Current situation in Australia

Property conveyancing in Australia is a State and Territory-based activity regulated by legislation enacted by the parliament in each jurisdiction. While all jurisdictions have adopted the Torrens system of land title registration, first developed in South Australia in the mid-19th Century, the practices and procedures for registration of property interests vary among the jurisdictions. The introduction of the NECS will require uniformity of these practices and procedures.

The NECS development process

The eight States and Territories in Australia have joined with key industry and profession stakeholders to co-operatively develop an electronic conveyancing system. In July 2008, the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) announced the collective intention of all Australian governments to implement a single national system through a jointly owned new entity. See the media_release at the Prime Ministers website www.pm.gov.au.

The Council of Australian Governments (COAG) has confirmed the commitment of the Australian governments to implementing the National Electronic Conveyancing System (NECS), a single electronic system for completing real property transactions and lodging land title dealings in Australia. The commitment is part of the National Partnership Agreement to deliver a Seamless National Economy on the COAG website www.coag.gov.au/.

The national work program to specify and plan for implementation of NECS is currently coordinated by the National Electronic Conveyancing Office, with information available at www.necs.gov.au.

The LPMA is conducting a NSW Readiness Program, to prepare and implement business practices, operational systems, legislation and stakeholder communication in NSW to support implementation of national electronic conveyancing by 2010-11. Further information on the NSW Readiness Program is available on our website under the NECS Readiness pages.