RTA Form 6: Changing Bond Contributors in Queensland

A tenant in a shared house wants to move out and a new person is moving in. The tenancy continues, the bond stays with the RTA, but the names on that bond need to change. This is where Form 6 comes in — and where landlords and tenants routinely get confused about who owes what to whom.

What Form 6 Does

Form 6 (Change of Bond Contributors) updates the RTA's records to replace an outgoing tenant with an incoming one on an existing bond. It doesn't trigger a refund or require new money to be lodged with the RTA. The bond amount stays the same while the contributor names and recorded shares are updated.

You can submit the change through RTA Web Services or by completing the physical Form 6 and posting it to the RTA.

Who Pays Whom?

This is the part that causes arguments. The outgoing tenant's bond share doesn't come back from the RTA — the bond stays held in full until the tenancy eventually ends. Instead, the incoming tenant reimburses the outgoing tenant directly, as a private financial arrangement between the two of them.

As the landlord, you're not the intermediary in this money transfer. Your role is to ensure Form 6 gets submitted so the RTA's contributor register reflects the actual occupants. If a dispute later arises about who paid what, the RTA's records will show who has a registered interest in the bond.

When to Use Form 6

Form 6 applies when:

• A co-tenant is leaving and being replaced by a new person on the same tenancy agreement
• The underlying tenancy continues without termination
• The total bond amount doesn't change

It does not apply when the entire tenancy ends (that's a Form 4 refund), when the bond amount needs to increase (that's a top-up via Form 2), or when the property changes ownership or management (that's Form 5).

The Landlord's Obligations

You should submit or facilitate the Form 6 submission promptly when a co-tenant change occurs. Anyone being removed from the bond or reducing their contribution must sign a paper Form 6. For online changes, the contributors transferring some or all of their share must agree to the request. Check that the listed contributors and recorded amounts are correct, and discuss tenant changes with the property manager or owner.

If you're managing the property yourself, you can process the change through RTA Web Services using Queensland Digital Identity (QDI). If you use an agent, they'll typically handle it.

Common Problems With Sharehouse Bond Changes

The outgoing tenant wants "their bond back" from the RTA. This doesn't happen. The RTA holds the total bond until the tenancy ends. The outgoing tenant's reimbursement comes from the incoming tenant privately.

Nobody submits Form 6. The RTA's records still show the old tenant as a bond contributor, which creates complications at end-of-tenancy — the RTA may need the old tenant's signature on the Form 4 refund, even though they moved out months or years ago.

The incoming tenant pays less than the outgoing tenant's share. This is between them, but it can leave the incoming tenant with a smaller registered interest. Make sure the Form 6 accurately records the new contributor's share.

Get the Full Bond Management Guide

Contributor changes are just one of several mid-tenancy bond events that require specific forms and processes. The Queensland Rental Bond Guide covers the full lifecycle — Form 6, bond top-ups, Form 5 ownership changes, and Form 3 transfers — with step-by-step instructions for each.

See more Queensland guides →