Conveyance duty exemptions

Personal transfers

Conveyance duty is not payable on a transfer of property to a beneficiary, executor or administrator of a deceased estate, where the transfer is made under and in conformity with the trusts contained in the Will of the deceased person, Probate Application, Letters of Administration or Codicil of the estate.

If you claim this concession or exemption, you’ll need to keep a record of documents identifying the transfer was made under and in conformity with the Will, Probate Application or Letters of Administration of the deceased person.

If the property is only partly in conformity with a trust contained in the Will, then duty will be payable on the portion of the property that is transferring not in conformity with the Will. For example if someone is entitled to 50% of the property under the will but wants to purchase the whole property, they will pay duty on the 50% that was not contained within the trust of the Will.

For transfers in full conformity with a will or probate, a Transmission Application  should be completed with the applicable concession code. If you are transferring property in any manner that is not in full conformity, but you believe to be in partial conformity with a will or probate, please complete the relevant forms in accordance with the requirements of the Land Titles Office for your circumstances and then enter the stamp duty code for “transfers in partial conformity with a will”.  You may then be contacted by the ACT Revenue Office to provide further information to enable the assessment of duty, if any.

In certain circumstances, the ACT Revenue Office may require a Codicil and Deed of Family Arrangements to verify the transfer, (A Codicil amends, rather than replaces, a previously executed Will. Such amendments may add or revoke provisions of the Will.)

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Conveyance duty is not payable on a transaction made under:

  • a court order under the Family Law Act 1975 (Cwlth)
  • a court order under the Married Persons Property Act 1986
  • any other court order for the distribution of property as a result of the end of a relationship between partners.

Duty may also not be payable, in some circumstances, on a transfer of property under:

  • a binding financial agreement under sections 90B, 90C or 90D of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cwlth)
  • a part VIIIAB financial agreement under sections 90UB, 90UC or 90UD of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cwlth)
  • a domestic relationship agreement under the Domestic Relationships Act 1994
  • a termination agreement under the Domestic Relationships Act 1994.

    • More information is set out in the latest version of Revenue Circular Personal Relationship Transfer Exemption (DAA006.1).

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Conveyance duty is not payable on transfer of residential property to your partner, if the property is your principal place of residence, and the transfer results in the property being held by both parties as:

  • joint tenants
  • tenants in common in equal share
  • tenants in common in shares that are proportionate to your contribution towards the purchase and improvement of the property

A partner includes your spouse, civil union partner, civil partner or de facto partner.

More information is set out in the latest version of Revenue Circular Personal Relationship Transfer Exemption (DAA006.1) .

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Conveyance duty is not payable on certain transactions in relation to land used for primary production (farming properties) being transferred to a younger generation.

This exemption encourages younger members of farming families to remain on a rural property and continue using it for primary production.

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Conveyance duty is not payable on a transfer of property as a result of:

  • The appointment of a receiver or trustee in bankruptcy
  • The appointment of a liquidator
  • To a former bankrupt from the estate of the former bankrupt.

You’ll need to keep copies of documents identifying the transferor being placed in receivership and showing that a trustee in bankruptcy or a liquidator has been appointed, in case we request them.

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Trusts

Conveyance duty is not payable on a transfer of dutiable property to a person as a result of the retirement of a trustee or the appointment of a new trustee.

New or remaining trustees after the retirement of a trustee cannot become beneficiaries of the trust.

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Conveyance duty is not payable on a transfer of dutiable property between the following parties:

  • from a responsible entity (or their trustee) of a managed investment scheme to a custodian or agent of the responsible entity
  • from a responsible entity of a managed investment scheme to a custodian or agent of the scheme
  • from a custodian or agent of a responsible entity of a managed investment scheme as custodian or agent of the scheme of the responsible entity, and
  • for the transfer of dutiable property by a trustee of a registered scheme to a custodian or agent of the responsible entity of the scheme as custodian or agent of the scheme.

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Conveyance duty is not payable on a declaration of trust made by an apparent purchaser in respect of identified dutiable property in the ACT if the property is vested in the apparent purchaser on trust for the real purchaser. The real purchaser must have also provided the funds to purchase the property.

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Conveyance duty is not payable on a transfer of dutiable property if:

  • dutiable property that was transferred to a person to be held by that person as trustee for the transferor is transferred back to the transferor by the trustee for no consideration, and
  • no other person had a beneficial interest in the dutiable property.

For this exemption, a trustee includes a trustee appointed in substitution for a trustee or a trustee appointed in addition to a trustee.

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Conveyance duty is not payable on a transfer of property to a beneficiary under and in conformity with trusts contained in a declaration of trust, provided that conveyance duty was paid on the initial declaration of trust over that property.

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Conveyance duty is not payable in respect of a declaration of trust:

  • that is made by a trustee in respect of dutiable property that, immediately before the trust is declared is held by the trustee as trustee of a responsible entity of a managed investment scheme, and
  • that is made for the purpose of holding the property on trust for the responsible entity of a managed investment scheme.

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Superannuation transactions

Conveyance duty is not payable on the transfer of property from one superannuation fund to another if:

  • the transfer is made from a complying superannuation fund or a fund that was a complying superannuation fund within the 12 month period before the transfer was made, and
  • the transfer is made to a complying superannuation fund or to a fund that will be a superannuation fund within 12 months after the transfer is made, and
  • the transfer occurs due to a person ceasing to be a member of or ceasing to be entitled to benefits in respect of that fund.

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Conveyance duty is not payable on:

  • a transfer of dutiable property from a trustee of a relevant fund or trust to a custodian of the trustee of the fund or trust, if there is no change in beneficial ownership of the property
  • a transfer of dutiable property from a custodian of a trustee of a relevant fund or trust to a trustee of the fund or trust, if there is no change in beneficial ownership of the property
  • a transfer of dutiable property from a custodian of a trustee of a relevant fund or trust to another custodian of the trustee of the fund or trust, if there is no change in beneficial ownership of the property.

A complying superannuation fund includes a complying approved deposit fund and an eligible rollover fund.

A pooled superannuation trust means an entity that is a pooled superannuation trust under the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 (Cwlth).

A relevant fund or trust, in relation to the transfer of dutiable property means:

  • a complying superannuation fund
  • a pooled superannuation trust
  • a fund or trust that will be a complying superannuation fund or a pooled superannuation fund within 12 months after the day the transfer takes effect.

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Crown Lease Exemptions

Conveyance duty is not payable on a grant of a new Crown lease to a lessee under a previous Crown lease if the previous lessee surrendered the lease for one or more of the following purposes:

  • Changing the purpose for which the land comprised in the lease may be used
  • granting the lessee a longer leasehold interest in the land comprised in the lease
  • reducing rent to not more than 5 cents a year
  • correcting errors or omissions.

A Crown lease means a territory lease and includes a lease granted by the Commonwealth or the Federal Capital Commission.

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Conveyance duty is not payable on the grant of a new Crown lease on the surrender of a development lease if:

  • the new Crown lease is granted to the person who was the lessee under the development lease at the time of its surrender, and
  • all of the land in the new lease is the land that was comprised in the development lease.

A development lease is a Crown lease that is expressed to be granted for the purpose of developing the land comprised in the lease for subdivision and resale.

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Off the Plan unit duty exemption

No conveyance duty is payable under an exemption for some transactions involving home buyers buying off the plan unit-titled properties to live in. (Note this is different from the owner occupier base rate for stamp duty.)

See details of off the plan unit duty exemption at www.revenue.act.gov.au/home-buyer-assistance/off-the-plan-unit duty-exemption.

Miscellaneous conveyance duty exemptions

Conveyance duty is not payable on a corporate reconstruction transaction where property is transferred by a member of a group of corporations to another member of the same corporate group.

More information is set out in the Corporate Reconstruction Transaction Guidelines.

An application for exemption must be made to the Commissioner via the Application for Corporate Reconstruction SmartForm addressing each of the issues specified in the guidelines that are relevant to the reconstruction.

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Conveyance duty is not payable on a transaction where the duty would be payable by a hospital, school or a trustee who holds property in trust for the hospital or school.

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Conveyance duty is not payable on a transfer of land made in accordance with the Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2009 (Cwlth).

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Conveyance duty is not payable on a the grant or transfer of land to a prescribed person.

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Conveyance duty is not payable on a transfer of a unit if the transfer is part of an arrangement under which the transferee will take an interest in the unit similar to an in substitution for the interest the transferee had under the land use entitlement immediately before registration of the units plan.

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Conveyance duty is not payable on the transfer of dutiable property to:

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Conveyance duty is not payable on a transfer of property arising from, or by way of, discharge or transfer of a mortgage or declaration of trust over a mortgage.

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Conveyance duty is not payable if the duty would be payable by any of the following:

  • the Commonwealth
  • a State or another Territory
  • a prescribed authority of the Commonwealth, a State or another Territory
  • a non-commercial Commonwealth authority.

A non-commercial Commonwealth authority means a body corporate (other than an incorporated company, society, or association) that:

  • is incorporated for a public purpose by or under a law of the Territory or the Commonwealth, and
  • does not have as its sole principal function the carrying on of an activity in the nature of a business, whether or not for profit.

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