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Stamp duty or, as it is more commonly known in Queensland, transfer duty is a one-off government fee you will be required to pay when you buy land or property. Stamp duty is imposed following the transfer of a title whether it be for residential, commercial, or investment purposes.
The duty is calculated on the market value of the property. The more expensive the asset, the higher the transfer duty rate you’ll have to pay.
See the rates table below for rates relevant to property values in Queensland.
For example, if you purchased a house valued at $650,000, falling within the $540,000 - $1,000,000 threshold, your transfer duty rate would be a total of around $17,229 (including fees).
Property value | Transfer duty rate |
|---|---|
Under $5,000 | Nil |
$5,001 to $75,000 | $1.50 for each $100, or part of $100, over $5,000 |
$75,000 to $540,000 | $1,050 plus $3.50 for each $100, or part of $100, over $75,000 |
$540,000 to $1,000,000 | $17,325 plus $4.50 for each $100, or part of $100, over $540,000 |
More than $1,000,000 | $38,025 plus $5.75 for each $100, or part of $100, over $1,000,000 |
Queensland imposes an ‘additional foreign acquirer duty’ (AFAD), at a rate of 7% of the value of the property, to any foreign persons purchasing land or property. So if you were not an Australian citizen, purchasing a $650,000 property, not only would you have to pay the $22,275, you would also be taxed an additional 7%.
In Queensland, transfer duty is payable to the Office of State Revenue. Before you make a payment, you must first lodge all appropriate documents and forms for assessment. These might include a dutiable transaction statement and a claim for a home or first home transfer duty concession. These documents should be lodged within 30 days of you signing them.
The documents may be lodged with either the Queensland Office of State Revenue (OSR), or a registered self assessor, such as a solicitor. You will then be sent a notice of assessment, which will inform you how much duty you’re liable to pay. The method you use to pay is up to you.
As transfer duty is a state and territory government tax, the money paid will go towards funding certain public sectors, such as health, education and training and roads and transport.
Transfer duty is payable once you receive notification that your documents have been assessed. If you’re borrowing money, your lender will likely require you to have these documents stamped before the loan can be settled, so you will need to pay the transfer duty amount before then. The longer you take to pay the duty, the longer it will take for you to be legally recognised as the new owner of the property, and after a certain time additional interest and fees may start to accrue.
Queensland offers a number of stamp duty (transfer duty) concessions. If you are planning to move into the house within the next 12 months and don't sell or lease the property or part of the property, you are eligible for concessions.
The concession transfer duty rates relevant to property values in Queensland are as follows:
Therefore, if you were to purchase a property for $650,000 and claim the home concession, you would only be charged $10,150 outright in transfer duty instead of the standard $17,325. Adding on $4.50 for every $100 over $540,000 (a total of $4,950), with this concession you would only be required to pay $15,100 in transfer duty.
Queensland also offers a ‘first home concession’ to first home buyers over 18 years of age who intend to live in a property as their principal place of residence, and who’ve never previously owned property or land or claimed the vacant land concession. The concession, which is deducted from the home concession amount, may be claimed on properties valued up to $549,999.
There is also a first home vacant land concession that may be claimed on land valued between $250,000 and $399,999. For land valued at less than $250,000, a full exemption from transfer duty may be claimed.
Read more about transfer duty in Queensland here.
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