Moving to Australia from New Zealand?
Get all information you need to make a successful and stress-free move across the ditch.
As of April 8, 2024, citizens of New Zealand, Finland, Germany, India, Japan, Norway, South Africa, and Switzerland, who were previously exempt due to international tax treaties, may now be subject to paying surcharge purchaser duty if they enter into an agreement to purchase residential property in NSW.
Surcharge purchaser duty is mandatory for those considered foreign persons acquiring residential-related property in NSW. Currently set at 8% of the dutiable value, which is the greater of the purchase price or property value, this duty is paid in addition to transfer duty.
You will be exempt if you’ve been in Australia for at least 200 days within the 12-month period before the date of the contract.
Advice from a visitor: call Revenue NSW if you have been in Australia for less than 200 days.
Revenue NSW will listen to your individual circumstances and if you plan to live in the house for 200 days and purchased it as individuals, you should be considered exempt permanent residents and wouldn’t need to pay the surcharge.
At this stage, the NSW Government are the only Australian state to change the surcharge purchaser duty federal law. Previously, New Zealand citizens may have been exempt from this duty, but now they must meet the residence criteria of living in Australia for at least 200 days within a year to be exempt.
You can monitor the NSW Government website for updates: https://www.revenue.nsw.gov.au/taxes-duties-levies-royalties/transfer-duty/surcharge-purchaser-duty.
Please talk to your conveyancer if you are currently going through the process of purchasing a home in NSW.
Thank you to my amazing visitors for sending this through to me! I had two visitors who just missed out on having to pay this surcharge. Their conveyancer advised them when they received the information on this new legislation on 8 April. Please note that there was no for-warning of this change.
Foreign buyers who purchase residential-related property in NSW after April 8 2024, must pay an additional 8% surcharge purchaser duty on top of any transfer duty.
If you are acquiring residential-related property in NSW as an individual (not a corporation or trustee of a trust), you do not have to pay surcharge purchaser duty if you are one of the following:
The source of this information is the NSW Government website – Surcharge Purchaser Duty for Individuals.
You will be considered ordinarily resident in Australia and will not have to pay surcharge purchaser duty if:
you must not have a limited stay in Australia. This includes being either a permanent resident of Australia or the holder of a partner (provisional) visa (subclass 309 or 820), and
you need to have been physically present in Australia for at least 200 days within the 12 months preceding the date of the contract.
It’s important to note that the days you enter and exit Australia count towards a total of 200 days.
For further guidance, you can refer to Revenue Ruling G 009, titled ‘Definition of a foreign person‘.
If you’re a citizen of New Zealand, you will not have to pay the surcharge purchaser duty if:
If you’re a permanent resident and are not considered ‘ordinarily resident’ in Australia, you may be considered an exempt permanent resident and won’t have to pay surcharge purchaser duty.
To be an exempt permanent resident, you must meet the below requirements:
Residency Requirement: You must live in the property you are acquiring continuously for at least 200 days within 12 months from the date of the agreement or contract.
Principal Place of Residence: The property you’re acquiring must be your principal place of residence.
Individual Purchase: You must be purchasing the property as an individual, not as a company or trust.
You can find out how much surcharge purchaser duty you must pay using the NSW Government online calculator.
You can apply for a refund if you can prove that the surcharge purchaser duty was incorrectly applied to your transaction. Contact the NSW Government to find out how you can apply.
Contact the NSW Government for more information about your foreign status or your liability for paying the surcharge for purchaser duty.
The below posts might interest you:
If you’ve read the above content and the answer to your question isn’t there, please write a comment below, and I’ll research the answer for you.
If you need advice on moving to Australia from New Zealand, I’ve created a helpful little questionnaire to point you in the right direction. It takes less than 30 seconds, so give it a go!
Hi… I’m JJ Smith.
I’m the creator and editor of Moving to Australia and have been for 15 years! I know everything there is to know about New Zealanders moving their families and life to Australia. Either from first hand experiences and research or through the questions from visitors to this website… and I’m here to help!
I love helping people via Moving to Australia.
Providing the answers to questions we all ask when deciding whether to make the move from New Zealand to Australia. Even giving individual specific advice where needed.
I have learned a lot over the last 15 years from personal experience and through interacting with visitors. This is my job, making sure the information here is comprehensive and up to date.
If you would like to help me, you can use one of my referral partners.
© 2008 - 2023 Copyright Cybersmith Ltd. All content is copyright.
Design by ThemeShift.
Gabi
August 18, 2024 at 10:48 amHi Lin,
do NZ citizens need to pay Surcharge Purchaser duty in Victoria? Some info I find says “no” if you’re on a SVC 444, others say you need to have lived in Victoria (or is it Australia) for 200 days BEFORE you buy property. Can you find out?
JJ Smith
August 26, 2024 at 1:04 pmHi Gabi,
Thanks for your comment. Sorry for the delay in replying.
Anyone buying property must pay stamp duty in VIC unless they are eligible for an exemption. This includes properties gifted or acquired by a company or under a trust. It’s important to note that stamp duty is an additional cost to your deposit and property price.
There are a few stamp duty exemptions and concessions available in Victoria, including:
– First-home buyer exemption: Full stamp duty exemption applies for first homes valued under $600,000. There’s also a $10,000 first-home buyer grant in VIC that may help further reduce the cost of buying a home.
– Spouse or partner exemption: Transfers of a principal place of residence between spouses are exempt from stamp duty.
– Deceased estate exemption: Exemptions apply for transfers of primary residence following a person’s death (if the transfer meets certain conditions).
– Family farm exemption: Exemptions apply to transfers of farming land to family members or relatives.
– Pensioner concession: Eligible pensioners and concession cardholders may pay a reduced transfer duty when purchasing a home.
Source: https://www.money.com.au/home-loans/stamp-duty-calculator-vic.
You may be eligible for the first-home buyer duty exemption or concession – a one-off duty exemption for a principal place of residence (PPR) valued up to $600,000, or a concession for a PPR with a dutiable value from $600,001 to $750,000 if you enter into your contract on or after 1 July 2017.
If you haven’t already, I recommend you read my buying a house in Australia post (https://www.movingtoaustralia.co.nz/buying-a-house-in-australia/), which includes more information on stamp duty and a link to a stamp duty calculator on realestate.com.au, where you an work out how much stamp duty and transfer fee you will need to pay for your property purchase in Victoria: https://www.realestate.com.au/home-loans/stamp-duty-calculator.
I also recommend you read State of Revenue Office Victoria’s buying a property in Victoria article, which includes everything you need to know including stamp duty, FHOG and different concessions available: https://www.sro.vic.gov.au/buying-property.
If you still have questions after reading the above, I recommend you contact a lawyer or converancyer in Victoria to get clarification.
Hope the above helps.
Good luck with your move.
Gabi
August 26, 2024 at 1:57 pmHi JJ,
Thank you for your reply.
However, I was not asking about stamp duty, I was asking about the “Surcharge Purchaser duty”. In NSW there is a 200day waiting period for KIWIS after which they no longer have to pay this. It is additional to stamp duty.
Does this or does this not exist in Victoria? I also know that there is an action group in Victoria mounting a legal challenge of this law (federal) that came into effect in April this year. I cannot find any information online about where this is at and was hoping you would know?
Kind regards
Gabi
JJ Smith
August 26, 2024 at 1:58 pmHi Gabi,
I can’t find any information on Surcharge Purchaser duty in Victoria. Nothing comes up in Google. However, when you search Surcharge Purchaser duty NSW the Revenue NSW website comes up with relevant information.
Hence why I sent you the link to the State of Revenue Office Victoria, as it would be within their content if it existed: https://www.sro.vic.gov.au/buying-property.
Sorry I do not know anything about the action group you are referring to.
I recommend you contact a specialist to get further clarification.
Thanks
C
August 14, 2024 at 2:07 amHi JJ,
I would be grateful if you could help with the below query:
https://www.revenue.nsw.gov.au/property-professionals-resource-centre/duties-guides/surcharge-purchaser-duty-guide?result_396764_result_page=2
https://www.revenue.nsw.gov.au/taxes-duties-levies-royalties/transfer-duty/surcharge-purchaser-duty/surcharge-for-individuals
A NZ citizen who plans to use and occupy the property as their principal place of residence, and reside in the property continuously for 200 days within 12 months of the duty liability date.
However, the NZ citizen has never entered Australia previously BUT plans to relocate to Australia permanently and will fulfil the 200 days criteria above. It is anticipated that upon entry to Australia, the NZ citizen will be granted Special category subclass 444 visa at the border (therefore the person’s continued presence in Australia is not subject to any limitation as to time imposed by law).
Can the NZ citizen therefore be exempt from Surcharge Purchaser Duty, using a mixture of “NZ citizens” and “Exempt permanent residents” categories? Please confirm as the websites above are not clear on the scenario here.
Thank you for your time.
Regards,
C
JJ Smith
August 26, 2024 at 12:36 pmHi C,
Thanks for your comment. Sorry for the delay in replying.
Unfortunately, I am not a lawyer, conveyancer or property agent and therefore cannot advise you on your query sorry. You are going to have to contact a specialist in Australia to get confirmation.
I can tell you, that visitors to my site have confirmed that they have been able to get exemption from Revenue NSW on the stipulation that they will live in their new home for 200 days. If they fail to do this, they will be charged the surcharge.
To be considered for the exemption you will need to contact Revenue NSW: https://www.revenue.nsw.gov.au/contact.
Hope the above helps.
Good luck with your move.
RWR
July 26, 2024 at 8:49 pmHi JJ,
We’re (NZ citizens) settling on 01/08/24 and were in Sydney for less than 200 days at the time of signing the contract.
Our conveyancer suggested calling Revenue NSW to explain our situation and see if the stamp duty surcharge applies.
So I did and Revenue NSW said if we are going to live in the house for 200 days and purchased it as individuals, we would be considered exempt permanent residents and wouldn’t need to pay the surcharge.
Thanks…RWR
JJ Smith
August 5, 2024 at 4:00 pmHi RWR,
Thank you so much for sharing this information. I will update my post to include it.
Have a lovely afternoon.
Thanks
Tony
May 30, 2024 at 12:56 amany update for Lin? That is a interesting question, I do not know the Permanent Resident means Visa or just a tax concept.
Lin
April 19, 2024 at 8:45 pmHi JJ Smith,
I’m sorry for any inconvenience, but I believe you might be able to assist us. We moved to Sydney in February and unintentionally overlooked the recent change in Federal Law. Consequently, we proceeded with our property purchase after April 8th and now find ourselves in a complicated situation. Despite reaching out to NSW revenue and learning about a potential exemption from the 8% surcharge by residing in the property for over 200 days within 12 months, we’re facing challenges. The solicitor we intended to hire is unwilling to proceed with our settlement without imposing the surcharge.
Have you obtained any updates regarding the surcharge purchaser duty? Additionally, do you happen to know of any solicitors or conveyancers specializing in this particular area?
Many thanks,
Lin
JJ Smith
April 29, 2024 at 3:40 pmHi Lin,
Thank you for your message and sorry for the delay in replying.
Unfortunately, I have not been able to find anything that could help you. I’m so sorry. This must be very stressful for you.
This change came about so suddenly, I didn’t see anything published about it in the media and was only alerted to it by visitors.
There has been no further information released yet.
Sorry I couldn’t help you.
Lin
April 29, 2024 at 3:57 pmJJ Smith, Thank you for your reply.
We have finally found some useful information regarding nz citizens. NZ citizens holding a 444 visa have not met the 200 day requirements, may qualify for an exemption from Surcharge Purchaser Duty exemption as an exempt permanent resident.
JJ Smith
May 2, 2024 at 12:30 pmHi Lin,
I have looked into this and you are right, if you live in the property for 200 days and have purchased the property as an individual, you could be an exempt permanent resident.
I’m not sure how this will be processed, as I’m sure you would have already paid the surcharge, but you might be able to claim it back???
Please let me know how you get on so I can pass it onto my visitors.
Good luck!
Lin
May 3, 2024 at 11:36 amHi JJ Smith,
We have not settled yet. Will let you know if the surcharge is required upon settlement.
Regards,
Lin
snehal
July 31, 2024 at 1:55 pmHi lin
i have similar situation as you
i am keen to buy property but does not meet require of 200 days
so do i have to pay surcharge duty or not
please answer asap if possible
thanks
JJ Smith
August 5, 2024 at 4:09 pmHi Snehal,
Thanks for your comment. Sincere apologies for the delay, I was on holiday with my family and then got sick.
I have been advised by another visitor that you should call Revenue NSW if you have been in Australia for less than 200 days when signing the contract, as Revenue NSW will listen to your individual circumstances and if you plan to live in the house for 200 days and purchased it as individuals, you should be considered exempt permanent residents and wouldn’t need to pay the surcharge.
Here is the contact information for Revenue NSW: https://www.revenue.nsw.gov.au/contact.
Hope the above helps.
Lorna Burns
April 13, 2024 at 2:29 pmThanks so much for your great newsletter. We are moving yo Queensland later in the year, pre-retirement. We find the information so helpful.
Lorna
JJ Smith
April 29, 2024 at 3:55 pmHi Lorna,
Thank you for your comment and compliment. Sorry for the delay in replying.
I’m so glad you find my info helpful.
Please let me know if there is anything you can’t find within my site and I’ll do my best to help.
Thanks
Christopher Knight
April 13, 2024 at 9:26 amHi JJ, Is this tax Law change confined to NSW or does it cover the whole of Australia. We have been considering purchasing a property in Perth , as are daughter lives there. we would only be there for 6 months of the year. We would certainly be interested in any upcoming changes to the property law in Australia
JJ Smith
April 29, 2024 at 3:51 pmHi Christopher,
Thank you for your comment and sorry for the delay in replying.
The law change is only in NSW. Unfortunately, there is has still been no further information published.
It came completely out of the blue, with no warning. It could happen in other states and we won’t get any warning for that either.
I will post any new information that becomes available.
Good luck.