Last Updated on 29/04/2026 by Damin Murdock
Australia’s financial compliance landscape is going through its biggest change in almost 20 years. The Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing (AML/CTF) Amendment Act 2024 will bring a huge new group of “gatekeeper” jobs under the law.
The “Tranche 2” reforms will go into effect on July 1, 2026. This will end the time when only banks and other financial institutions were closely watched for money laundering risks. The rules of the game have changed for good if your business does high-value transactions or provides professional services.
Who is Affected? The “Gatekeeper” Professions
The new law targets “Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions” (DNFBPs). These are professionals whose work has been used by organized crime in the past to hide where illegal money comes from.
Newly regulated sectors include:
- Lawyers and conveyancers handling real estate transactions, managing client funds, or creating legal entities.
- Accountants and tax agents providing trust and company services or managing assets.
- Real estate agents, particularly those involved in the sale and purchase of property.
- Trust and company service providers that are forming companies or acting as nominee shareholders.
- Dealers in precious metals and stones and jewellers and bullion dealers handling high-value transactions.
What Are the New Requirements?
The shift is away from “plausible deniability” toward mandatory active monitoring. From July 2026, you must:
- Register with AUSTRAC via the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre.
- Perform your Know Your Customer (KYC) for designated services by identifying each customer, which includes finding out who the “beneficial owners”
- Maintain an AML/CTFG compliance program based on risk and keep records of how they find and reduce risks.
- Report any suspicious matter (SMR) if you believe a transaction is connected to terrorism or involves money from crime.
Is Your Company Ready?
Moving from being an unregulated professional to an AUSTRAC-regulated entity is a significant change. It requires looking into new software, updated client onboarding processes, and specific staff training.
If you need expert legal advice, feel free to contact Damin Murdock at Leo Lawyers via our website, on (02) 8201 0051 or at office@leolawyers.com.au. Further, if you liked this article, please subscribe to our newsletter via our Website, and subscribe to our YouTube, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram. If you liked this article or video, please also give us a favourable Google Review.
DISCLAIMER: This is not legal advice and is general information only. You should not rely upon the information contained in this article, and if you require specific legal advice, please contact us.
Damin Murdock (J.D | LL.M | BACS - Finance) has over 17 years of experience as a commercial lawyer. He helps businesses navigate construction and technology law. Damin has held several big leadership roles, including serving as a director of a national law firm and the Chief Legal Officer for Lawpath.
He has personally helped more than 2,000 startups and small businesses. With over 300 five-star reviews, his clients clearly value his practical advice and simple way of explaining things. Damin has also hosted over 100 webinars that thousands of people have watched to get reliable legal help.
