Overview
Each State and Territory has now released its Budget for 2026/2027. There is a continued theme across the States and Territories of promoting cost of living relief during a time of global uncertainty. Stamp duty continues to be a focus of a number of States and Territories, alongside land tax and payroll tax measures.
In terms of more significant changes:
- New South Wales is proposing to introduce surcharge purchaser duty relief applicable to build-to-rent (BTR) properties, retirement villages and other residential-related properties;
- Victoria is proposing to extend the temporary off-the-plan concession for apartments, townhouses, and units to contracts signed on or after 21 October 2024 and before 21 April 2027;
- Queensland is proposing to limit home, first home, and vacant land stamp duty concessions to Australian citizens, permanent residents, and specified foreign retirees;
- Western Australia is proposing to extend the off-the-plan stamp duty concession to 30 June 2028 and introduce a new foreign buyers duty exemption where the foreign buyer constructs and sells new dwellings within two years of the original purchase; and
- the Northern Territory is proposing a higher payroll tax rate of 6.5% for employers and members of payroll tax groups with Australia-wide wages of $100 million or more per annum.
A brief summary of some of the key changes is provided below, followed by a spotlight on the surcharge purchaser duty changes in NSW.
Summary
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Tax measure overviews
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VIC
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Stamp duty The temporary off-the-plan concession for apartments, townhouses, and units has been extended to contracts signed on or after 21 October 2024 and before 21 April 2027. This concession can apply to all purchasers, including investors, and there is no threshold for the concession to apply. Payroll tax From 1 July 2026, non-government schools with an income per student up to $16,397 (currently $15,000) will be exempt from payroll tax. Motor vehicle duty From 1 July 2027, “green passenger cars” above the luxury car threshold will be charged motor vehicle duty at standard passenger vehicle rates. |
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NSW
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Stamp duty From 1 July 2026, surcharge purchaser duty relief is proposed to apply to purchases of operational BTR properties and eligible retirement village developers and operators. Refer below for more detail. |
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ACT
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Stamp duty From 1 July 2026, all first home buyers will be exempt from stamp duty. The concession for owner-occupier off-the-plan units will become permanent and extend to purchasers of turn-key units. Eligible pensioners and homebuyers under the Disability Duty Concession Scheme will no longer pay any duty, and the commercial stamp duty tax-free threshold will increase to $2.1 million. Short-term rental accommodation levy From 1 July 2027, the short-term rental accommodation levy will increase to 7.5% (from 5%). Motor vehicle duty From 1 February 2027, motor vehicle duty rates for Category B, C, D, and Unrated vehicles will increase. Tax administration The Budget provides additional resourcing to ACT Treasury to increase capacity to monitor and analyse the impacts of ACT taxes and deliver evidence-based advice to improve the efficiency, equity and sustainability of the Territory’s tax system. Utilities Network Facilities Tax In 2026-27, the Utilities Network Facilities Tax will increase by an additional 2.5 percentage points above the Wage Price Index. |
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QLD
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Payroll tax The 50% payroll tax rebate for wages paid to apprentices and trainees has been extended to 30 June 2027. Stamp duty From 1 August 2026, home, first home, and vacant land stamp duty concessions will be limited to Australian citizens, permanent residents, and specified foreign retirees. Temporary residents will generally pay duty at standard rates. First Home Owner Grant The Queensland Government has announced that the $30,000 First Home Owner Grant (up from $15,000) will continue for eligible contracts signed from 1 July 2026 onwards, subject to the passage and commencement of the relevant implementing legislation. Tax administration The Budget provides increased resourcing for the Queensland Revenue Office’s compliance and debt recovery activities. |
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WA
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Stamp duty The off-the-plan stamp duty concession has been extended to 30 June 2028. For eligible pre-construction and under construction transactions entered into on or after 12 March 2026, the concession now includes off-the-plan dwellings in survey strata schemes (e.g. units and villas), in addition to apartments, townhouses and other built strata developments. The concession’s lower and upper property price thresholds have also increased to $800,000 (currently $750,000) and $900,000 (currently $850,000) respectively. For transactions entered into on or after 7 May 2026, first home buyers will now receive (1) a stamp duty exemption for established properties up to $600,000 (currently $500,000) and a concessional rate of duty for purchases up to $800,000 (currently $700,000 in Perth and Peel regions, and $750,000 in other regions); and (2) a stamp duty exemption on purchases of vacant land up to $450,000 (currently $350,000) and a concessional rate of duty for purchases up to $550,000 (currently $450,000). For transactions entered into on or after 7 May 2026, eligibility for the first home owner rate of duty on a purchase of vacant residential land is no longer tied to the First Home Owner Grant cap. A new foreign buyers duty exemption applies to transactions entered into on or after 7 May 2026 where the foreign buyer constructs and sells new dwellings within two years of the original purchase. Eligible development activities include purchasing vacant land and constructing a dwelling, purchasing and completing a partially constructed dwelling, purchasing land with established property on which more dwellings will be constructed than demolished, and repurposing or refurbishing commercial or industrial buildings into residential buildings. |
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SA
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Stamp duty Provided a homeowner will sell (or has sold) their principal place of residence within 12 months of purchasing their replacement home, no stamp duty is payable on the purchase of an eligible new home or off-the-plan apartment valued at up to $2 million, with relief progressively phasing out for properties valued up to $2.1 million. In addition, no stamp duty is payable for vacant land valued at up to $1.2 million if vacant land on which a new home will be built has been purchased, with relief progressively phasing out for land valued up to $1.3 million. There will also be relief of up to $103,830 for seniors (aged 60 and over) who (1) downsize to a property with a smaller land size and (2) enter into a contract on or after 25 March 2026 for a newly built home, off-the-plan apartment, or vacant land on which to build a new home. Land tax For 2026/2027, land tax thresholds will increase by around 12.4%. The general tax-free threshold for land tax will increase to $936,000 (currently $833,000) and the top tax rate threshold will increase to $3,504,000 (currently $3,116,000). |
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TAS
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First Home Owner Grant From 1 July 2026, the First Home Owner Grant will increase to $20,000 for 12 months (from $10,000). Short Stay Levy The Tasmanian Government has introduced the Short Stay Levy Bill 2026 (Tas), which proposes a 5% levy on the total booking fee for short stay accommodation in Tasmania. |
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NT
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Payroll tax From 1 July 2026, a higher payroll tax rate of 6.5% will apply to employers (alone or as members of a payroll tax group) with Australia-wide wages of $100 million or more per annum. Those below the $100 million threshold continue to pay payroll tax at 5.5%. |
Further detail on New South Wales Budget measures
Surcharge purchaser duty relief in New South Wales
The Revenue and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2026 (NSW) (Bill) was introduced to NSW Parliament on 23 June 2026. Schedule 1 of the Bill proposes amendments to the Duties Act 1997 (NSW) (Duties Act) to introduce refunds and exemptions for matters relating to BTR properties, retirement villages and other residential-related properties.
Surcharge purchaser duty may be payable when foreign persons acquire an interest in residential-related property. The current surcharge purchaser duty rate is 9% of the dutiable value of a property.
The proposed new Part 3A of the Duties Act sets out the framework entitling a transferee under a transfer of residential-related property to a refund of surcharge purchaser duty paid by the transferee on the transfer. Relevantly, the transfer must be a “refund eligible transfer” (a transfer of residential-related property entered into on or after 1 July 2026, and that is not made in conformity with an agreement for sale or transfer that was entered into before 1 July 2026).
BTR properties
Under proposed section 104ZJC of the Duties Act, a transferee may be entitled to a refund of surcharge purchaser duty paid if the Commissioner is satisfied that:
- the transfer is a refund eligible transfer;
- a BTR land tax concession (an entitlement under section 9E or 9F of the Land Tax Management Act 1956 (NSW) to a reduction in the value of land) applied for the relevant land for the tax year in which the transfer was completed; and
- the BTR land tax concession has continued to apply to the relevant land for a further continuous period of at least 5 years or, if the land is transferred to another person at an earlier time, the period from when the eligible transfer was completed until the transfer to the other person.
The eligible transferee must apply for the refund within 12 months after the entitlement to the refund arises.
Development of retirement villages by Australian-based developers
Under proposed section 104ZJD of the Duties Act, an Australian corporation transferee may be entitled to a refund of surcharge purchaser duty paid if the Commissioner is satisfied that:
- the transfer is a refund eligible transfer; and
- after the transfer is completed, the Australian corporation transferee has constructed a retirement village with at least 50 dwellings or constructed an additional 50 dwellings for a retirement village operating before the transfer. The retirement village (or part thereof) must be on the relevant land, whether or not any of the 50 dwellings are on the relevant land.
The eligible transferee must apply for the refund no later than ten years after the transfer is completed and within 12 months of construction being completed and the constructed village or dwellings being first used and occupied.
Retirement villages transferred to foreign persons
Under proposed section 104ZJE of the Duties Act, a transferee may be entitled to a refund of surcharge purchaser duty paid if the Commissioner is satisfied that:
- the transfer is a refund eligible transfer;
- on the day the transfer was completed, there was a retirement village with at least 50 dwellings; and
- the retirement village, with at least 50 dwellings, has operated for a continuous period of 5 years (starting from the completion day), or if the relevant land is earlier transferred to another person, the period from when the eligible transfer was completed until the transfer to the other person.
The eligible transferee must apply for the refund within 12 months after the entitlement to the refund arises.
Return of dwellings in retirement villages to operators
Under proposed section 104ZKC of the Duties Act, no surcharge purchaser duty is chargeable on the transfer of a dwelling in a retirement village if:
- the transfer was entered into on or after 1 July 2026;
- the transfer was not made in conformity with an agreement for sale or transfer entered into before 1 July 2026;
- the transferee is the operator (within the meaning of the Retirement Villages Act 1999 (NSW) (Retirement Villages Act)) of the retirement village; and
- immediately before the transfer, the transferor was a resident (within the meaning of the Retirement Villages Act) of the retirement village.
Exemption from surcharge purchaser duty
The proposed new Part 3A also introduces the concept of an “exempt transferee” in section 104ZJH of the Duties Act. Instead of applying for a refund of surcharge purchaser duty, a person may apply to the Commissioner for an exemption from surcharge purchaser duty as an “exempt transferee”. Under proposed section 104ZJG of the Duties Act, no surcharge purchaser duty is chargeable on a transfer by an “exempt transferee” at the time the liability for the duty would otherwise have arisen.
A person will be considered an “exempt transferee” if, in the Commissioner’s opinion, a person is likely to be entitled (under sections 104ZJA to 104ZJE of the Duties Act) to a refund of the full amount of surcharge purchaser duty on a transfer, or each transfer in a class of transfers.
How the Mallesons Tax Team can assist
The Mallesons Tax Team has extensive experience advising on stamp duty, land tax, payroll tax and other tax-related matters across all Australian States and Territories.
Please contact the Mallesons Tax Team to discuss how these Budget measures may affect you or for assistance with any of the proposed measures discussed in this Alert.
