Land tax surcharge for foreign and absentee owners
Foreign or absentee owners pay a land tax surcharge, which is extra land tax added to the normal rates. For residential land, NSW charges 5% of the land value. Victoria adds 4%, Queensland 3%, and Tasmania 2%, while the ACT 0.75% applies to the average unimproved value. No foreign surcharge on land tax is listed for Western Australia, South Australia and the Northern Territory.
| State or territory | Surcharge | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| New South Wales | Surcharge land tax | 5% of the residential land value |
| Victoria | Absentee owner surcharge | 4% of the taxable value |
| Queensland | Absentee surcharge | 3% of the taxable value above $350,000 |
| Queensland | Foreign surcharge | 3% of the taxable value above $350,000 |
| Western Australia | Not charged | No surcharge |
| South Australia | Not charged | No surcharge |
| Tasmania | Foreign investor land tax surcharge (FILTS) | 2% of the assessed land value |
| Australian Capital Territory | Foreign ownership surcharge | 0.75% of the average unimproved value |
| Northern Territory | Not charged | No surcharge |
Surcharge land tax in NSW
Revenue NSW refers to this as surcharge land tax. In NSW, foreign persons who own residential land must pay it, even when ordinary land tax does not apply to the land.
- No threshold applies. Whatever the total, the surcharge is charged on each dollar of land value.
- The rate in question. From 2018 to 2022, the rate was 2%. It rose to 4% in 2023 and 2024, and has been 5% since 2025.
- Who counts as foreign. A permanent resident can be counted as a foreign person if 165 days or more are spent overseas during a calendar year.
- Companies and trusts. To avoid the surcharge, a discretionary trust must exclude foreign beneficiaries irrevocably.
Land used for primary production does not count as residential land, so the NSW surcharge does not apply to it.
Absentee owner surcharge in Victoria
Victoria's absentee owner surcharge rose from 2% between 2020 and 2023 to 4% from the 2024 land tax year. This surcharge is charged above the general rate and the trust rate. The SRO publishes a combined rate scale that already includes it.
An absentee owner may be a person, a corporation, or a trustee of an absentee trust. Australian citizens and permanent residents living overseas are not subject to the surcharge, according to the SRO. The surcharge does not apply if the land is exempt, or if the total taxable value is below $50,000. Any absentee owner on 31 December must notify the SRO by 15 January.
Land tax surcharge in Queensland
Under Queensland rules, someone is an absentee if the person is a foreign individual without a permanent visa and is not usually living in Australia. For absentees, their own scale applies together with a 3% surcharge, beginning at $350,000 of taxable value. The home exemption and the primary production exemption are not available to them.
Trustees of foreign trusts and foreign companies add a 3% foreign surcharge to the company rates on taxable land worth $350,000 or more.
The ACT and Tasmania
Tasmania's land tax surcharge for foreign investors covers general land owned by foreign investors and bought on or after 1 July 2022. The charge is 2 per cent of assessed land value. This surcharge may apply even if the land falls below the land tax threshold.
Foreign owners of residential land in the ACT are charged 0.75 per cent of average unimproved value each year. When the property is not the owner's home, the amount is added to ordinary land tax.
Absentee owner surcharge exemptions
Only narrow exemptions apply. In Victoria, some cases allow an exemption for absentee corporations and trusts. The SRO says these exemptions are not aimed at passive investors or landlords. A foreign owner in NSW may qualify for the exemption for their intended principal place of residence if they live in the property.
Set the owner type to foreign or absentee and the calculator includes the surcharge.
Questions
What is the absentee owner surcharge?
Victoria charges absentee owners this extra land tax: 4% of the taxable value, added on top of the normal land tax. A similar 3% absentee surcharge also applies in Queensland.
What is the foreign land tax surcharge in NSW?
Surcharge land tax applies at 5% of the land value for each residential property owned by a foreign person, and there is no tax-free threshold. It is added to any ordinary land tax.
Do people who are not residents pay land tax in Australia?
Yes. Any owner of taxable land who is a non-resident pays land tax. A surcharge may be added in NSW, Victoria, Queensland, Tasmania and in the ACT. Each state defines foreign or absentee in its own way.
Is there a land tax surcharge in Queensland?
Yes. Absentee individuals pay a surcharge of 3% on taxable value above $350,000. Foreign companies and foreign trusts also pay a foreign surcharge of 3%.
Do Australians living overseas pay the absentee owner surcharge?
That does not apply in Victoria. Australian citizens and permanent residents living overseas do not have to pay this surcharge, the SRO says. A permanent resident who is away for 165 days or more can count as a foreign person under a different NSW test.