Sell property online · screen 2 of 5
Signing the contract electronically: what the sources say
Two official sources speak directly to electronic signatures: Victoria’s Electronic Transactions Act, which says a transaction is not invalid merely because it happened electronically, and a fact sheet from Tasmania’s Property Agents Board, which says what an e-signature can be and where it is not permitted. Neither is written about contracts of sale in particular, and for the other states the official sources behind this guide say nothing on the point, so whether a given contract can be signed on screen is a question for the seller’s solicitor or licensed conveyancer.
General information, not legal advice. For Victoria, start with Consumer Affairs Victoria on conveyancing and contracts for sellers; for Tasmania, the Property Agents Board’s fact sheet.
Victoria: the Act behind an electronic signature
The Electronic Transactions (Victoria) Act 2000 came into operation on 1 September 2000. In plain words, it says:
- A transaction does not fail under Victorian law just because it took place wholly or partly by electronic communication.
- Where a law asks for a person’s signature, an electronic signature can meet that requirement, on the conditions the Act sets out.
- Not every signature has to appear on the same copy of a document.
- Where a law requires a witness, signatory or someone else to be present, being present by audio visual link can meet it.
- When a witness is present by audio visual link, the witness does not have to be physically in Victoria, unless another Victorian law says so.
The Act’s conditions are not reproduced here. They are the part that decides whether a particular signature counts, which is why the seller’s lawyer or conveyancer is the person to apply them to a contract.
Tasmania: the Property Agents Board’s fact sheet
Tasmania’s Property Agents Board wrote its fact sheet, current as at June 2024, for property agents, and it reads as a short checklist.
What can count
- A typed name, a biometric marker, an image of a scanned signature or a signature made on a device.
- Any method that meets three tests: identification, reliability and consent.
- Secure, certified e-signature platforms are preferred, as they are generally regarded as meeting those tests.
- A name typed on an email, or a scanned signature added to a document, can also be valid if the tests are met.
Where it is not used (as relevant to a sale)
- The Board says e-signing is not permitted in Tasmania for deeds where one party is an individual.
- Nor, it says, for documents that need personal service.
- The Board adds that an e-signature should not be used where a signature has to be witnessed.
The fact sheet notes that third parties, among them the Land Titles Office and lenders, may have their own rules even where a document can legally be signed electronically, and ends: “If unsure, check before you sign!”
The Victorian Act and the Tasmanian fact sheet are different kinds of document, one a law and one a regulator’s guidance for agents, so their lines on witnessing are each that state’s own and are not a comparison of one rule.
Two signatures in one sale
A sale carries at least two signed documents. The contract is between seller and buyer. The transfer is the document that moves ownership of the land from the seller to the buyer; in Victoria the buyer’s legal practitioner, conveyancer or lender usually lodges it with Land Use Victoria.
Each state’s source describes the signing inside the network in its own words:
- VICA Client Authorisation lets the conveyancer or lawyer act as the client’s agent and sign electronic instruments for them.
- QLDTitles Queensland says electronic conveyancing lets the documents for a property transaction be prepared, signed, settled and lodged digitally.
- ACTAccess Canberra says documents can be created, signed and lodged in the online platform, which lawyers and financial institutions use.
In Victoria, then, the document a seller signs for an electronic settlement is the Client Authorisation that lets their conveyancer or lawyer sign for them. The identity check that comes with it is the next screen, proving who you are, and the network is described in electronic settlement, state by state.
Where the official sources stop
For NSW, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, the ACT and the Northern Territory, none of the official pages behind this guide says whether a contract of sale may be signed electronically. That is a gap in what is stated here, not a sign that the answer is no. Each state’s own body is the place to look; the pages for NSW, Queensland, Western Australia and the ACT are in the sources list below.
- NSWNSW Fair Trading notes that a seller can do their own conveyancing, though most people engage a licensed conveyancer or solicitor.
- QLDQueensland’s selling pages cover the contract and the cooling-off period, including notice by email.
- WAConsumer Protection WA’s settlement page advises using a licensed settlement agent or lawyer, unless you are a suitably qualified lawyer yourself.
A buyer’s cancellation notice can arrive by email
In Queensland, the Office of Fair Trading’s page (last updated 12 May 2022) says “a cooling-off period of 5 business days applies to contracts for the sale of residential property”, but not to a sale by auction, a follow-up sale after an unsuccessful auction to a registered bidder before 5pm on the second business day, or an option contract, nor where the buyer is a publicly listed corporation or its subsidiary, the State or a statutory body, or is buying at least 3 lots at the same time; a buyer can waive or shorten it in writing. The Queensland Government’s page for sellers (last updated 29 October 2020) says a buyer who cancels gives the seller, or the seller’s agent, written notice by 5pm on the 5th day, and may deliver it in person, by email or by fax.
Victoria’s Legal Services Commissioner gives this as the first step against email scams: pause before opening any link or attachment from someone you were not expecting to hear from.
The Commissioner’s other three checks are set out whole in payment redirection scams and the official checks.