Mandatory eConveyancing in Queensland from February 2023

New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Western Australia have made eConveyancing mandatory for certain land title transactions, and now Queensland is soon to follow. The new Land Title Regulation 2022 will commence in early 2023, and will replace the current Land Title Regulation 2015 in Queensland. The Regulation reflects the existing position in a number of other states and is reflective of modern conveyancing practises by introducing mandatory electronic conveyancing (eConveyancing) for property transactions.

The Titles Queensland has announced that eConveyancing will be mandated from 20 February 2023, following the making of the Land Title Regulation 2022. Unless exempted, it will be mandatory for certain types of instruments and documents to be lodged or deposited through an Electronic Lodgement Network (ELN).

The following instruments or documents that must be lodged under section 4 of the Land Title Regulation 2022 are:

• an instrument of transfer for a lot (Form 1)
• an instrument of mortgage for a lot (National Mortgage Form)
• an instrument releasing a mortgage of a lot (Form 2)
• a caveat for a lot (Form 11)
• a request to withdraw a caveat lodged over a lot (Form 14)
• a priority notice for a lot (PNN)
• a request to extend a priority notice over a lot (PNE)
• a request to withdraw a priority notice over a lot (PNW)
• an application to be registered as a personal representative for a registered owner of a lot who has died.

However, certain instruments are exempted where:

• the ELN does not have the functionality to prepare, lodge or deposit the required instrument
• circumstances beyond the control of the subscriber prevent the instrument from being lodged or deposited electronically (for example, due to internet outages or unavailability of the ELN)
• the instrument cannot be accepted or processed by the system used in the land registry because the system does not have the functionality to accept or process instruments or other documents lodged or deposited using an ELN
• where the instrument is required to be prepared, lodged or deposited with another instrument or document which is not an Electronic Conveyancing Document
• one or more of the parties are self-represented (i.e. without a solicitor to handle their conveyance)
• where an instrument or document has been executed by at least one party prior to the date mandatory eConveyancing takes effect.

If exempted, paper documents may be lodged instead. If a property transaction has been executed by a party before the mandatory commencement date, the transaction can still be paper lodged.

The required instruments or documents can be lodged by subscribers with either of the two approved ELN operators in Queensland – Property Exchange Australia Limited (PEXA) and Sympli Australia Pty Ltd (Sympli). Currently, not all required instruments are available through each ELN, and each party to the transaction must use the same ELN.

PEXA is an eConveyancing platform introduced in 2010 in response to the Australian Government’s initiatives to deliver an e-Conveyancing option to the Australian property industry. Sympli is another ELN platform that offers eConveyancing subscription services. In 2013, the Electronic Conveyancing National Law (Queensland Act) 2013 was enacted to establish rules for the lodgement and deposit of land title transactions through an ELN. 

eConveyancing allows documents and instruments required for property transactions to be digitally prepared, signed, settled and lodged, which offers substantial benefits by replacing paper and manual processes currently used in traditional property transactions. Since the introduction of voluntary eConveyancing ten years ago, Queensland has seen a substantial increase in the use of eConveyancing, with over 70 per cent of all relevant titling transactions finalised through eConveyancing systems.

If you have any questions about this new regulation or need assistance with lodging the required instruments and documents through an ELN, please contact us below or send in your enquiry here.

Authors: Ranjit Singh, Marsha Klipp & Vivien Chang

Disclaimer
The information in this article is of a general nature and is not intended to address the circumstances of any particular individual or entity. Although we endeavour to provide accurate and timely information, we do not guarantee that the information in this article is accurate at the date it is received or that it will continue to be accurate in the future.

Published by:

Ranjit Singh

Marsha Klipp

Vivien Chang

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