Law Society of New South Wales releases 2026 Edition of the Contract for the Sale and Purchase of Land
- Jenkins Legal & Advisory
- 1 hour ago
- 2 min read
The Law Society of New South Wales has released the 2026 Edition of the Contract for the Sale and Purchase of Land, updating the widely used standard contract to reflect recent legislative changes, regulatory developments, and practical improvements for conveyancing practice.
The new edition replaces the 2022 Edition and incorporates amendments arising from the Conveyancing and Real Property Amendment Act 2025 (NSW), alongside a range of updates designed to improve clarity, modernise terminology and reflect evolving industry practices.
Key legislative update: Cooling off notice
A central change in the 2026 Edition is the revision of the statutory cooling off notice, following amendments introduced by the Conveyancing and Real Property Amendment Act 2025. The revised notice removes the words “to purchase the property” from the statutory form.
The updated form may be used for residential contracts and option agreements exchanged between 15 August 2025 and 31 May 2026, and must be used from 1 June 2026 onwards.
The amendment also resolves uncertainty surrounding put options, an issue highlighted by the Supreme Court decision in BP7 Pty Ltd v Gavancorp Pty Ltd [2021] NSWSC 265.
Updates reflecting modern property transactions
The contract has also been updated to reflect modern property features and current practice, including amendments to standard inclusions. For example, references to “TV antenna” have been replaced with “internet/TV receiver”, and “solar power battery” has been added as a potential inclusion.
Updates have also been made to the List of Documents, including terminology changes aligning with Sydney Water documentation and the Conveyancing (Sale of Land) Regulation 2022 (NSW).
Regulatory and tax-related updates
Several warning notices in the contract have been updated to reflect changes in government policy and legislation, including:
removal of references to the First Home Buyer Choice property tax scheme following its closure to new applications in July 2023;
amendments to the Foreign Resident Capital Gains Withholding Tax (FRCGWT) warning to reflect the removal of the previous property value threshold; and
the addition of a new warning regarding the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing (AML/CTF) regime, ahead of the extension of AML/CTF obligations to legal and real estate professionals from 1 July 2026.
The definition of the FRCGW percentage has also been updated to reflect the current 15% withholding rate effective from 1 January 2025.
Clarifications and drafting improvements
The 2026 Edition includes several drafting refinements intended to improve consistency and clarity across the contract, including:
harmonisation of language requiring parties to do “whatever is reasonably necessary” rather than “everything reasonable”;
clarification of the relationship between provisions dealing with unregistered plans and conditional contracts, following judicial commentary; and
amendments allowing greater flexibility in the electronic formation of contracts.
These changes reflect both practical experience from practitioners and developments in case law and regulatory frameworks affecting property transactions in New South Wales.
Supporting resources
To assist practitioners during the transition period, the Law Society’s Digital Contracts Service provides guidance and resources, including a standalone page containing the revised statutory cooling off notice that can be inserted into contracts prepared using the 2022 Edition.
This article is not legal advice, and the views and comments are of a general nature only. This article is not to be relied upon in substitution for detailed legal advice.
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