Home concession

You can claim a home concession for transfer duty when acquiring a residence, as long as you meet certain requirements. If you are eligible, you will pay a reduced amount, saving you up to $7,175.

Unlike the first home concession, you can claim the home concession even when you have owned a home before.

The home concession rate applies to the first $350,000 of the consideration or value of the residence, and the general transfer duty rates then apply to the balance.

You do not have to be an Australian citizen or permanent resident to claim a concession, but you must meet the eligibility criteria. Additional foreign acquirer duty may apply if you are a foreign person.

There are no additional concessions or exemptions for seniors card or pensioner concession card holders.

If you are a transfer duty self assessor, you can:

• refer to the residential land concession toolkit for help with the home concession
• view a list of all self-assessed transactions, concessions and exemptions, and their related toolkits.

Eligibility

To claim a home concession when you buy or acquire a home, you must:

• be legally acquiring the property as an individual
• move into it with your personal belongings and live there on a daily basis within 1 year of settlement (this time cannot be extended)
• not dispose (sell, transfer, lease or otherwise grant exclusive possession) of all or part of the property before you move in.

Companies are not eligible to claim a concession, except when they are acting as a corporate trustee.

Trustees are not eligible for the concessions unless all the following apply:

• the transferees are trustees of a trust (other than a discretionary or unit trust)
• the beneficiaries are individuals, all of whom are under a legal disability
• the residence will be the home of all the beneficiaries.

You do not have to be an Australian citizen or permanent resident to claim a concession. However, additional foreign acquirer duty may apply if you are a foreign person.

To keep the benefit of the home concession in full after you move in, you must not dispose of all or part of the property (including granny flats) within 1 year. A partial concession may apply if you dispose within 1 year.

Use our home concession eligibility tester to find out if you are eligible to claim the home concession or first home concession.

For more information, read the public ruling on occupancy requirements for homes and first homes (DA085.1).

Two or more acquirers

Provided you qualify, you can claim a home concession on your interest (or share), whether or not other acquirers also qualify for a home concession or first home concession. Not every person acquiring the property needs to qualify for a concession or apply for the same concession.

In some cases, people will have eligibility for different concessions or no eligibility. For example, a couple can buy their home and one person can claim a first home concession and the other a home concession. In these circumstances, all the various interests and any concessions that apply are used to calculate the total duty payable.

The calculations can be complex, so use the transfer duty calculator to see what you might pay when there are mixed concession claims.

Existing tenants or previous owners

Any existing tenants must move out when their lease expires or within 6 months of settlement, whichever is the earlier, for you to stay eligible for the concession. Previous owners who continue to stay in the property must also move out within 6 months.

Demolishing the home

The home concession will not apply if you demolish the existing home without first living there, even if you construct and occupy a new home within a year.