tranche 2 key dates
Every verified date: what applied and when, the 28-day and 14-day rules, the first compliance report and the first evaluation.
Rules 9-9 Transitional Rules s 17 - 05
AML/CTF obligations checklist
Every obligation with its section, from enrolment to independent evaluation.
s 26B s 47
Build your program
- 01
How to enrol with AUSTRAC
What to have ready, the 28-day rule, telling AUSTRAC about changes, and what to do if you are late.
s 51B s 51F - 02
The AML/CTF compliance officer
Who can hold the role, the 28-day and 14-day rules, and what the role involves.
s 26J s 26M - 03
How to do an ML/TF risk assessment
The four factors, senior-manager approval and when you must review it.
s 26C s 26D - 04
What an AML/CTF program must include
The risk assessment plus the policies, and every matter the policies must cover.
s 26B s 26F - 05
Customer due diligence
Initial, delayed, ongoing, simplified and enhanced due diligence, existing clients and reliance on others.
s 28 s 32 - 06
Suspicious matter reports
When the obligation arises, the 3-day, 5-day and 24-hour clocks, and the tipping-off offence.
s 41 s 123 - 07
Record-keeping
Which records to keep, the four 7-year clocks and when each starts.
s 107 s 116 - 08
The independent evaluation
What it covers, who can carry it out, and the first-evaluation dates set by your enrolment identifier.
s 26F(4)(f) Rules 5-10
By sector
- 01
Accounting practices
The Table 6 items that capture an accounting practice, the limits on item 3, and the rest of the obligations.
s 6 - 02
Real estate agencies
Both buyer and seller as customers, due diligence up to settlement, and working with the conveyancer.
Rules 6-32 - 03
Conveyancers
Table 6 items 1 and 3, the settlement window for due diligence, and working with agents.
Rules 6-33 - 04
Law firms
Which legal services are listed, trust accounts, legal professional privilege and the barrister carve-out.
s 6(6B) s 41 - 05
Dealers in precious metals and stones
Covered from 1 July 2026. AUSTRAC's jeweller kit, and why our kit does not cover dealers.
AUSTRAC starter kits
Cost
- 01
What AML/CTF compliance costs a small firm
The government's Impact Analysis estimates, what AUSTRAC's free starter kits cover, and how our prices compare.
Impact Analysis, Table 19
What these guides are not
They are general information, not legal advice. We do not act as your AML/CTF compliance officer, we do not lodge reports for you, and we do not carry out your independent evaluation. If you find an error in a citation, date or threshold, email [email protected] and we will correct it within 5 business days, at no cost.
For the practical side, go to your sector page: accounting practices, real estate agencies, conveyancers or legal practices. If you want the documents, AUSTRAC's starter kits are free; our kit builds on them for A$497, and our Set-up service tailors them from A$990. Not sure you are covered? Try the free six-question check.
Independent. Not affiliated with, or endorsed by, AUSTRAC or the Australian Government.