Key points:
- Businesses and individuals covered by AML/CFT legislation will now be responsible for alerting authorities about potential crimes without tipping off criminals in the process
- The offence carries a maximum penalty of AU$39,000 (US$24,577) or up to two years in prison
- These changes are part of a wider AML/CFT overhaul in Australia
The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) has made several changes to how the tipping off offence will work going forward.
As the financial intelligence unit and anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing (AML/CTF) regulator for Australia, AUSTRAC is responsible for overseeing how different laws and regulations affect business and individuals.
This means casinos will now be prohibited from disclosing certain information to anyone else other than AUSTRAC if it could be reasonably expected to prejudice an investigation.
Brendan Thomas, AUSTRAC CEO, explained that: “The previous legislation was almost 20 years old and a lot has changed in that time.
“AUSTRAC is about to usher in 100,000 new businesses to the regime next year and they too will be subject to the tipping off offence.
“The change to the offence is about balancing intelligence gathering with practicality to ensure we can all get the best outcome – identifying criminal activity and driving money laundering out of legitimate businesses.”
The tipping off offence, which carries a maximum penalty of AU$39,000 (US$24,577) or up to two years in prison, will now focus on the potential negative effects of how the disclosure was handled.
Good to know: The new AML/CFT Act will come into effect in 2026, which will see entities in accounting and digital assets come under AUSTRAC’s remit
Thomas continued: “We need businesses to work with us to detect illicit transactions – tipping off risks criminals getting a heads up. Criminals can then take action to hide or disguise their illegal activities.
“However, we know that effective information sharing within and between businesses helps stop money laundering.
“The move to a focus on harms strikes a better balance between protecting law enforcement investigations and allowing industry to collaborate in fighting money laundering, terrorism financing and other serious crimes.”
During the recent Regulating the Game 2025 Sydney conference, Michael Phelan analysed the balancing act between over-regulation and harm minimisation now faced by Australia’s regulatory enforcement.
