Continue your plan
Useful next calculations
When to use this calculator
- Before buying, renting, refinancing or reviewing a property investment.
- When you want to compare cash flow, tax, yield or ownership costs.
- When you need a fast estimate before speaking to an agent, lender or adviser.
- When you want to see how a rate or price change moves the result.
A realistic Australia planning example
Use these sample inputs as a quick scenario test, then change one variable at a time to compare outcomes.
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Property Purchase Price (A$) | A$700,000 |
| State / Territory | New South Wales (NSW) |
| Buyer Type | Standard purchaser |
| Property Use | Principal place of residence |
After entering these figures, review stamp duty, first home buyer discount and foreign investor surcharge together rather than in isolation. Then rerun the tool with one input adjusted.
How to read your results
Stamp Duty
The figure produced by this output for the inputs you entered. Change one variable at a time if you want to see what drives it.
First Home Buyer Discount
The figure produced by this output for the inputs you entered. Change one variable at a time if you want to see what drives it.
Foreign Investor Surcharge
The figure produced by this output for the inputs you entered. Change one variable at a time if you want to see what drives it.
Total Duty Payable
The headline outcome of this calculation. It is most useful when read alongside the supporting metrics rather than in isolation.
Effective Rate
The effective rate lets you compare options on a like-for-like basis rather than being misled by different compounding periods or fee structures.
Est. Total Upfront Costs
The headline outcome of this calculation. It is most useful when read alongside the supporting metrics rather than in isolation.
Method & assumptionsAuthoritative sources
This calculator applies the approximate 2024 progressive transfer duty (stamp duty) scales for New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia, and the Australian Capital Territory. Each state uses a tiered bracket system where progressively higher rates apply to each portion of the purchase price above a threshold. For first home buyers, the calculator applies a full duty exemption where the purchase price is at or below each state’s published exemption limit; partial concessions (available in NSW and VIC for prices above the full exemption threshold) are not modelled. The foreign investor surcharge of 8% is applied as a flat percentage of the full purchase price, consistent with current NSW, VIC, QLD, and SA rates.
The estimated total upfront costs figure adds 2% of the purchase price as a proxy for legal fees, conveyancing, building inspections, mortgage registration, and related transaction costs; actual costs will vary. Tasmania, Northern Territory, and the ACT’s full phased-duty model are not included due to the complexity of transition-period rates. Duty rates and first home buyer thresholds change frequently with state budgets — always verify the current rates directly with the relevant state revenue office (e.g., Revenue NSW, State Revenue Office Victoria, Queensland Revenue Office) or a licensed conveyancer before exchanging contracts.
Common mistakes
- !Using an assumption that is not supported by a current local quote, bill, statement or official source.
- !Treating a generic estimate as a lender, provider, payroll or tax authority decision.
- !Mixing monthly and annual inputs without converting them consistently.
- !Testing only one scenario instead of checking how a cautious assumption changes the result.
What to do next
- Run a second scenario with a cautious assumption so you can see the downside clearly.
- Compare the result with the related calculators below before making a decision.
- Check current local rules, eligibility and provider terms before applying or committing money.
- Keep a record of the assumptions so you can update the estimate when a quote, bill or pay figure changes.
Australian transfer duty, state by state
Guidance reviewed 2 September 2026Transfer duty (still commonly called stamp duty) is a state and territory tax, and each revenue office publishes its own schedule, concessions and surcharges. This calculator models the general residential schedules for NSW, Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia and the ACT, plus first-home exemptions and a foreign-buyer surcharge.
The terminology varies by jurisdiction — NSW and Queensland call it transfer duty, Victoria calls it land transfer duty, and the ACT calls it duty — but the mechanics are similar: a marginal schedule applied to the property price, with concessions layered on top.
Worked example (illustrative figures only)
- Inputs:
- NSW · purchase price A$850,000 · standard buyer · home (not investment)
- Estimate:
- Duty ≈ A$33,337 (about 3.9% of the price)
- What it means:
- The same property bought by an eligible first-home buyer under the modelled NSW exemption threshold would pay no duty in this calculator. Real first-home schemes also carry eligibility conditions such as residency and, in some states, new-build rules.
- What is excluded:
- Mortgage registration and transfer fees, legal and conveyancing costs, and any off-the-plan or pensioner concessions are not modelled.
Example values only — not financial advice.
Assumptions
- General residential duty schedules published by each modelled state revenue office.
- First-home buyers are modelled as fully exempt below a state price cap (NSW A$800,000, VIC A$600,000, QLD A$550,000, WA A$430,000).
- The foreign-buyer surcharge is approximated as a flat 8% of price.
- The “total upfront” figure adds a rough 2% allowance for fees — it is an estimate, not an itemised cost sheet.
Not included
- Tasmania and the Northern Territory are not modelled — check the SRO Tasmania or NT Government duty pages directly.
- Partial first-home concessions above the modelled caps (for example NSW concessions up to higher price points) are simplified to full exemption-or-nothing.
- Real foreign-surcharge rates differ by state and can change; the flat 8% here is an approximation to be confirmed with the relevant revenue office.
- Pensioner, off-the-plan, Seniors Card and similar concessions are not modelled.
- Whether the home is owner-occupied or an investment does not change base duty in the model (true at the time of review for general schedules, but concessions can depend on it).
Reading the result
- Effective duty rises steeply with price in every modelled state, because the top marginal rates (4.5–7%) sit above mid-range price points.
- First-home buyers should confirm eligibility and current caps with the state revenue office — caps and schemes change with state budgets.
- Duty is generally payable around settlement; exact deadlines and payment rules come from the relevant revenue office, not this page.
Sources
- Revenue NSW — Transfer duty
- State Revenue Office Victoria — Land transfer duty
- Queensland Revenue Office — Transfer duty
- WA Department of Finance — Transfer duty
- RevenueSA — Stamp duty on property transfers
- ACT Revenue Office — Duty
- State Revenue Office Tasmania — Duty
- NT Government — Stamp duty on property
Frequently asked
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