First home buyer duty in Queensland
Queensland treats a first home very differently depending on whether it is new, established or a block of land; here are the three regimes and the rules that apply from 1 August 2026.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Methodology
A first home buyer in Queensland pays no transfer duty at all on a new home or on vacant land to build a first home on, whatever the price, for contracts signed from 1 May 2025, while an established first home still pays duty, reduced by the first home concession up to $800,000. On an established home the Queensland Revenue Office starts from the home concession rate and subtracts a fixed amount: $17,350 below $710,000, then $1,735 less for each further $10,000. The office's own example, a $795,000 home, comes to $19,890. For contracts from 1 August 2026, buyers must be Australian citizens, permanent residents or specified foreign retirees, must move in within one year of settlement with no extension, and must not rent out the whole home before moving in or during the year after. A new home under $750,000 also attracts the $30,000 First Home Owner Grant, so a $650,000 new townhouse costs nothing in duty and brings in $30,000.
Grant on a new home in your state
First Home Owner Grant
$30,000
| Duty on this new first home | $0 |
| Duty minus grant | -$30,000 |
| Duty rule | First home (new home) concession: full, no value cap |
Three regimes for three kinds of first home
Several states give a first home buyer one concession with one cap. Queensland gives three, and they are very unequal. The first home (new home) concession and the first home vacant land concession remove all duty, with no ceiling. The first home concession on an established home is a fixed deduction that runs out at $800,000. At the same $850,000, the gap between the two is the whole of the duty:
| Price | New home or land | Established home | Investor |
|---|---|---|---|
| $500,000 | $0 | $0 | $15,925 |
| $650,000 | $0 | $0 | $22,275 |
| $700,000 | $0 | $0 | $24,525 |
| $750,000 | $0 | $10,925 | $26,775 |
| $850,000 | $0 | $24,100 | $31,275 |
| $1,000,000 | $0 | $30,850 | $38,025 |
Established homes: the stepped deduction
The concession rates page sets out the method. First, duty is worked out at the home concession rate, the reduced scale every owner-occupier gets. Then the first home concession amount for the price band is subtracted. The amount is $17,350 for any home under $710,000 and falls by $1,735 for each $10,000 step above that.
| Home value | First home concession amount |
|---|---|
| under $710,000 | $17,350 |
| $710,000 to under $720,000 | $15,615 |
| $720,000 to under $730,000 | $13,880 |
| $730,000 to under $740,000 | $12,145 |
| $740,000 to under $750,000 | $10,410 |
| $750,000 to under $760,000 | $8,675 |
| $760,000 to under $770,000 | $6,940 |
| $770,000 to under $780,000 | $5,205 |
| $780,000 to under $790,000 | $3,470 |
| $790,000 to under $800,000 | $1,735 |
| $800,000 or more | $0 |
Because $17,350 is exactly the home concession duty on $700,000, a first home up to that value pays nothing. Between $700,000 and $710,000 a small amount appears: $225 at $705,000. The steps then make the duty jump at each $10,000 line, so $709,999 costs $450 and $710,000 costs $2,185. The office's worked example, $795,000, is home concession duty of $21,625 less $1,735, giving $19,890.
New homes and vacant land: full, uncapped
For contracts from 1 May 2025, a first home buyer of a new home, or of vacant land on which to build a first home, pays no transfer duty regardless of value. One detail matters on larger blocks: if part of the land is not used for residential purposes, that part is assessed at the normal scale.
New or established: what the choice is worth
For a first buyer with a budget around $800,000, the property type now decides the duty far more than the price does. An established house at $800,000 carries $21,850, because the first home concession amount has run out; a new house or townhouse at the same price carries $0. A buyer who prefers an older home in an established suburb is effectively paying that duty for the location. Below $700,000, by contrast, the choice is neutral on duty, and only the grant on new homes still tilts the balance. The new versus established comparison runs the same test across every state.
The rules from 1 August 2026
Queensland tightened the conditions for all home concessions, first home ones included, for contracts entered into on or after 1 August 2026.
- Who: each buyer claiming the concession must be an Australian citizen, a permanent resident or a specified foreign retiree.
- Moving in: within one year of settlement. The deadline cannot be extended.
- Renting: you cannot rent out the whole home before you move in, nor in the year after. Renting part of it is allowed if you keep living there and the lease started on or after 10 September 2024.
- Demolition: knocking the house down before you have lived in it as your home costs you the concession.
The Queensland Revenue Office's own example of a mixed couple, where only one partner meets the citizenship test, is worked through on the Queensland foreign acquirer page.
The $30,000 grant
The Queensland First Home Owner Grant pays $30,000 for contracts from 20 November 2023 on a new home valued under $750,000. The grant requires Australian citizenship or permanent residency, income is irrelevant, and the home has to be occupied for six months within the first year. Combined with the uncapped new home concession, a first buyer of a $700,000 new home pays $0 in duty and receives $30,000; at $780,000 the duty is still nil but the grant is gone. The grant comparison shows how Queensland's grant ranks nationally.
A buyer who fails the first home test, for example because they owned a home years ago, still gets the home concession rate on a home they will live in.