Are you captured by the new money laundering laws?

In November 2024, the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorism Financing (AML/CTF) Amendment Bill was passed and, as a result, from 1 July 2026 a range of new services and entities will fall into the financial crime regulatory regime for the first time, imposing a significant regulatory burden.

To assist in implementing the new laws, AUSTRAC (Australia’s financial crime regulator) is working on an overhaul of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Rules Instrument 2007 (No.1), commonly referred to simply as ‘the Rules’.

The new laws will, among other things, extend compliance obligations to specific types of services (known as 'designated services') typically provided by:

• Real estate professionals (including agents, buyers’ agents, and property developers)
• Dealers in precious stones, metals, and related products (only if these businesses provide Designated Services involving $10,000 or more in physical currency, virtual assets, or a combination)
• Lawyers and conveyancers
• Accountants, and
• Trust and company service providers.

There are a wide range of obligations for companies captured by the regime, key among them are:

• Enrol and register with AUSTRAC
• Develop and maintain an AML/CTF program tailored to your business
• Conduct initial and ongoing customer due diligence
• Report certain transactions and suspicious activities
• Make and keep records.

A documented AML/CTF program, approved by senior management and independently evaluated at least once every three years, must contain:

• An ML/TF risk assessment that identifies and assesses the risks of money laundering, terrorism financing and proliferation financing a business may reasonably face in providing designated services
• AML/CTF policies, procedures, systems and controls that appropriately manage and mitigate risks. These policies must also ensure that compliance with AML/CTF obligations and be appropriate to the nature, size and complexity of the business

Customer due diligence procedures must be sufficient to establish, based on verified information, that the customer, or any beneficial owner or agent:

• Is who they claim to be
• Is, or isn’t, subject to financial sanctions
• Is, or isn’t, a politically exposed person, or a relative or close associate of a politically exposed person.

The behaviour of customers must also be monitored during the course of the relationship in order to identify any suspicious behaviour or transactions. Some customer behaviour or transactions may trigger the need to update a customer’s risk profile or re-verify certain information.

Achieving compliance will not be easy, or quick, and the time to prepare is now. We recommend potentially impacted businesses identify if they provide any Designated Services as specified in the AML/CTF Act, and if they do:

• Undertake a ML/TF risk assessment
• Based on the results of the risk assessment, develop a suite of policies and procedures to adequately mitigate risks
• Establish a program to undertake initial customer due diligence, enhanced customer due diligence and ongoing monitoring of customer behaviour and transactions
• Implement processes to ensure any suspicious matters or threshold transactions are reported to AUSTRAC within the legislated timeframes.

Failure to comply is not an option, the reputation damage and financial penalties can be severe.

PKF Integrity has leading practitioners with extensive experience helping companies comply with complex AML/CTF laws. Contact us to explore how we can help ensure your compliance with this new regime.