Six stages · Start to finish
Typical timings, stage by stage
These are the ranges a well prepared Queensland business normally runs to. Complex businesses, licensed businesses and anything with a difficult.
Timings are what a well prepared Queensland business normally runs to. Last updated 15 September 2026.
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Typical timings, stage by stage
These are the ranges a well prepared Queensland business normally runs to. Complex businesses, licensed businesses and anything with a difficult lease sit at the longer end.
The clocks a Queensland sale has to pass through
| Clock | Length | Where it comes from | What it does to your settlement date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Retail lease disclosure, assignor to assignee | At least 7 days | Retail Shop Leases Act 1994 (Qld) s22B | Runs before the earlier of the sale agreement date and the day the lessor is asked to consent. Waivable only by signed notice, with a lawyer’s advice unless the assignee is a major lessee |
| Retail lease disclosure, lessor to assignee | At least 7 days | Retail Shop Leases Act 1994 (Qld) s22C | Runs before the assignment is entered into |
| Landlord’s decision on consent | 1 month | Property Law Act 2023 (Qld) s142(5), in force from 1 August 2025 | Starts only once the lessor has full particulars. A request for further information under s142(4) restarts it. No deemed consent |
| Tribunal application for missing assignment disclosure | Within 2 months | Retail Shop Leases Act 1994 (Qld) s22E | Counted from the day the assignment is entered into |
| Transfer of business window | Within 3 months | Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) s311(1)(b) | An employee who starts with the buyer inside this window, on the same or substantially the same work, is a transferring employee |
| ATO notice before a tax debt is disclosed | 28 days from receiving the notice | ATO, disclosure of business tax debts | Applies where at least $100,000 is overdue by more than 90 days and the taxpayer is not effectively engaging |
| Director penalty notice | 21 days | ATO, director penalty regime | The period starts on the day the ATO posts the notice, not the day it arrives |
| New director grace period | 30 days from appointment | ATO, director penalty regime | A share sale risk. After 30 days a new director is personally exposed for pre-appointment PAYG withholding, GST and superannuation guarantee charge |
| Deposit into the trust account | Before the end of the first business day after receipt | Agents Financial Administration Act 2014 (Qld) s16 | Maximum penalty 200 penalty units or 2 years imprisonment. Money held past that point is a breach, not an administrative delay |
| Trust account audit report | Within 4 months after the last day of the audit month | Agents Financial Administration Act 2014 (Qld) s35(2), audit period defined in s33 | Nothing in your transaction, but it is the mechanism that finds trust account failures |
| Claim fund claim | Within 1 year of becoming aware of the loss, and no more than 3 years after the event | Queensland Government, Office of Fair Trading guidance | The Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal can grant an extension. Successful claims are usually paid within 21 days of finalisation |
| Warranty claim window | 6 years | Limitation of Actions Act 1974 (Qld) s10(1)(a) and s10(3) | The statutory default for a simple contract and a deed. Contracts usually shorten general warranties and lengthen tax warranties |
| Cooling off | None on a business contract | Property Occupations Act 2014 (Qld) s166 | The 5 business day period, ending 5pm on the fifth business day, applies to residential property contracts only |
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