AML/CTF Acronyms - A to Z

An 11-digit identifier for any business operating in Australia. Used to verify business customers - your AML provider runs an ABN lookup as part of KYB (Know Your Business).

The federal database of every ABN-registered business. Free public lookup. Your AML provider queries it automatically when verifying a company customer.

A 9-digit identifier for incorporated companies (a subset of ABN-holders). Issued by ASIC. Required when verifying a corporate purchaser.

The federal department that approves Document Verification Service (DVS) Gateway Service Providers. Your AML provider operates through one of those approved gateways.

The legal regime that requires regulated businesses to check who they're dealing with and report transactions that look like dirty money. Always paired with CTF in Australian law.

The combined Australian regime, established by the AML/CTF Act 2006 and extended to real estate by the 2024 Amendment Act (Tranche 2). What you have to comply with from 1 July 2026.

The 13 principles in the Privacy Act 1988 that govern how organisations collect, use and store personal information. APP 3 (collection minimisation) and APP 11 (deletion when no longer needed) are the ones that bite hardest in AML/CTF.

The federal companies regulator. Maintains the company register and (in development) the Beneficial Ownership Register. Your AML provider queries ASIC data when verifying corporate customers.

The federal tax authority. For real estate AML the relevant ATO function is the Register of Foreign Ownership of Australian Assets - foreign buyers must be registered, and your provider may cross-check it.

The federal regulator for AML/CTF. They run the rules, take your reports (SMR, TTR, annual compliance), and run audits. From 1 July 2026 they're your AML regulator if you broker property sales.

The natural person who actually owns or controls a company, trust or other legal arrangement. Identified at the 25%-or-more threshold. Same idea as UBO. Required because criminals use shell companies to hide identity.

Victoria's regulator for real estate licensing and trust accounts (under the Estate Agents Act 1980). Sits alongside AUSTRAC - they regulate trust accounting and licensing; AUSTRAC regulates AML.

Knowing who your customer actually is - identity, contact details, and (for entities) beneficial owners and controllers. Performed at onboarding (initial CDD) and updated over time (ongoing CDD).

The companion regime to AML, focused on stopping money flowing to terrorist organisations. SMR deadlines are tighter for terrorism (24 hours vs 3 business days for laundering).

The federal department that maintains Australia's Consolidated Sanctions List - the master list of people and entities you cannot do business with. Updated regularly; your AML provider screens against it.

FATF's term for the non-bank sectors that should be regulated for AML - real estate, lawyers, accountants, dealers in precious metals/stones, trust and company service providers. Tranche 2 brings Australia's DNFBPs into scope.

The federal government service that confirms an ID document (passport, driver's licence, Medicare card etc.) is genuine and active. Your AML provider connects to it via an approved gateway - you don't deal with it directly.

Extra checks for higher-risk customers - foreign PEPs, complex ownership structures, sanctioned-jurisdiction connections, anything that doesn't add up. Includes detailed source-of-funds and source-of-wealth verification.

Real-estate sales channel where buyers submit a price and terms rather than bidding at auction. CDD timing is more flexible than auction but the obligation still attaches before contract.

The international body that sets global AML/CTF standards. Australia's failure to regulate real estate was a long-standing FATF concern (raised in the 2015 Mutual Evaluation) - Tranche 2 closes that gap.

Foreign buyers need FIRB approval to purchase Australian property. Sits alongside AML/CTF - both regimes apply, neither replaces the other. Your AML provider should flag foreign buyers; FIRB approval is the buyer's separate obligation.

The umbrella term for proving a customer is who they claim - combining document verification (DVS), biometric checks (selfie + liveness), and database cross-checks. Step one of every CDD process.

A report for cross-border value transfers. Almost never applies to real estate agencies because you don't move money internationally - your conveyancer or the bank does.

An Australian Government security assessment scheme. Mainly relevant when an AML provider sells to government or large franchises with strict procurement rules. ISO 27001 is more widely demanded for private-sector real estate.

CDD applied to corporate customers - companies, trusts, SMSFs, partnerships. Verifies the legal entity and identifies its beneficial owners and controllers. More work than KYC for an individual.

The same idea as CDD, just a different acronym borrowed from banking. The official Australian regulatory term is CDD, but you'll hear KYC everywhere - including in most AML providers' product names.

An SMSF property purchase using borrowed funds, structured so the lender's recourse is limited to the property itself. Common in real estate; requires entity-level CDD plus verification of the bare trust.

FATF's periodic country review. Australia's 2015 MER flagged failure to regulate DNFBPs (including real estate) as a critical weakness. The next MER is one of the political drivers behind Tranche 2.

The process of disguising the origin of criminal proceeds so they appear legitimate. Real estate is a common laundering channel because property is a high-value, slow-moving, internationally portable asset.

AUSTRAC's periodic assessment of money-laundering risk by sector. The 2024 NRA rates real estate as high-risk - used as the formal evidence base for Tranche 2.

The federal privacy regulator. Their February 2026 guidance for AML/CTF reporting entities is the source of the "destroy ID document images after verification" rule that catches a lot of agencies out.

A scheduled property viewing. Cash holding deposits taken at OFIs are a TTR trigger if A$10,000+. Visitor capture at OFIs is also where reusable digital identity becomes useful.

A current or recent senior public official, their immediate family, or close associates. Foreign PEPs always require EDD; domestic and international-organisation PEPs are risk-rated case by case.

The dominant electronic property settlement platform in Australia. Their PEXA Clear product (launching July 2026) provides AML/CTF compliance at the settlement step - an option agents may rely on or coordinate with.

Funding of weapons-of-mass-destruction programmes, particularly those subject to UN sanctions. Added to the AML/CTF risk-assessment scope in the 2024 reforms - your program must consider ML, TF and PF.

Software that helps businesses comply with regulation. AML providers are RegTech. AUSTRAC runs an active RegTech engagement programme.

The national peak body for real estate. Provides member education, lobbying and AML/CTF preferred-provider arrangements. See also: REIV, REINSW, REIQ, REIWA, REISA, REIT.

The NSW state real-estate body. Runs training, member services, lobbying - and shapes which AML providers are recommended to its membership.

Queensland state real-estate body. Has partnered with PEXA Clear for member training around Tranche 2.

South Australia state real-estate body.

Tasmania state real-estate body. Note: in financial markets "REIT" also stands for Real Estate Investment Trust - different thing entirely.

Victoria's state real-estate body. Active in AML/CTF advocacy and runs preferred-provider arrangements.

Western Australia state real-estate body.

A report filed with AUSTRAC when something looks off. Money-laundering suspicion: 3 business days. Terrorism financing: 24 hours. The compliance officer files; tipping-off the customer is criminal.

A superannuation fund run by its members for their own retirement. Common purchasing vehicle for property. Triggers entity-level CDD - trustees, beneficiaries (by class), settlors and any controllers must be identified.

Where the money for this specific transaction came from. Required for higher-risk buyers - payslips, sale of prior property, business sale, inheritance, gift letter. AML providers ask buyers to upload supporting documents.

Where the customer's overall wealth came from - bigger picture than just this purchase. Asked when source-of-funds alone doesn't add up against the customer's profile.

An informal industry term sometimes used for the senior-manager attestation that the AML/CTF program has been approved before any designated service is provided. Not a formal AUSTRAC term - but you may see it in vendor UIs.

Funding terrorist organisations or activities. Lower volume than ML but higher urgency - SMRs for TF must be filed within 24 hours, vs 3 business days for ML.

The reform package that brings real estate, lawyers, accountants, and dealers in precious metals/stones into the AML/CTF regime from 1 July 2026. "Tranche 1" was the original 2006 regime that covered banks and casinos.

A report filed with AUSTRAC when you receive A$10,000+ in physical cash. Rare in real estate because settlement runs through banks - but cash deposits at open homes or VPA cash payments count. 10 business days to file.

The actual human being who ultimately owns or controls a company, trust or other legal arrangement - even when ownership runs through several layers. Same idea as BO. Identified at the 25%-or-more threshold.

The conveyancing-industry term for ID verification at settlement. Overlaps with AML CDD but is governed by separate ARNECC rules and is the conveyancer's responsibility, not the agent's.

Money the vendor pays the agency to fund the marketing of their listing - typically A$3–15k for a Victorian residential campaign. AUSTRAC has flagged agency-trust-account VPA cash payments as a known laundering pattern.