Former NSW property chief Warwick Watkins has been charged with offences carrying up to 10 years in jail over the $12 million purchase of the Pittwater retreat, Currawong, which also implicated former Labor minister Tony Kelly shortly before the 2011 state election.

The Independent Commission Against Corruption has announced Mr Watkins is being prosecuted for two counts of "using a false document" and another two counts of "attempting to mislead the Commission". He is due to face Downing Centre Local Court on July 2.

Charges: Warwick Watkins. Credit:Wolter Peeters

The Crimes Act states the maximum penalty for using a false document is 10 years in jail, while the ICAC Act provides for imprisonment of up to 12 months for attempting to mislead the commission.

Currawong was bought by Mr Watkins, then chief executive of the NSW Land and Property Management Authority, on March 15, 2011, from a property developer, Eco-Villages. At the time, the former Labor government was in caretaker mode a fortnight before the state election.