The "eConveyancing mandate" has started on 20 February 2023 in Queensland.
The most prominent eConveyancing platform is PEXA, and it has been in use in Queensland for a number of years but its use has been optional. There has been an upsurge in the use of PEXA in recent years as it has been obvious that the mandate was coming after its introduction in the southern States.
The mandate relates to the manner in which the title dealings are lodged with Titles Queensland. If your title dealing is covered by the mandate, then you must use eConveyancing and you aren't allowed to lodge the title dealing on paper – unless your dealing is covered by one of a range of exemptions from the mandate.
The types of title dealings that are covered by the eConveyancing mandate are:
transfers;
mortgages and releases of mortgage;
caveats and withdrawals of caveats;
priority notices and extensions and withdrawals of priority notices;
transmissions to executors with a grant of probate or administrations with a grant of letters of administration.
There are various exemptions but except when one party is self-acting, most routine sales and purchases of real estate in Queensland will be covered by the mandate.
The mandate requires the use of eConveyancing to lodge some title dealings with Titles Queensland, but it does not say that you also have to use the second function in PEXA – financial settlement. However it would not make sense to hold an old-fashioned physical financial settlement in conjunction with the lodgement of the title dealings through eConveyancing, and most participants in the system such as banks and other solicitors would not agree to it.
The use of PEXA comes with benefits for both the seller and the buyer in a conveyancing transaction, including:
greater certainty of successful settlement;
greater and quicker visibility into the status of the tasks to be performed by other participants in the transaction;
faster access to clear funds for sellers;
greater certainty of clear title and quicker title registration for buyers.
Creevey Horrell are subscribers to PEXA and can continue to look after your property conveyancing needs in the mandatory eConveyancing world.