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AML compliance for buyer's agents vs sales agents: what's different

Both buyer's agents and sales agents are covered by AUSTRAC Tranche 2 from 1 July 2026. But who you must verify, your risk profile, and how auction obligations work differ depending on which side of the transaction you sit on.

By AML Simple Team

Most AML/CTF guides for real estate treat "agent" as one thing. They cover obligations, deadlines, and CDD requirements — but they don't distinguish between buyer's agents and sales agents.

Those roles work differently. And from 1 July 2026, that matters for how you apply AUSTRAC's requirements.

The fastest way to get this right

Before the detail: if you haven't started your AML/CTF program yet, the quickest path is through AML Simple.

  1. Sign up — around 2 minutes. Enter your ABN and AML Simple pulls your registered business details automatically. Your organisation profile is pre-filled.
  2. AUSTRAC Readiness Check (/check) — around 5 minutes. Answers the questions your agency needs to address before 1 July 2026 and shows exactly where you stand.
  3. AML/CTF Program Generator (/program/generate) — around 15 minutes. The wizard asks the right questions about your agency and generates your AML/CTF program document, consistent with AUSTRAC's Program Starter Kit structure.

The program generator asks whether your agency acts as a buyer's agent, a seller's agent, or both. Your answers shape the program it produces.

Both roles are covered — there is no exemption

Under the AML/CTF Act 2006, the designated service that triggers obligations for real estate agents is:

Brokering the purchase, sale, or transfer of real estate for other people as part of a business.

AUSTRAC's guidance makes clear that "typical buyer's and seller's agent arrangements" are both designated services.

If you act as an intermediary between a client and a property transaction — whether your client is buying or selling — your agency is a reporting entity from 1 July 2026.

Property management and leasing are not designated services. Agencies that only manage rentals (no sales activity) are not covered.

Who you must verify

This is where the practical difference sits.

If you are a sales agent (representing the vendor): Your client is the vendor — the person or entity selling the property. Initial CDD applies to your client before you provide your designated service. That means verifying the vendor's identity before you list or market the property.

Vendors are typically people you already have a relationship with. But a pre-existing relationship does not substitute for CDD. You must still collect and verify their identity in accordance with the Act's requirements.

There is a separate provision in AUSTRAC's guidance that deals with CDD on counterparties — specifically, situations where a sales agent represents the vendor but cannot compel the buyer (the counterparty) to provide identification. AUSTRAC has introduced a deemed CDD provision for this situation. The detail of when that applies is in AUSTRAC's real estate sector guidance.

If you are a buyer's agent (representing the purchaser): Your client is the buyer. Initial CDD applies before you provide your service — in practice, before you begin searching for or negotiating on property on their behalf.

Buyer's agents are more likely to encounter:

  • Clients who are interstate or overseas and cannot attend in person
  • Investors who have never inspected the property they are purchasing
  • Clients using complex ownership structures (trusts, companies, SMSFs)
  • Foreign nationals with non-standard identity documents

Each of these factors affects how you conduct CDD and what risk rating you apply to the client.

Remote clients: a buyer's agent consideration

AUSTRAC accepts video call verification as a valid CDD method where clients cannot attend in person.

A typical video call verification record would include:

  • The date and platform used (Zoom, Teams, phone call with video)
  • An attestation from the agent that the client's face matched the photo on their identity document
  • The identity document details (type, number, issuer, expiry)

The specifics of how your agency conducts and records video call verification should be documented in your AML/CTF program. AUSTRAC's guidance on this is at https://www.austrac.gov.au/business/core-guidance/customer-identification-and-verification.

The obligation is to verify — not to meet in person.

Remote clients are a specific risk factor that reporting entities are expected to address in their AML/CTF program. When completing CDD on a remote client, other risk factors present in the transaction (high property value, unfamiliar jurisdiction, no in-person inspection) are relevant to the risk rating you assign.

Auctions and delayed CDD

Under s 29 of the AML/CTF Act 2006, a reporting entity may defer completing initial CDD until after providing a designated service in certain circumstances. This provision exists specifically because it may be impractical to complete CDD on the winning bidder before the hammer falls at auction.

Delayed CDD has strict conditions. All of the following must be met:

  • It is not reasonably practicable to complete CDD before providing the service
  • The ML/TF/PF risk of the transaction is assessed as low
  • CDD is completed as soon as practicable after the service is provided
  • The agency has documented policies and procedures covering the delay period
  • There are no indicators of money laundering, terrorism financing, or proliferation financing
  • Delayed CDD is not otherwise prohibited (for example, the client is not a foreign PEP)

Where delayed CDD applies, AUSTRAC guidance sets a deadline: by the earlier of 15 calendar days from the date of exchange of contracts, or before settlement.

Delayed CDD cannot be applied where the client is a foreign politically exposed person, there are suspicious indicators, the transaction involves a high-risk jurisdiction, or the client is otherwise assessed as high-risk. This list is not exhaustive — the full conditions are in s 29 of the AML/CTF Act 2006 and AUSTRAC's delayed CDD guidance.

For agencies running auctions, this provision requires documented procedures in your AML/CTF program — it does not operate automatically. Your program needs to specify when the delayed CDD exception applies and what controls are in place during the gap period.

Buyer's agencies with a single designated service

AUSTRAC's Program Starter Kit is designed for agencies with 15 or fewer personnel providing only one designated service. Buyer's agencies that exclusively act for purchasers (no vendor side, no property management) may fit squarely in that scope.

The Starter Kit includes a customisable Program document and Risk Assessment template. Once customised and approved by senior management, the materials become the agency's AML/CTF program.

Agencies that provide more than one designated service, or have more than 15 personnel, need a program that goes beyond the Starter Kit scope.

What to do with this

Whether you act for buyers, sellers, or both, the core preparation steps are the same:

  • Enrol with AUSTRAC via AUSTRAC Online (enrolment is open now, deadline 29 July 2026)
  • Build your AML/CTF program (AUSTRAC's Program Starter Kit is a free starting point)
  • Appoint a compliance officer and notify AUSTRAC by 29 July 2026
  • Set up your CDD process for your client type — including video call procedures if you work with remote buyers
  • Train your staff before 1 July 2026

The differences in this post affect how your program is shaped and what your CDD workflow looks like — not whether the obligations apply.

AML Simple's program wizard asks which side of transactions your agency sits on and adjusts accordingly. Start your AML program.

The information in this article describes obligations under the AML/CTF Act 2006 as amended by the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Amendment Act 2024. AML Simple is a compliance workflow tool — not a legal adviser. Whether your specific circumstances satisfy your obligations under the Act is a matter for your compliance officer and, where needed, qualified legal advice.

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