Common myths, debunked
The most common misconceptions about Tranche 2, addressed directly.
"My agency is too small to be in scope." False. There is no minimum size threshold. A sole-trader buyer's agent who represents one buyer in one transaction provides a designated service and is a reporting entity. The programme can be smaller and simpler for smaller agencies, but the obligations themselves apply equally.
"The buyer's lawyer handles all this — I don't need to worry." False. Every reporting entity is independently responsible for CDD on its own customers. Reliance on a lawyer is permitted only with a written agreement under sections 37A–38 of the AML/CTF Act 2006 (Cth), and even then legal liability remains with you. Without an agreement, the lawyer's CDD does not cover your obligations.
"If I don't take cash, I'm out of scope." False. The cash threshold (AU$10,000) determines when you must file a TTR — it does not determine whether you are a reporting entity. You are in scope because you provide a designated service under Items 53–55 of the AML/CTF Act 2006 (Cth), regardless of how the money moves.
"We can use a generic AML template." False. The AML/CTF Rules 2025 require the programme to be tailored to your agency's specific risk profile, customer base, and operations. Generic templates fail the specificity test and are flagged immediately by AUSTRAC inspectors. They are also dangerous: most templates online still describe the abolished Part A / Part B structure.
"This only kicks in for properties over $X." False. There is no transaction-value threshold for designated services in real estate. A AU$400,000 first-home purchase carries the same CDD, programme, and reporting obligations as a AU$40 million commercial sale. The risk profile differs — and your programme should reflect that — but the obligations attach regardless of price.
"If I'm a property manager, this doesn't apply." True for residential property management. Residential leasing is not a designated service. False for commercial leasing — Item 54 of the AML/CTF Act 2006 (Cth) Table 3 captures representing landlords or tenants in commercial leasehold transactions. Mixed agencies that do both residential PM and any sales or commercial leasing work are in scope through the sales or commercial arm.
"We'll deal with it after 1 July 2026." False as a strategy. From 1 July 2026 the obligations apply in full from day one — programme adopted, Compliance Officer appointed, CDD running on every transaction, records being kept. Standing up the programme retroactively means the first months of post-commencement transactions sit in a compliance gap that cannot be back-filled cleanly.
The myths have a common pattern — they assume the regime applies "to someone else, somewhere else, for transactions other than mine," when in fact it attaches to every designated service your agency provides on day one.
What to do next: Run through this list with your principal and any senior agents, and identify which assumptions your agency was operating on. Resolve them before they become enforcement findings.