Considering answers to commonly asked questions below may assist with any questions you have.

The maximum bond for residential tenancy agreements is:

  • up to 4 weeks rent if weekly rent is $800 or less
  • up to 6 weeks rent if weekly rent is more than $800.

The maximum bond for rooming house agreements is up to 2 weeks rent.

Landlords must give the tenant a receipt within 48 hours of receiving the bond.

Tenants can request their bond back after exiting the property. This is called claiming the bond.

If the bond refund is not disputed, a refund can be processed through RBO within 5 working days.

Payment Method

Estimated Time

Electronic funds transfer (EFT)

24 - 48 hours

Cheque

5 -10 business days

International money transfer

Varies, depending on the country, and may be affected by additional fees and exchange rates.

If you have not received your bond refund, and the refund was not disputed, login to your RBO account first to check your bank details are correct. If you are still unsure, contact CBS via Bonds' general enquiry form or phone 131 882 for assistance.

If multiple tenants are listed on the bond, any tenant that has an RBO account can start the refund process. RBO allows tenants to nominate how much each tenant should receive from the bond refund. Once all tenants and the managing party (such as the landlord or real estate agent) have all agreed to the amounts to be refunded, CBS will return the money to all parties by bank transfer.

Can’t come to an agreement? See information on settling a bond dispute.

Tenants should keep their Australian bank account open so their refund can be paid quickly and easily.

If the bank account has been closed before the refund is processed, a request for an International Money Transfer form (218.9 KB PDF)  will be required. Processing an international money transfer can attract extra fees that will be deducted from the bond.

When a tenant exits a rental property and bond money cannot be returned to them due to incorrect details, the bond is said to be unclaimed.

For money that has not been claimed within 90 days, the tenant can login to RBO and start the refund process. For money that has not been refunded for longer than 90 days, a separate process is required to process the payment.

Visit the Unclaimed bonds webpage for more information, or to check if you have any unclaimed bond money, head to the CBS Bond Status Search.

See the Settling a bond dispute page for details on how to work through a bond dispute with different parties.

This is a new process designed to give parties greater ability to negotiate and reach resolution without the need for the matter to be referred to SACAT.

Instead of either accepting or rejecting a notice of claim, the party receiving the claim may make a counter-offer as to how much they are willing to pay to reach an agreement.

For more information see the Settling a bond dispute page.

When a tenant listed on a bond does not respond to a notice of claim by the managing party within the time set out in the notice, the tenant is said to be silent on the topic.

To prevent this, tenants are encouraged to update their contact details in RBO so they can be alerted if a Notice of Claim is made and take action before the deadline.

A broad term that means anyone managing a residential rental property. A real estate agent, landlord, park operator, private landlord or any other organisation/proprietor managing a rental is said to be a managing party.

Did you know there is no time frame to submit a bond claim?

The bond will remain lodged with CBS until the tenant or landlord submits a claim.

If a claim is made by the manager of the property 12 months after the tenancy has ended, the claim must go straight to SACAT.

If you can’t use RBO, there are forms available to help you manually manage the bond. Please download what you need and then send them to CBS via email or post. You can also hand them in at the CBS customer service counter at our Adelaide CBS office.

Please note that forms lodged manually sometimes require information or a signature from more than one party. Lodging information via a form will take longer to process than information entered into RBO.

Change of ownership or agent form (305.2 KB PDF)

Change of tenant form (327.2 KB PDF)

Bond refund form (286.1 KB)

Bond lodgement form  (388.3 KB PDF) - also used by agents increasing the bond amount

Documents to support non-consented bond claim (383.2 KB) -  providing evidence of bond claim

International Money Transfer form (218.9 KB PDF)