Residential Tenancies Act 1995 — Bond Rules for SA Landlords

Every bond rule in South Australia traces back to the Residential Tenancies Act 1995 (SA) and its supporting Residential Tenancies Regulations 2025. If you're self-managing a rental property, knowing which sections govern what saves you from relying on second-hand summaries that may be out of date — particularly after the 2023–2026 reform waves rewrote significant portions of the Act.

The Sections That Matter for Bonds

Section 61 — Bond caps and increases. This is the ceiling on what you can collect. The maximum bond is 4 weeks' rent if weekly rent is $800 or less, or 6 weeks' rent if weekly rent exceeds $800. The $800 threshold comes from Regulation 13 of the 2025 Regulations, replacing the old $250 figure that was in place before 1 April 2023. Demanding more than one bond or more than the statutory maximum carries a maximum fine of $35,000 and a $2,000 expiation fee. You may require a bond increase only after at least 2 years have elapsed since the bond was given or last increased; the written notice must allow at least 60 days for payment, and the total must stay within the statutory cap.

Section 62 — Receipting and lodgement. Two separate obligations live in this section. Section 62(1) requires you to issue a receipt within 48 hours of receiving the bond; failure carries a maximum fine of $25,000 and a $1,200 expiation fee. Section 62(2) requires private landlords to transmit the funds to the Commissioner for Consumer Affairs within 14 calendar days. Registered agents get 28 days. Failure to lodge carries a maximum fine of $35,000 and a $2,000 expiation fee.

Section 62(3), added on 1 July 2024, gives tenants the right to lodge their bond directly with CBS through RBO. When that happens, CBS notifies you — and the lodgement obligation is fulfilled without you handling the money at all.

Section 63 — Refund and claim. This governs how the bond is distributed at the end of the tenancy. The agreed-split pathway (both parties consent in RBO) and the unconsented-claim pathway (CBS issues a Notice of Claim, tenant has 14 days to respond) both derive from this section.

Section 66C — Pets. Enacted 1 July 2024, this section made pet bonds unlawful. Landlords cannot demand a separate pet bond, charge a higher general bond because of a pet, or require financial security as a condition for approving a pet. The one thing you can enforce: a reasonable condition requiring professional carpet cleaning at end of tenancy if an approved pet was kept inside (Section 66C(9)(c)). A separate pet bond also breaches Section 61's one-bond rule, which carries a maximum fine of $35,000 and a $2,000 expiation fee.

Regulation 4 — Inspection sheets. Requires the landlord to complete and provide each tenant one signed Inspection Sheet when the tenant commences occupation. The sheet includes columns for both landlord and tenant assessments; Regulation 4 does not set a 5-to-7-day return window. Failing to provide an inspection sheet carries a $5,000 maximum fine.

Section 69(3) — Handover standard. The tenant's end-of-tenancy obligation is to return the property in "reasonable condition and a reasonable state of cleanliness." This is the baseline against which all deduction claims are measured. It's also the section that makes blanket professional-cleaning clauses generally unenforceable (unless the pet exception in Section 66C applies).

Section 110 — SACAT jurisdiction. When a bond dispute can't be resolved through CBS, this section empowers SACAT to hear and determine the claim, order payouts, and issue monetary orders for amounts exceeding the bond.

Section 115 — Contract to avoid the Act. An agreement or arrangement inconsistent with, or purporting to exclude, modify, or restrict the Act is void. A person who enters an agreement or arrangement to defeat, evade, or prevent the Act commits an offence carrying a maximum penalty of $50,000. Do not backdate receipts or conceal unlodged bonds.

The 2025 Regulations

The Residential Tenancies Regulations 2025 commenced on 1 September 2025, replacing the 2010 Regulations. For bond purposes, the key provisions are:

• Regulation 4 — prescribed inspection sheet requirements
• Regulation 13 — the $800 weekly rent threshold for bond caps
• Regulation 14 — the bond-transmission deadlines: 14 days for private landlords and 28 days for registered agents
• Regulation 21 — written notice at least 7 days before public distribution of photos or video taken during specified entries; written notice and tenant consent before producing records that capture personal possessions

The Reform Timeline

The Act didn't change all at once. If you're comparing your current practices against older references, here's when each reform took effect:

• 1 April 2023 — Bond cap threshold raised from $250 to $800 per week
• 1 July 2024 — Pet bonds banned, no-cause evictions abolished, tenant direct lodgement introduced, rent increases capped at once per 12 months
• 1 September 2025 — New Regulations 2025 commenced, replacing 2010 Regulations. Mandatory Form A1 introduced (full enforcement from 1 January 2026)
• 15 January 2026 — Electronic receipt issuance explicitly permitted, loophole closed on incremental rent raise agreements within 12-month periods

Any guide or article referencing the "$250 threshold" or "pet deposit" in an SA context is working from pre-2023 law.

The SA Rental Bond Guide maps each compliance obligation to its statutory section, with the forms, deadlines, and penalty amounts current to October 2026. It's structured around the Act's requirements rather than a generic checklist, so you know exactly which section you're satisfying at each stage.

See more South Australia guides →