House and Land Package Exemption in the Northern Territory
Buy the block and the new house together from a building contractor, live in it, and the Territory charges no stamp duty on the purchase.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Methodology
The Northern Territory's House and Land Package Exemption removes all stamp duty when a home and the land under it are bought together from a building contractor in a single transaction, for contracts from 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2027. There is no means test and no price cap. The buyer has to move in within 12 months of the home's completion and live there for six continuous months. The saving is the duty the Territory's formula would otherwise charge on the full package price: $27,225 on a $550,000 package in Palmerston, $39,600 on an $800,000 one in Darwin. The exemption is not limited to first home buyers, so it stacks with either new home grant: $50,000 HomeGrown for a first home or $30,000 FreshStart for anyone else, for contracts to 30 September 2027. Buying the land from one party and the house from another, or buying an established home, falls outside it, and stamp duty is then due within 60 days of signing or at settlement if earlier.
Northern Territory new home: duty and grant
HomeGrown Territory Grant
$50,000
| Stamp duty | $30,690 |
| Grant minus duty | $19,310 |
| Duty rule | Territory stamp duty formula |
One seller, one contract, one dwelling to live in
The exemption turns on how the purchase is put together rather than on who the buyer is. The Territory sets three conditions. The house and land have to be bought from a building contractor. They have to be bought in one transaction, not as a land contract followed by a build contract with someone else. And the buyer has to live in the home, moving in within 12 months of completion and staying for six continuous months. Income, price and past ownership are not tested. Contracts must be dated between 1 July 2022 and 30 June 2027.
The calculator above shows the effect: set the price, answer whether this is a first home, and switch the house and land package question to Yes. The duty line drops to zero and the grant line stays where it was.
The duty you avoid: the Territory formula
Northern Territory stamp duty is not built from bands like the other states. Up to $525,000, the official calculator applies a quadratic formula: with V equal to the value divided by 1,000, duty is (0.06571441 × V²) + 15 × V. Above $525,000 it switches to a flat percentage of the whole value: 4.95 %, rising to 5.75 % from $3,000,000 and 5.95 % from $5,000,000. The two parts meet exactly at $525,000, where both give $25,988.
| Package price | Duty on the formula | With the exemption | Effective rate avoided |
|---|---|---|---|
| $400,000 | $16,514 | $0 | 4.13 % |
| $500,000 | $23,929 | $0 | 4.79 % |
| $525,000 | $25,988 | $0 | 4.95 % |
| $650,000 | $32,175 | $0 | 4.95 % |
| $800,000 | $39,600 | $0 | 4.95 % |
| $1,000,000 | $49,500 | $0 | 4.95 % |
The effective rate climbs smoothly up to $525,000 and then holds at 4.95 %. Between $500,000 and $800,000, the range of many new homes on the edge of Darwin and Palmerston, the exemption is worth between $23,929 and $39,600.
Adding the grant
The exemption and the new home grants answer different questions, so a buyer can have both. A first home buyer taking a $600,000 package keeps the full $50,000 HomeGrown grant and pays no duty, where buying the same house on a separately purchased lot would mean paying duty on the land. A buyer who has owned before receives $30,000 under FreshStart on the same terms. Both grants need contracts by 30 September 2027, three months after the package exemption's own deadline of 30 June 2027.
| Package price | First home: grant, no duty | Not a first home: grant, no duty | Investor: duty, no grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| $500,000 | $50,000 | $30,000 | $23,929 |
| $650,000 | $50,000 | $30,000 | $32,175 |
| $800,000 | $50,000 | $30,000 | $39,600 |
The investor column is there for contrast: without the residence condition, the package is taxed on the formula and no grant is paid.
A package priced line by line
Take a $680,000 four-bedroom package in Zuccoli, bought by a couple who have never owned a home. Under the exemption the stamp duty line on their settlement statement is nil instead of $33,660. HomeGrown adds $50,000. Had they bought a $270,000 lot from a developer and signed separately with a builder, the land contract alone would have carried $8,841 of duty, payable within 60 days, long before the slab was poured. The grant would be the same on either route; the duty is what differs.
For a buyer selling an older home to move into a new package, the arithmetic is similar with FreshStart's $30,000 in place of HomeGrown. On an $850,000 package the duty saved, $42,075, is larger than the grant itself.
Where buyers lose the exemption
Three situations fall outside it. The first is splitting the deal: land from a developer, house from a builder, two contracts. The exemption's wording requires one transaction with a building contractor. The second is an established home, bought from its owner rather than from a building contractor. The third is timing on the other end: a buyer who does not move in within 12 months of completion, or moves out before six continuous months, no longer meets the residence condition. For each, the duty is the formula figure in the first table.
A deadline is also approaching. The exemption covers contracts to 30 June 2027. A package signed after that date is assessed on the formula unless the Territory extends the scheme; check the official page before relying on a later contract.
When duty is payable
For purchases outside the exemption, Territory stamp duty is due within 60 days of signing, or at settlement if that comes first. For land bought on its own to build a first home, that means finding the land duty well before the house is finished. The NT stamp duty calculator handles every case; the house and land package guide explains how the other states assess the same kind of purchase.