Home buyer concession scheme (from 1 July 2019)

Who is eligible

To be eligible for the HBCS the following criteria must be met:

All buyers of the home or land must be individuals of at least 18 years old.
The total gross income of all buyers, including their partners (if any) must not be greater than the relevant income threshold below.
All buyers including their partners (if any) must not have owned (legal or equitable interest) any other property in the last two years*. A partner includes your spouse, civil union partner or de facto partner.
At least one buyer must live in the home continuously for at least one year, starting within 12 months of the date of completion (settlement date) or the date that a certificate of occupancy has been issued**.

* There are limited exceptions to this requirement, including court orders and agreements made under the Family Law Act 1975 and the Domestic Relationships Act 1994. These orders or agreements must be made before the transaction date.

** The Commissioner for ACT Revenue can exempt you from the residence requirements, in full or in part, but only in very specific circumstances.

Eligible properties

All properties in the ACT are eligible for this scheme. It applies to vacant residential land and both new and established homes, anywhere in the ACT and at any price. From 1 July 2021, a concession cap has been implemented for the amount of tax that will be waived under the HBCS.

Income thresholds

To be eligible to pay no duty, the total gross income of all home buyers and their partners (if any) over the full financial year before the transaction date must be less than or equal to the thresholds below.

Your partner’s income must be included, even if they won't be owner of the home.

Table 1 - Income threshold for transactions from 1 July 2022

Number of dependent children	Total gross income threshold
0	$170,000
1	$173,330
2	$176,660
3	$179,990
4	$183,320
5 or more	$186,650

Table 2 - Income thresholds for transactions from 1 July 2019 to 30 June 2022

Number of dependent children	Total gross income threshold
0	$160,000
1	$163,330
2	$166,660
3	$169,990
4	$173,320
5 or more	$176,650

Concession cap

From 1 July 2021, the amount of the home buyer concession is capped.

Year	Maximum concession amount
2023-24	$34,504
2022-23	$34,790
2021-22	$35,910

Thresholds

The concessional duty for HBC is based on the thresholds below for transactions between:

On or after 1 July 2023

Property value	Duty payable
Less than or equal to $1,000,000	$0
More than $1,000,000 but less than $1,455,000	$6.40 for every $100, or part of $100, by which the dutiable value exceeds $1,000,000
$1,455,000 or more	a flat rate of $4.54 per $100 applied to the total dutiable value, less an amount of $34 504

1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023

Property value	Duty payable
Less than or equal to $1,000,000	$0
More than $1,000,000 but less than $1,455,000	$6.40 for every $100, or part of $100, by which the dutiable value exceeds $1,000,000
$1,455,000 or more	a flat rate of $4.54 per $100 applied to the total dutiable value, less an amount of $34 790

1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022

Property value	Duty payable
Less than or equal to $1,000,000	$0
More than $1,000,000 but less than $1,455,000	$6.40 for every $100, or part of $100, by which the dutiable value exceeds $1,000,000
$1,455,000 or more	a flat rate of $4.54 per $100 applied to the total dutiable value, less an amount of $35 910

16 December 2019 to 30 June 2021

Property type	Duty payable
Home	$0
Vacant land	$0

1 July 2019 to 16 December 2019

Property type	Duty payable
Home	$0
Vacant land	$0

Residency requirements

At least one buyer must live in the home continuously for at least a year. They must commence residence within one year of either the settlement date (for an eligible home) or the date that a certificate of occupancy has been issued (for vacant land).

The Commissioner for ACT Revenue can exempt you from the residency requirements, in full or in part, but only if:

you cannot live in the home as your principal place of residence from the residence start date for at least 1 year because of an unforeseen circumstance, such as a health-related issue; and
you request an exemption in writing no later than 18 months after:
- the settlement date (for an eligible home); or
- the date you receive the Certificate of Occupancy and Use once construction of the new home is finished (for vacant land).

If you do not meet the residency requirements, you will be liable to pay full conveyance duty in relation to the transaction unless an exemption is granted. Penalty tax or interest may also apply if the requirements are not met.

If you have any concerns about your residency, you should contact us as early as possible.

Questionnaire

To assist you in determining your eligibility and to find out what documents you will need to keep, you can complete the following questionnaire.

Are all purchasers and their domestic partners first home buyers?

How to claim?

If you're eligible, to claim the concession you will need to reference the concession code number on the Buyer Verification Declaration before you register the title transfer with Access Canberra. Don’t forget to claim your HBC, if you’re eligible, by entering the concession code number on the Buyer Verification Declaration before you lodge for registration. You do not need to give us any other documents at this time.

If you do not claim the HBCS concession code number on the Buyer Verification Declaration before you register your transfer, you can submit a late claim using the Application for concession, exemption or correction of duty after registration of title form. When we receive your claim, we will issue you a notice of reassessment with the concession applied.

What happens next?

We'll issue you a Notice of Assessment for duty with the concession applied. You do not have to take any further action, unless your circumstances change, in which case you will need to notify our office.

After you’ve received your assessment, we may contact you to verify your eligibility for the concession. For example, we may require you to give us copies of any documents that support your eligibility, or we may ask you to prove your residency at the home. You need to keep copies of your supporting documents for at least five years after the transaction date.

We review claims and conduct investigations into the HBCS on an ongoing basis.