When you buy or acquire property in Victoria including your home, you pay duty on your purchase
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Buying a Property 
First Home Owner About 200,000 properties change hands in Victoria each year. Most often they are bought or sold at auctions and private sales, but can also be gifted or acquired through a company or trust.
Whichever way you obtain your property, you must pay land transfer duty (otherwise known as stamp duty) on exactly that – the transfer of the land from one individual to another. The amount of duty depends on the price your pay for your property, what you will use it for, if you are a foreign purchaser, and if you are entitled to any exemptions or concessions.
Buying a property
You pay land transfer duty when you buy your first home, but also when you buy a property such as an investment property or holiday home, a business (including goods), or primary production land with or without water entitlements.
Acquiring a property
You will also pay duty when you acquire property (or an interest) in some way other than buying it, for example, through a lease or as a result of a trust or a gift, a declaration of trust or a transaction that effects a change in the beneficial ownership of property. Ownership or interest can be by way of an estate in fee simple, through a life estate, a Crown leasehold estate or land use entitlements.
Duty also applies on certain acquisitions in a company or unit trust scheme that has Victorian land holdings with an unencumbered value of $1 million or more.
Digital duties form
The SRO's digital duties form is now live and ready to be used.
The form will be mandatory in Victoria from 1 July 2017 for all property transfers. Taxpayers and their representatives must use the digital form for all contracts or agreements for land transfer duty entered into, on or after this date.
A number of resources are available to help you understand the process.
Housing measures
The State Taxation Acts Amendment Act 2017 received Royal Assent on 27 June 2017. It includes:
- FHOG increase to $20,000 for regional Victoria
- Abolishment of stamp duty for first-home buyers
- Changes to off-the-plan concessions
- Tax on vacant residential property
Land transfer (stamp) duty changes FAQs ◥
Vacant residential property tax FAQs ◥
Calculate your duty
The amount of land transfer duty you have to pay depends on the dutiable value of your property. This is the price your paid for the property, or its market value (whichever is greater). Duty is calculated on a sliding scale, starting at 1.4 per cent for properties valued at $25,000 and rising to 5.5 per cent for those valued at and above $960,000.
Declarations of trust that do not declare a trust over land attract a flat rate duty of $200.
If you don't pay your duty within 30 days of settlement, penalty tax and interest may apply.
When you buy your property, your conveyancer/solicitor or bank will normally organise and pay duty on your behalf via Duties Online. To confirm that duty has been paid, ask them for a duty statement.
Land transfer rates Calculate your duty
Conveyancing industry
Regular lodgers involved in the property conveyancing industry should apply to become a Duties Online registered user.
Individuals
Members of the public who are not using a DOL registered user (usually a solicitor or conveyancer) and wish to lodge electronically as an individual can do so after a simple registration process. You can electronically lodge scanned documents for a land transfer of declaration of trust via our website after you register with us.
Exemptions and concessions
A number of exemptions and concessions for land transfer duty are available. Many of these are aimed at homebuyers, but others include:
- Deceased estates – an exemption on a transfer of land by the executor of a deceased person to a beneficiary
- Transfer between spouse or partner – an exemption for transfers between partners and spouses, including transfers arising out of a breakdown of a relationship
- Family farms – an exemption for the transfer of the family farm, depending on the class of the land, the nature of the transfer, and the status of the parties involved in the transfer
- Young farmers – a one-off duty exemption/concession for young farmers buying their first farmland property
- Corporate consolidation – an exemption where corporate groups form a single entity for tax purposes by interposing a company between the existing head trust or company and its unit holders or shareholders and all its subsidiary entities
- Corporate reconstruction – an exemption where a corporate group reorganises its business structure (e.g. transferring assets between corporations that are members of the corporate group)
- Charities and friendly societies – certain exemptions from land transfer duty may be available to a charity or friendly society
This list is not exhaustive. More exemptions and concessions are available especially for first-home owners and pensioners who are buying a property. You may be eligible for more than one of these exemptions or concessions. Discuss these with your conveyancer and/or representative before settlement.
Importantly, you should complete all relevant forms before settlement and advise your conveyancer, solicitor and bank so that the right amount of duty can be calculated. Otherwise, you will need to apply for a reassessment if you believe you overpaid.
The timing of your exemptions, concessions or other benefits depends on the contract you sign to buy/build your new home, and whether you lodge your application directly with us or via an approved agent.
Your obligations and responsibilities
You must always provide us with true and accurate information. If we find you provided false or misleading statements on any application or do not meet the residency requirements, you will be ordered to repay the grant and/or any duty amounts. You may also face penalties.
We regularly share resources with other agencies to ensure you satisfy all eligibility requirements of the FHOG and/or other concessions, exemptions and reductions. These information checks may occur months or even years after you obtained the FHOG. All information you provide is managed in line with our privacy policy.
Overpaid duty
If you believe that you overpaid duty when you bought your home because, for example, you were eligible but didn’t claim an available benefit, you may apply for a duty reassessment. If we find that you are eligible, we will refund the overpaid duty.
To apply for a reassessment, you should send us a cover letter along with the completed application forms for the relevant exemption, concession or reduction/s and any supporting documents.
Your request must be made within five years of your payment of the duty.
Please note the amount of your refund depends on a number of factors, including the settlement date and the value of your property at that time. We receive large volumes of refund applications so please be aware that your case may take up to 60 days to process.
Getting it right
Our priority is to help you pay the right amount of tax at the right time. Learn more about how we'll do this.
