Documents needed for conveyancing in NSW
Conveyancing in NSW runs on paperwork: some of it you personally have to produce, and most of it your conveyancer or solicitor prepares, obtains or attaches on your behalf. This is the full inventory, split by who is actually responsible for each document, so you know what to have ready before your first appointment and what to leave to the professionals.
General information only, not legal advice. Every transaction is different, and your conveyancer or solicitor will confirm exactly which documents apply to yours. About our editorial standards.
| Document | Who's responsible | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Photo ID (Category 1: passport + driver licence/Photo Card) | Buyer and seller | Your conveyancer must take reasonable steps to verify your identity; almost always this means sighting it in person against the Schedule 8 Category table. |
| Client Authorisation form | Buyer and seller | Authorises your conveyancer to sign and lodge documents and settle on your behalf. |
| Contract of sale | Seller (must exist); solicitor/conveyancer should prepare it | Must exist before the property is advertised for sale. No NSW law requires a licensed practitioner to draft it, but engaging one from the start helps make sure every disclosure requirement below is actually met. |
| Property certificate (title search), plan and dealings | Seller (attaches) | Shows what is registered against the title, including easements. |
| Drainage diagram | Seller (attaches) | Mandatory contract content. |
| Section 10.7 (zoning) certificate | Seller (attaches) | Discloses zoning, heritage, flood and contamination constraints. |
| Cooling-off rights statement (prescribed form) | Seller (attaches) | Tells the buyer their cooling-off rights. |
| Swimming pool registration + certificate | Seller (attaches, if a pool exists) | Registration certificate plus one of: compliance, occupation (past 3 years), or non-compliance certificate. |
| Loan pre-approval or finance letter | Buyer (arranges) | Not a legal requirement, but reduces the risk of losing your deposit. |
| Discharge of mortgage authority | Seller (arranges, if mortgaged) | Clears the existing loan from the title at settlement. |
Documents everyone needs to provide personally
Two documents apply to every party in a NSW conveyance, buyer or seller, regardless of the transaction type.
- Photo identification, sighted in person in almost every case. In NSW, all property settlements are now completed electronically through the eConveyancing platform, and parties need to be represented by a solicitor or conveyancer who is a subscriber to that system. The rules governing that system, the NSW Participation Rules, require your conveyancer or solicitor, acting as a "Subscriber," to take reasonable steps to verify the identity of clients, mortgagors, signers and subscriber administrators. The Rules leave the method up to the Subscriber, but in practice almost every conveyancer and solicitor satisfies that obligation using the Verification of Identity Standard in Schedule 8: a face-to-face, in-person interview at which you produce original documents from a fixed table of categories, starting with Category 1 and only moving to a later category if an earlier one genuinely cannot be met. It is a safe harbour, not the only lawful method, so your conveyancer can verify you a different way if your circumstances call for it, and you do not need to repeat the process if the same conveyancer verified you within the past two years.
- A signed Client Authorisation. This is the document that lets a licenced conveyancer or lawyer sign and present Registry Instruments and other documents for lodgment with the Land Registry, and authorise or complete the financial side of an electronic transaction, on your behalf. Your conveyancer will prepare this for your signature once they are engaged; without it, they have no authority to act for you in the electronic system.
The Category table: which ID documents actually count
There is no points system in the Verification of Identity Standard, but there is a fixed, ordered list of accepted documents, and it is more specific than "a driver licence or passport." A single driver licence on its own is not enough for Category 1.
| Category | What you need |
|---|---|
| Category 1 (most people) | Australian or foreign passport, or an Australian ImmiCard, PLUS an Australian driver licence or Photo Card, plus a change-of-name or marriage certificate if it applies. |
| Categories 2–5 (Category 1 not available) | Fallbacks for Australian citizens or residents. Category 2, for example, combines a passport or ImmiCard with a full birth, citizenship or descent certificate and a Medicare, Centrelink or Department of Veterans' Affairs card. Only used if an earlier category genuinely cannot be met. |
| Category 6 | For a person who is not an Australian citizen or resident: a foreign passport plus another form of government-issued photographic identity document. |
Documents must be current, with one exception: an expired Australian passport is still accepted if it has not been cancelled and was current within the preceding two years. This table describes the standard your conveyancer will almost certainly use, not a rule you have to satisfy on your own: if you cannot meet any category, for example because you are an overseas seller, your conveyancer can verify your identity a different way, including using an Australian embassy, high commission or consulate.
Documents a seller's contract of sale must attach
A NSW seller must have a complete contract of sale ready before the property is advertised for sale. Who prepares it is a separate question: a solicitor or conveyancer should prepare it, since they will need to be involved in the transaction to represent you at settlement anyway, and engaging one from the start helps make sure the disclosure requirements below are actually met. Whoever prepares it, the contract itself must contain the following before it can go to a buyer:
- Property certificate (title search), registered plan and dealings, including easements recorded on title.
- A drainage diagram.
- A current section 10.7 (zoning) certificate from the local council, disclosing zoning, heritage listing, flood risk and other planning constraints. See the section 10.7 certificate guide for the difference between the standard (2) certificate and the fuller (5) version.
- A statement of the buyer's cooling-off rights, in the prescribed form.
If any of these is missing, the purchaser may be entitled to rescind the contract within 14 days of exchange, unless settlement has already occurred. This is exactly why sellers engage a conveyancer or solicitor to prepare the contract rather than attempt it themselves.
Extra documents that only apply in some sales
A handful of documents are only needed if a specific fact about the property or the sale applies. Check each of these against your own situation.
- Swimming pool registration and certificate. If the property has a swimming or spa pool, the contract must also attach a registration certificate from the NSW Swimming Pool Register, plus one of: a valid certificate of compliance, an occupation certificate issued in the past 3 years, or a certificate of non-compliance. This does not apply to a lot in a strata or community scheme with more than 2 lots, or to an off-the-plan contract.
- Strata documents. Selling or buying a lot in a strata scheme adds the strata inspection report, the by-laws and the owners corporation's financials to the picture. See the strata conveyancing NSW guide for what to check.
- Discharge of mortgage authority. If the seller has an existing home loan, their lender needs formal notice and issues a discharge authority so the mortgage can be removed from the title at settlement. See the discharge of mortgage NSW guide for how the timing works.
- Section 66W certificate. Only needed if a buyer is waiving their cooling-off period, most commonly at auction or in a competitive private-treaty sale. See the section 66W certificate guide before signing one.
What a buyer needs to arrange
Buyers carry a lighter document load than sellers, since most of the disclosure obligation sits with the vendor. Beyond the ID and Client Authorisation above, the practical items to have ready are:
- Evidence of finance. A pre-approval or formal loan offer letter from your lender is not a legal requirement to exchange, but going into a negotiation or auction without one puts your deposit at risk if finance later falls through. Get this sorted before you start making offers.
- Funds for the deposit, usually 10% of the purchase price (sometimes 5% by negotiation), payable at exchange.
Everything else on the buyer's side, reviewing the contract, raising requisitions, lodging the transfer duty assessment, and preparing the transfer documents for settlement, is handled by your conveyancer. The full task-by-task sequence is in the NSW conveyancing checklist, and the difference between a conveyancer and a solicitor for this work is covered in the conveyancer vs solicitor NSW guide.
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Common questions
What ID do I need for conveyancing in NSW?
Almost every conveyancer or solicitor uses the NSW Participation Rules' Verification of Identity Standard (Schedule 8), a fixed, ordered table of accepted identity documents. Most people use Category 1: an Australian or foreign passport, or an ImmiCard, plus an Australian driver licence or Photo Card, plus a change-of-name or marriage certificate if your name has changed. You produce the originals in person; a lower category only applies if you genuinely cannot meet Category 1.
Do I need to bring ID to see my conveyancer or solicitor?
In almost every case, yes, and it means a face-to-face, in-person interview. Your conveyancer or solicitor, as a Subscriber under the NSW Participation Rules, must take reasonable steps to verify your identity, and the Rules let them choose how; nearly all use the Verification of Identity Standard in Schedule 8, which means original documents from the prescribed Category table, sighted in person, starting with Category 1. It isn't the only lawful method though, so ask your conveyancer directly if your situation is unusual, for example if you're based overseas or they verified you within the past two years.
Is there a fixed list of accepted ID documents for NSW conveyancing?
Yes, when your conveyancer uses the Verification of Identity Standard (Schedule 8), which almost all of them do. It sets out a table of six categories, starting with Category 1 and only moving to a later category if an earlier one genuinely cannot be met, and the table itself does not vary from client to client. What is flexible is whether your conveyancer uses Schedule 8 at all: the Participation Rules give them a choice of verification method, so they can use a different one if it suits your situation better.
Does a solicitor or conveyancer have to prepare the contract of sale?
A complete contract of sale must exist before the property is advertised, but NSW law does not require a licensed practitioner to be the one who prepares it. A solicitor or conveyancer should prepare it, because they will need to be involved in the transaction to represent you at settlement anyway, and engaging one from the start helps make sure every required disclosure below is actually attached.
What documents must a seller attach to the contract of sale in NSW?
A copy of the property certificate (title search), the registered plan and any dealings such as easements recorded on title, a drainage diagram, a current section 10.7 zoning certificate from the local council, and a statement of the buyer's cooling-off rights in the prescribed form. If any of these is missing, the purchaser may be entitled to rescind the contract within 14 days of exchange, unless settlement has already occurred.
What extra documents are needed if the property has a swimming pool?
The contract must also attach a registration certificate from the NSW Swimming Pool Register, plus one of: a valid certificate of compliance, an occupation certificate issued in the past 3 years, or a certificate of non-compliance. This does not apply to a lot in a strata or community scheme with more than 2 lots, or to an off-the-plan contract.
What is a Client Authorisation and do I need to sign one?
A Client Authorisation is the document that lets your conveyancer or lawyer sign and lodge Registry Instruments with the Land Registry and complete the financial side of the transaction on your behalf. Every buyer and seller represented in an electronic conveyancing transaction, which is now standard in NSW, signs one.