The expansion of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing (AML/CTF) regime to include "Tranche 2" entities is a seismic shift for the professional services sector. From July 1, 2026, real estate agents will be required to comply with the same rigorous Know Your Customer (KYC) obligations that banks and brokers have navigated for years.
For real estate agents, who are often sales-focused and compliance-averse, this represents a terrifying administrative burden. They face the prospect of detailed beneficial ownership checks on trusts and companies before they can even sign an agency agreement.
However, mortgage brokers—who already utilize sophisticated digital identity (VOI) tech stacks—are uniquely positioned to solve this problem for their referral partners.
The chart below illustrates the massive disparity between an agent's current workflow and their future obligations, compared to a broker's readiness.
This is your strongest pitch. Brokers can offer to handle the heavy lifting of identity verification for mutual clients. While the agent ultimately holds liability, a broker providing a "Verified Pack" significantly reduces their workload.
"Mr. Agent, I know you're worried about the new ID checks. Let's make a deal: For any buyer who is also my client, I will handle the entire digital VOI process. I'll hand you a 'Verified Pack' that you can just attach to your compliance file. You focus on the sale; I'll handle the identity."
Real estate agents generally lack secure digital ID collection tools. They are often still photocopying driver's licenses and storing them in unlocked filing cabinets—a major privacy risk.
Brokers can introduce agents to tools like IDyou or MaxID, potentially setting up shared workflows where the client only needs to verify their identity once.
Estimate the time you can save your referral partners.
This is a strategic growth opportunity disguised as a compliance update. Reach out to your real estate partners now (December 2025) to offer help.
The Narrative: "You are about to be hit by a compliance tsunami; I have the lifeboat."