Compliance Officer
Compliance officers make sure an organisation's practices meet the laws, rules and internal policies that apply to it, and work out what has to change when they don't.
- Median salary*
- $87,400
4.0%vs last year, before tax
- People employed*
- 18,500
0.5%vs last year
- Projected growth*
- +4.2%
to 2035
- AI exposure*
- Moderate
- automation risk
- Average hours*
- 38/wk
−2h vs all jobs
- Shortage status*
- Not in shortage
national
Compliance officers build and monitor the policies, procedures and controls that keep a business on the right side of the law and its industry's rules, then chase down the gaps when something falls short. The work concentrates in heavily regulated sectors such as financial services, healthcare, utilities and government, usually inside a risk or compliance team reporting to a chief compliance officer or general counsel. It differs from internal audit, which tests controls periodically from a step back; compliance officers own the framework day to day and are often the first call when a breach is reported.
How much do compliance officers earn?
The median full-time salary for a compliance officer is $87,400 per annum, before tax, up $18,300 since 2018.
Pay varies more by sector and specialisation than by job title. Financial services, government and utilities tend to pay above smaller not-for-profit and community organisations, and specialist roles in anti-money laundering, privacy or financial advice compliance sit higher again. In the public sector, enterprise agreements set bands by classification, while private sector pay is negotiated per role, so two compliance officers with the same title can be on quite different packages.
What does a compliance officer do day to day?
The list below is what fills most weeks; the exact mix shifts with seniority and whatever stage the current work is at.
- Checking policies and procedures against new or changing legislation and flagging where the business falls short
- Running audits and risk assessments across business units to find where controls are weak
- Investigating reported breaches, including misconduct and privacy incidents, and writing up what happened and what needs to change
- Briefing and training frontline staff on obligations that rarely feel like part of their day job
- Preparing reports for management and regulators, with the load spiking around annual reviews and anti-money laundering reporting cycles
What skills do compliance officers need?
Employers look for regulatory compliance, risk and internal controls, regulatory and administrative law, backed by Compliance management software (e.g., COMPLY, Workiva) fluency and strong attention to detail.
Specialist skills
- Regulatory compliance
- Risk and internal controls
- Regulatory and administrative law
- Auditing and assurance
Software and tools
- Compliance management software (e.g., COMPLY, Workiva)
- MS Excel & Access
- JIRA or similar issue-tracking systems
- Document management systems
General skills
- Attention to detail
- Problem solving
- Written communication
- Stakeholder management
Is the job growing?
About 18,500 people work as compliance officers in Australia, and employment is projected to grow 4.2% over the decade to 2035. That's modest growth: demand is steady rather than booming.
How do you become a compliance officer?
Here's the path most compliance officers take, step by step.
- 1Study something that deals in rules
A bachelor degree in law, commerce, accounting, business or criminology is the usual starting point, and 52% of people in the role hold one, with a further 26% holding a postgraduate qualification. A diploma in business or governance is a workable alternative, particularly if you are moving across with industry experience behind you.
- 2Get a foothold in a regulated industry
Most people enter as a compliance analyst, monitoring and surveillance analyst or anti-money laundering analyst, or move across from operations, claims, financial advice or audit inside the same industry. That industry knowledge is what makes you useful quickly. Police checks are standard, and government and defence roles usually need a security clearance.
- 3Learn the frameworks on the job
Compliance knowledge is specific to a sector rather than general: you learn your organisation's obligations, the reporting lines to its regulator and how its systems record evidence. Employers fund much of this training, and industry bodies such as the Governance Institute of Australia run short courses and graduate certificates in governance and compliance.
- 4Add a recognised certification
Certifications such as ACAMS for anti-money laundering, or a governance qualification, help when you apply for senior compliance roles. Specialist knowledge of privacy, financial advice or work health and safety opens doors because those obligations are technical and change often.
Ready to apply as a compliance officer?
Whether you're working toward becoming a compliance officer or already are one and want a hand with the next step (sharpening your resume for ATS screening, tightening your cover letter, or knowing what you'll actually be asked at interview), here are examples grounded in this specific role, not generic templates.
What jobs can a compliance officer move to?
Moving into Quality Manager typically comes with the biggest pay rise, worth $60,500 a year more on average.
| Move to | Typical pay change | Overlap | Retraining |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quality Manager Compliance officers bring regulatory and auditing skills to quality manager roles, where they maintain certifications and ensure processes meet standards. | +$60,500 | 55% | short course |
| Regulatory Affairs Manager Compliance officers bring regulatory knowledge and policy interpretation to regulatory affairs manager roles, where they manage submissions and ensure products meet legal requirements. | +$37,400 | 55% | short course |
| Safety Consultant Compliance officers bring regulatory interpretation and auditing skills to safety consultant roles, advising on work health and safety obligations and compliance. | +$31,400 | 63% | reskill |
| Cyber Security GRC Specialist Compliance officers bring risk and governance experience to cyber security GRC specialist roles, helping organisations meet information security obligations and manage technology risk. | +$29,600 | 64% | minimal |
| Internal Auditor Compliance officers bring control testing and policy review skills to internal auditor roles, assessing whether business processes follow rules and regulations. | +$22,000 | 58% | short course |
Moves are chosen from Jobs and Skills Australia's Data on Occupation Mobility, which follows income tax records between 2011-12 and 2020-21, together with entry requirements and skill overlap. A known move is one people were seen making in that data. Pay change compares median full-time pay for the two roles.
Who works as a compliance officer?
The typical compliance officer is 42 years old; 62% are women, 89% work full-time, and full-timers average 38 hours a week.
- 42
- Median age
- 62%
- Female share
- 89%
- Full-time
- −2h
- vs all-jobs avg
What's it like being a compliance officer?
The rhythm of the job is set by the regulatory calendar: stretches of policy review and training interrupted by reporting deadlines, audit season and the occasional breach that lands without warning. It suits someone who likes a clear rulebook and enjoys explaining it, because a good part of the week goes on persuading people who have their own targets to meet. The work rewards patience more than speed, and a thick skin helps, since much of the feedback you give is unwelcome.
What people like
- You see how the whole organisation fits together. Compliance sits across every business unit, so you end up understanding products, systems and customer processes that most people only ever see from one side.
- The rules usually have an answer. Working out whether something is allowed is a defined problem you can research and resolve, which suits people who prefer reaching a defensible position over winning an argument.
- You get a say before decisions are locked in. Compliance officers are typically brought into new products, campaigns and systems early, when changing course is still cheap and the advice is welcome.
- Predictable hours compared with law or audit. Full-time compliance officers average around 38 hours a week, though reporting deadlines and breach investigations bring busy stretches.
What people find hard
- You are often the person saying no. Blocking a launch or an incentive scheme rarely wins friends, and the reasoning is not always obvious to the team whose deadline slips.
- Pressure to soften a finding. Senior managers have their own targets, and there is a real pull towards a more accommodating version of a report, which is why clear record-keeping matters.
- Regulatory change does not let up. New obligations, amended guidance and reporting changes arrive continuously, so keeping current is part of the job rather than a project you finish.
- Deadlines bunch up. Annual reviews, anti-money laundering reporting and audit season can land in the same quarter, and breach investigations arrive unannounced on top of them.
Based on our synthesis of professional-body surveys and public accounts of the role, not first-person verified reviews.
Which industries employ compliance officers?
Financial and Insurance Services employs the largest share of compliance officers, followed by Professional, Scientific and Technical Services.
Top employing industries
- 1Financial and Insurance Services
- 2Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
- 3Public Administration and Safety
- 4Healthcare and Social Assistance
- 5Utilities and Telecommunications
Ranked by employment share; the source doesn't publish an exact percentage per industry.
| Bachelor degree | 52% | |
|---|---|---|
| Postgraduate | 26% | |
| Diploma / Advanced Diploma | 13% | |
| Other | 9% |
Will AI replace compliance officers?
Compliance work is moderately exposed to AI. Surveillance and screening are the parts that have changed most: transaction monitoring, sanctions screening and compliance management software now raise most of the alerts and track the obligations people used to check by hand. The judgement stays human, because deciding what an alert means, how serious a breach is and how to get a business to change usually turns on context a system does not hold.
Share of typical working time by exposure level
- Advising and training the businessSitting in on project meetings, answering questions about what is allowed and running sessions with frontline teams, which depends on reading the room and knowing which manager needs convincing.30%low
- Compliance monitoring and surveillanceScreening transactions, customers and staff against watchlists and policy rules; automated systems raise the alerts and filter most of the noise, and the officer works the ones left.25%high
- Investigating breaches and reportingInterviewing people, gathering evidence and writing findings for management or a regulator; software stores and timestamps the material, but the assessment and the recommendation are yours.25%moderate
- Regulatory monitoring and horizon scanningReading new rules, guidance and consultation papers and working out which ones touch your business; tools can collect and summarise the material, but someone has to decide what it means here.20%moderate
Moves least exposed to AI
These career moves from compliance officer work are rated low for AI exposure:
- Internal Auditor
Solid skill overlap (58%), short course to get there, and a low automation-risk profile.
Common questions about becoming a compliance officer
Straight answers to the questions people ask most.
How much do compliance officers earn?
Compliance officers earn a median of $87,400 per year before tax. Senior and specialist roles in anti-money laundering, privacy and financial advice pay above that, while public sector pay follows enterprise agreement bands rather than individual negotiation.
How do you become a compliance officer?
Most people start with a degree in law, commerce, accounting or business, then take an analyst role in a regulated industry and learn that sector's rules on the job. Moving in from operations, claims or audit is common and often quicker, because you already know how the business works. A short course or certification in governance or anti-money laundering helps when you apply for more senior roles.
Are compliance officers in demand?
Employment for compliance officers is projected to grow 4.2% over the decade to 2035, driven by the volume of regulation organisations have to meet rather than by general hiring. Compliance officers are currently not in shortage. Openings tend to concentrate in financial services, government and healthcare, so the sector you know often matters more than the national picture.
Will AI replace compliance officers?
Not the role as a whole, but it is changing parts of it. Transaction monitoring platforms, sanctions screening and compliance management software now raise most of the alerts and track obligations people once checked by hand. Deciding what an alert means, how serious a breach is and how to get a business to change still turns on context that no system holds.
What can compliance officers move into?
Internal audit is a common move, because the control testing and policy review carry across and pay is $22,000 more. Regulatory affairs manager roles draw on the same regulatory knowledge for submissions and product approvals, at $37,400 more. Cyber security GRC is another route, applying risk and governance skills to information security obligations, at $29,600 more.
Do you need a law degree to be a compliance officer?
No, and plenty of compliance officers come from accounting, business or industry operations rather than law. A legal background is most useful in roles that interpret legislation closely, such as financial services conduct or privacy, and postgraduate study in compliance or governance can cover similar ground later.
Related roles
- Regulatory Affairs Manager
- Cyber Security GRC Specialist
- Internal Auditor
- Safety Consultant
- Quality Manager
- ISO Auditor
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