Stamp duty guides
Each guide takes one situation, a first home, an investment, a block of land, a downsize, and runs it through the eight state and territory rules side by side.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Methodology
These guides compare how the eight Australian states and territories treat one kind of purchase at a time, using the 2026-27 rules read on each revenue office's site on 5 October 2026. The state pages explain one jurisdiction in depth; the guides answer the question a buyer actually starts with, such as whether a new home or an older one costs less after the grant, or how much more a foreign investor pays. Every figure is produced by the same engine as the calculators, so a table in a guide and a result in a calculator always agree. Some examples of what the guides contain: a first home buyer pays no duty up to $800,000 in NSW but faces the full scale in Tasmania; grants run from nothing in the ACT to $50,000 in the Territory; foreign buyer surcharges reach 9 %. Start with the guide that matches your situation, then open the state page for the detail.
Cheapest and dearest state for this purchase
Lowest: QLD
$21,850
| Highest: VIC | $43,070 |
| Gap | $21,220 |
| Median of the eight | $31,750 |
Find the guide for your situation
The guides are grouped by the buyer, not by the state. Each one compares all eight jurisdictions and links to the state pages for the finer rules.
| If you are | Read | One figure from it |
|---|---|---|
| buying your first home | First home buyer stamp duty | no duty to $600,000 in Victoria, $800,000 in NSW |
| buying a brand new first home | First Home Owner Grant | $30,000 in Queensland under $750,000 |
| choosing between new and older | New vs established home | duty minus grant at $740,000 in Queensland: -$30,000 new |
| buying a block to build on | Stamp duty on vacant land | NSW land exemption to $350,000 |
| buying a builder's package | House and land packages | NSW grant if land plus build is up to $750,000 |
| buying before it is built | Off-the-plan stamp duty | WA concession capped at $50,000 |
| buying to rent out | Investor stamp duty | ACT investor at $600,000: $15,720 |
| not an Australian citizen or resident | Foreign buyer surcharges | surcharge of 9 % in NSW |
| a pensioner or downsizing | Pensioners and downsizers | SA seniors relief up to $103,830 |
| buying in a family or below-market sale | Dutiable value | duty on the higher of price and market value in NSW |
| comparing an old quote with a new one | 2026 stamp duty changes | Tasmanian grant cut to $20,000 |
First home buyers
Three guides belong together. The first home buyer guide shows the duty at five prices in each state, explains how each concession fades, and compares the residence rules that can claw the concession back. The grant guide lists the eight grant schemes with their caps and occupation periods. The new versus established guide combines the two into one net figure per home. For a first home buyer at $650,000 on an established home, the duty is nil in NSW, QLD, ACT and reaches $32,175 in the Territory.
Land, packages and off the plan
A purchase that is not a finished home brings in a different set of thresholds. The vacant land guide covers the lower land ceilings in NSW and Western Australia and the full concessions in Queensland and South Australia. The house and land package guide explains why one contract and two contracts are measured differently, and covers the Territory's package exemption. The off-the-plan guide sets the five mechanisms side by side: Victoria's deduction, Western Australia's stage-based concession, the NSW deferral, the ACT unit exemption and Tasmania's closed scheme.
Investors, foreign buyers and downsizers
The investor guide shows where living in the property is worth something and where it makes no difference. The foreign buyer guide covers the six surcharges, the share rule for mixed purchases and the concessions a foreign buyer loses. The pensioner and downsizer guide covers the three live schemes, in Victoria, the ACT and South Australia.
The rules behind every guide
Two guides explain mechanics that apply everywhere. The dutiable value guide covers the base the scale is applied to: market value, construction still to come, land only, and rounding. The 2026 changes guide dates every rule that moved this year, so you can tell whether a figure you were quoted before 7 May 2026 or 1 July 2026 still holds.
The eight scales at a glance
Every guide starts from the same general scales. For reference, this is what a buyer with no concession pays at three prices.
| State | Revenue office | $500,000 | $800,000 | $1,200,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NSW | Revenue NSW | $16,687 | $30,187 | $48,187 |
| VIC | State Revenue Office Victoria | $25,070 | $43,070 | $66,000 |
| QLD | Queensland Revenue Office | $15,925 | $29,025 | $49,525 |
| WA | RevenueWA | $17,765 | $32,316 | $52,916 |
| SA | RevenueSA | $21,330 | $37,830 | $59,830 |
| TAS | State Revenue Office of Tasmania | $18,248 | $31,185 | $49,185 |
| ACT | ACT Revenue Office | $11,400 | $25,150 | $49,750 |
| NT | Territory Revenue Office | $23,929 | $39,600 | $59,400 |
The state pages, from NSW to the Northern Territory, carry the full calculator for each jurisdiction. The price pages show the duty at common prices in every state.