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Moving Out and Claiming Your Rental Bond: ACT, Victoria and NSW

Best Local Cleaners

Moving out of a rental is mostly paperwork and timing. This guide explains how the bond is held and refunded in the ACT, Victoria and New South Wales (including Queanbeyan), how to avoid a dispute, what counts as fair wear and tear, what happens if part of the bond is claimed, and how your exit can matter for your next application. For what to clean, see our end of lease cleaning checklist.

Reviewed 13 October 2026 against the official sources listed at the end. General information only, not legal advice; rules change, so check the linked pages for your situation.

How the bond is held and refunded

ACT

  • Bonds are held by ACT Rental Bonds (ACT Revenue Office). To get the bond back, you complete a Bond Refund form and email it to ACT Rental Bonds.
  • If the lessor or agent agrees to the refund you requested, everyone is refunded as requested.
  • Anyone who did not sign the form (the lessor or agent, or another tenant) is sent a Bond Refund Notice and has 14 days to respond in writing.
  • If the refund is disputed, ACT Rental Bonds tells the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal (ACAT); any part of the bond that is not disputed is refunded.
  • Completed forms are processed within 14 days; allow up to 48 hours for the money to arrive.

Source: ACT Revenue Office: How to request a bond refund (tenants) · ACAT: Rental bond disputes

Victoria

  • Bonds are held by the Residential Tenancies Bond Authority (RTBA).
  • A rental provider who wants to claim from the bond must start the claim within 14 days of the rental agreement ending, and give you the evidence for it at least 3 business days before lodging it.
  • You can start a claim yourself without the other party’s agreement. They then have 14 days to contest it by applying to Rental Dispute Resolution Victoria (RDRV) or VCAT; if they don’t, the bond is repaid as your claim directs.
  • When everyone agrees, the RTBA usually repays the bond within one business day.

Source: Consumer Affairs Victoria: Bond claims and refunds · Consumer Affairs Victoria: Starting or contesting a bond claim initiated by a renter

New South Wales (including Queanbeyan)

  • Queanbeyan is in NSW, so NSW rules apply there, not the ACT’s.
  • You can claim the bond through Rental Bonds Online. Your landlord or agent has up to 14 days to accept the claim; if your details are correct, you should get the bond back two business days after they accept.
  • If the landlord or agent disputes your claim, they must apply to the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) within 14 days of receiving the notice.

Source: NSW Government: Getting your bond back · NSW Government: Dealing with bond disputes (tenants)

How to avoid a dispute

  • Keep your entry condition report and photos. It is the reference for the condition of the property at the start. In the ACT you return your copy within 2 weeks (otherwise you are taken to agree with it) and can attach photos or videos; in Victoria within 5 business days of moving in; in NSW within 7 days, ideally with time-stamped photos.
  • Take dated photos and video when you leave, room by room, after the clean and once your belongings are out.
  • Report or fix damage early rather than leaving it for the final inspection.
  • Attend the final inspection, or ask to. In the ACT the lessor completes and signs the final condition report together with the tenant; keep a copy.
  • Ask for any claim in writing, with the items and amounts listed. In Victoria the rental provider must give you the evidence at least 3 business days before lodging a claim; in NSW the landlord or agent must give you the outgoing condition report and copies of quotes or invoices within 7 days of making a claim.
  • Keep receipts for your end of lease clean and for any carpet cleaning your lease properly requires.

Source: ACT Government: The Renting Book · Residential Tenancies Act 1997 (ACT) · Consumer Affairs Victoria: Condition reports · Consumer Affairs Victoria: Resolving bond disputes · NSW Government: Rental property condition reports · NSW Government: Dealing with bond disputes (tenants)

Fair wear and tear, damage and cleanliness

A bond can be claimed for damage and for cleaning, but not for fair wear and tear.

  • Fair wear and tear is deterioration from reasonable, everyday use and natural forces. Examples from NSW guidance: furniture indentations and traffic marks on the carpet. The ACT has no fixed definition; the Renting Book points to how the damage happened and how severe it is, for example carpet faded by sunlight or marked in a high-traffic entrance.
  • Damage goes beyond normal use. NSW examples: stains or burn marks on the carpet. In the ACT, the Renting Book contrasts scuff marks on a wall with a hole in it.
  • Cleanliness: in Victoria you must leave the property reasonably clean, in the same condition as when you moved in, allowing for fair wear and tear. In NSW you leave it as near as possible to the condition at the start. In the ACT, the condition report from the start of the tenancy is the reference.

Do you have to use professional cleaners?

  • ACT: no. The only exception is the carpets, if your agreement requires professional carpet cleaning and your landlord has shown it was done at the start of your tenancy.
  • Victoria: only in limited cases: if the property was professionally cleaned immediately before you moved in and you were told, or if professional cleaning is needed to restore its condition at the start, allowing for fair wear and tear (Residential Tenancies Regulations 2021 (Vic), reg 12).
  • NSW: a lease cannot require professional carpet cleaning at the end, unless the landlord agreed to a pet being kept inside and the cleaning is reasonable for that pet.

Source: Consumer Affairs Victoria: Bond claims and refunds · NSW Government: Fair wear and tear versus damage · ACT Government: The Renting Book · Residential Tenancies Regulations 2021 (Vic) · NSW Government: Residential tenancy agreements

If the agent or rental provider claims part of the bond

  • ACT: a disputed refund goes to ACAT. Before the conference, the lessor must give a list of claims at least seven days ahead.
  • Victoria: either of you can apply to RDRV, which asks the rental provider for evidence for each claim; the evidence must not contradict the condition report. If there is no agreement, the dispute can go to VCAT.
  • NSW: a disputed claim goes to NCAT. An application about the bond can be made up to 6 months after the bond is paid out.

Bring your condition reports, photos, the outgoing inspection and receipts. Talk to the agent first: many small items can be settled by agreement before anyone applies to a tribunal.

Source: ACAT: Rental bond disputes · Consumer Affairs Victoria: Resolving bond disputes · NSW Government: Dealing with bond disputes (tenants) · NCAT: Tenancy and social housing orders

Can a bad exit affect future rental applications?

It can in two ways: through your rental history and references, and, only in limited circumstances set by law, through a tenancy database listing.

  • Rental history and references. In Victoria, rental applications must use the prescribed form, which asks for your rental history (including your previous rental provider or agent’s contact details) and, if requested, up to two personal referees. NSW guidance says an application may include a reference from a previous landlord or agent and a current rental ledger.
  • Tenancy databases (sometimes called blacklists). In Victoria and NSW a renter can be listed only after the tenancy has ended and only in the circumstances the law sets out, such as owing more than the bond or a tribunal order. You must be told in writing and given 14 days to respond first. Listings must be removed after 3 years, and you can ask for a free copy of your listing (provided within 14 days). In Victoria a listing for owing more than the bond must be removed if you paid within three months.
  • ACT: tenancy database rules are in Part 7 of the Residential Tenancies Act 1997 (ACT): before listing, you must be given a copy of the information and at least 14 days to review it and respond; listings must be removed after 3 years.
  • Disputing a listing: in Victoria apply to VCAT; in NSW apply to NCAT if a listing is unjust, incorrect or out of date; in the ACT see the Act and the Renting Book.

Source: Consumer Affairs Victoria: Renters guide (PDF) · NSW Fair Trading Commissioner’s guidance: When a prospective tenant applies · Consumer Affairs Victoria: Renter databases · NSW Government: Tenancy databases · Residential Tenancies Act 1997 (ACT) · ACT Government: The Renting Book

Why a good relationship with your agent helps

  • Your agent or rental provider is often the reference your next application asks for.
  • Agreeing the outcome directly is usually quicker than a tribunal: in Victoria an agreed bond is usually repaid within one business day, and in NSW about two business days after the claim is accepted.
  • Raising issues early, in writing, keeps a clear record if anything is disputed later.

Where Best Local Cleaners fits

We do the end of lease clean to a set checklist, so the property is ready for the final inspection. Bond Back Guarantee: if a cleaning issue is reported within 72 hours of our cleaners leaving the property, we’ll return and re-clean the affected areas at no extra cost. Terms and conditions apply. The bond itself is decided between you and your rental provider, or by the tribunal if you can’t agree.

See end of lease cleaning in Canberra or Melbourne, or book online to see the price for your property.

Moving out and your bond: questions

Is a vacate clean the same as a bond clean?

Yes. End of lease, bond, vacate and move-out cleaning are names for the same clean before you hand the keys back. What matters for the bond is the condition of the property against your entry condition report, not what the clean is called.

Should the clean happen before the final inspection?

Yes. Book the clean for after your belongings are out and before the final inspection, so the property is inspected clean. Keep the power and water connected until the clean is done.

How long does it take to get the bond back?

When everyone agrees: in Victoria the RTBA usually repays within one business day; in NSW about two business days after your landlord or agent accepts a Rental Bonds Online claim; in the ACT completed refund forms are processed within 14 days, plus up to 48 hours for the payment. A disputed bond takes longer.

Do I have to hire professional cleaners?

Not always: it depends on where you rent and what your lease and condition report say. See “Do you have to use professional cleaners?” above for the ACT, Victoria and NSW rules.

Can the agent list me on a database because the property wasn’t clean?

Only in the circumstances the law allows. In Victoria and NSW that includes owing more than the bond after the tenancy ends, or a tribunal order, and you must be told in writing and given 14 days to respond first. Listings are removed after 3 years.

Sources

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