Stamp duty calculator: what you'll pay in your state, and the concessions that cut it

How much is stamp duty?

How much stamp duty you pay depends on three things: the state the home is in, the price, and who you are as a buyer. The same price gives a different bill in each state, because each one sets its own rates and its own concessions.

Take a $650,000 home in Western Australia. A buyer with no concession pays $24,890. A first home buyer pays $8,075 on the same home, a saving of $16,815 [9][10][23]. At $600,000, the first home buyer pays nothing at all, against $22,515 for everyone else.

That's why a calculator that asks only for a price and a state gives half an answer. The concessions move the bill more than the price does.

How much is stamp duty on a $700,000 home in each state?

Stamp duty on a $700,000 home ranges from nothing to more than $32,000, depending on the state and on whether you're a first home buyer. Here's the same home, priced in every state and territory, worked out from each revenue office's published rates and concessions.

Where we haven't read a state's general rates at the source, we say so rather than print a figure we can't trace. Queensland and Victoria's revenue offices run their own calculators for the normal figure, and the Northern Territory's office does the same.

What this means for you: on the same home, the difference between states is thousands of dollars, and the difference between being a first home buyer or not is often bigger still. Before you set a budget, it's worth knowing which column you're in.

What is stamp duty, and is transfer duty the same thing?

Stamp duty is a tax your state or territory charges when a property is transferred into your name. The federal government doesn't charge it, and neither does your lender. It's the buyer who pays it.

Each state calls it something a little different. Queensland, Western Australia and New South Wales call it transfer duty [1][4][10]. Victoria calls it land transfer duty [7]. The ACT calls it conveyance duty [17]. Tasmania calls it property transfer duty [16]. It's the same tax under every name, so a search for a transfer duty calculator and a stamp duty calculator lands on the same answer.

How is stamp duty calculated?

Stamp duty is calculated on the home's dutiable value, which is usually the price, using rate bands that climb as the price rises. Each band is a fixed amount plus a rate for every $100 above the band's starting point.

Western Australia's general rate for a home between $360,001 and $725,000, for example, is $11,115 plus $4.75 for every $100, or part of $100, above $360,000. Above $725,000 it's $28,453 plus $5.15 for every $100 above $725,000 [10]. So a $650,000 home is $11,115 plus $4.75 times 2,900, which is $24,890 [23].

New South Wales works the same way: $11,602 plus $4.50 for every $100 over $387,000, up to $1,290,000, and $52,237 plus $5.50 for every $100 above that [4]. South Australia charges $21,330 plus $5.50 for every $100 or part over $500,000 [14]. Tasmania charges $12,935 plus $4.25 for every $100 or part between $375,000 and $725,000, and $27,810 plus $4.50 above that [16].

Then the concessions are applied on top. That's the step most calculators leave out, and it's the one that changes the answer most.

Stamp duty calculator WA: what you pay in Western Australia

Western Australia charges transfer duty at its general rate, and a first home buyer pays the lower first home owner rate instead: no duty on a home up to $600,000, then $16.15 for every $100 above $600,000, and no concession at all over $800,000 [9]. New and established homes both qualify.

Because the first home rate climbs quickly above $600,000, the saving shrinks as the price rises. It's $22,515 at $600,000 and $11,115 at $700,000 [23]. So the real question for a WA first home buyer isn't whether you're under $800,000. It's how far over $600,000 you are.

The WA thresholds have changed. Older pages quoting no duty up to $500,000, and a cut-off at $700,000 in Perth, describe the earlier rules [9]. There's no longer a different line for Perth and the regions.

Do first home buyers pay stamp duty?

Many first home buyers pay no stamp duty at all, up to a price line each state sets, and reduced duty for a band above it. Two places go further: South Australia removes duty on a new home at any price, and the ACT removes it at any price for an eligible buyer. Tasmania has gone the other way, and now gives first home buyers no duty relief.

Each concession has its own conditions, and the line that matters is the one in the state where you're buying.

Stamp duty QLD: the first home concession and where it tapers

Queensland's first home concession means no transfer duty on an existing home valued at $700,000 or less, partial relief from $700,001 to $799,999, and no first home concession from $800,000 [1]. The saving is worth up to $24,525. Above $800,000 the separate home concession may still apply [1]. A new home is treated differently: since 1 May 2025, Queensland's first home (new home) concession removes transfer duty for a first home buyer of a new home at any price, on its residential land [2].

The relief doesn't hold steady all the way to $800,000. The concession is $17,350 off the duty up to $709,999.99, then it drops by $1,735 for every $10,000 band from $710,000, until it's nil at $800,000 [2]. On a $730,000 home, the Queensland Revenue Office works the duty out at $6,555 [1].

Queensland has also added a citizenship test: for newer transactions, you must be an Australian citizen, a permanent resident or a specified foreign retiree. You must move in within 1 year of settlement, and the Revenue Office says that time can't be extended. Renting out part of the home can be allowed; renting out the whole home in the first year isn't [1].

What this means for you: a Queensland buyer of an existing home at $750,000 isn't getting the full concession, whatever an older page says. If you're between $710,000 and $800,000, the figure is worth checking before you agree a price. See first home buyers in Queensland.

Stamp duty NSW: the $800,000 line and the $1 million cut-off

New South Wales charges no transfer duty for a first home buyer on a home valued at $800,000 or less, reduced duty above $800,000 and below $1 million, and normal duty from $1 million [3]. On an $800,000 home that saves $30,187 [4][23].

At $1 million the full duty applies, $39,187 [4][23]. Revenue NSW publishes the lines but not the sliding scale between them on the pages we read, so for a price between $800,000 and $1 million its own calculator gives the reduced figure.

First Home Buyer Choice, which let buyers pay a yearly property tax instead of stamp duty, has closed. Anyone who opted in keeps paying the property tax and can't switch back [5]. If you're buying now, the exemption to $800,000 is the scheme that applies. See first home buyers in NSW.

Stamp duty VIC: the first home buyer exemption and its conditions

Victoria's first home buyer duty exemption means no stamp duty on a home with a dutiable value up to $600,000, and reduced duty from $600,001 to $750,000 [7]. It covers new homes, established homes and vacant land you'll build on. Over $750,000 there's no first home relief.

The conditions are where Victoria differs. Every buyer must be enrolled to vote in Victorian elections. You must live in the home for 12 months in a row, starting within 12 months of settlement. Active Australian Defence Force members are exempt from that living-in rule; reservists and Australian Public Service staff are not [7].

Victoria also has a separate concession for a first home owner with a dependent child, but its limits are a dutiable value of $150,000 for the exemption and $200,000 for the concession [8]. Almost no home comes in under those, so for nearly every buyer the standard exemption is the one that counts. See first home buyers in Victoria.

South Australia and Tasmania: new against established

In South Australia, the line that matters isn't a price. It's new against established. A first home buyer of a new home, an off-the-plan apartment or land to build on pays no stamp duty, whatever the price [12][13]. Buy an established home and you pay the general rate: $29,580 on a $650,000 home [14][23].

Tasmania used to give first buyers of established homes a full duty exemption, on homes up to $750,000. That exemption has ended, and the State Revenue Office's pages name no replacement [15]. A first home buyer now pays the general rate: about $22,500 on a $600,000 home [16][23].

What this means for you: in these two states the type of home you choose can matter more than the price. In SA, a new home can save the whole duty bill. In Tasmania, a buyer who planned around the old exemption needs to find the duty in cash. See South Australia and Tasmania.

The ACT and the Northern Territory

The ACT's Home Buyer Concession Scheme now means no conveyance duty for an eligible buyer, at any price, on a new home, an established home or vacant residential land, with no income test [17]. You don't have to be a first home buyer, but no buyer can have owned or held an interest in any other property in the last 5 years, and you must live in the home for at least a year [17].

In the Northern Territory, duty is generally payable within 60 days of signing, or at settlement if that comes first [19]. The Territory's home-buyer exemption is for a house and land package bought from a builder in one contract, where the builder bought the land from a developer and paid duty on it. It isn't means tested and has no price cap [18]. For any other purchase, the Territory Revenue Office's calculator gives the figure. See the ACT and the Northern Territory.

Which state has no stamp duty for first home buyers?

No state removes stamp duty on every home for every first home buyer, but two come close. The ACT charges an eligible buyer no duty at any price, on any home, and doesn't require you to be a first home buyer [17]. South Australia charges a first home buyer no duty on a new home at any price, but full duty on an established one [12][13].

Everywhere else, the answer is a line: $800,000 in New South Wales, $700,000 in Queensland, and $600,000 in Victoria and Western Australia, with reduced duty for a band above each [1][3][7][9]. Tasmania now gives first home buyers no duty relief [15].

Stamp duty on an investment property

An investor pays stamp duty at the general rate, because first home concessions are for a home you'll live in. Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and the ACT all ask you to live in the home [1][3][7][11][17].

On a $650,000 property in Western Australia, an investor pays $24,890 [10][23]. Add a 20% deposit of $130,000 and that's $154,890 before legal and other costs.

What this means for you: for an investor, duty is a cost of the purchase that comes out of cash or equity, and it's large enough to change which property makes sense. If you're using the equity in your home, see using equity to buy an investment property.

Foreign buyers, visa holders and the surcharge

A foreign buyer can pay an extra duty on top of normal duty. In South Australia it's a 7% foreign ownership surcharge, and first home relief doesn't cover it [13]. Each state sets its own surcharge and its own rules; we haven't printed the others because we haven't read them at the source.

Citizenship also decides who gets a concession. Queensland's first home concession needs you to be a citizen, a permanent resident or a specified foreign retiree [1]. Victoria's needs at least one buyer to be a citizen or permanent resident [7]. It matters most when one partner on the contract is on a visa, so check it before you sign. See home loans for visa holders.

Buying land to build on, or a house and land package

Vacant land has its own stamp duty lines in several states, usually lower than the lines for a home. New South Wales charges a first home buyer no duty on land valued at $350,000 or less, and reduced duty below $450,000 [3]. Western Australia charges none on land up to $450,000, then $20.14 for every $100 over that, with no concession over $550,000 [9]. On $500,000 of land in WA, that's $10,070 [23].

Victoria's exemption covers vacant land you'll build your home on, inside the same $600,000 and $750,000 lines [7]. South Australia's relief covers land to build your first home on, at any price [12]. Queensland has a separate first home vacant land concession, and a buyer who has claimed it can't then claim the first home concession [1]. In the Northern Territory, a house and land package bought in one contract from a builder can be exempt [18].

If you're building, see construction loans.

When is stamp duty paid?

Stamp duty is usually paid at settlement, and your conveyancer or solicitor works out the exact amount and date. Some places set a deadline from signing instead: in the Northern Territory it's generally within 60 days of signing, or at settlement if that's earlier [19].

The catch is where the money comes from. It's paid from your own funds alongside your deposit, not from the loan. Buyers who've saved exactly a 5% or 10% deposit and forgotten the duty find out late, often after they've signed.

Can you add stamp duty to your home loan?

Stamp duty can't be added to your home loan as a separate amount. A lender lends a share of the property's value, not of the price plus costs, so the duty comes out of your savings.

The way around it is to borrow a bigger share of the price, which leaves more of your savings free for the duty. That can mean paying lenders mortgage insurance (LMI), insurance the lender takes out when you borrow more than 80% of the price, and you pay for it. Or it can mean the 5% Deposit Scheme, which removes LMI for eligible first home buyers [20].

So the real question is how much cash you need on the day: the deposit, plus the duty, plus legal and other costs.

How much cash do you need on settlement day?

The cash you need on settlement day is the deposit plus the stamp duty, plus legal and other costs. Here's a first home buyer paying $650,000 for a home in Perth, where the duty is $8,075 [9][23], three ways.

An illustration, not a quote: the LMI figure is from one insurer's published rate card, first home buyer rates [22]. What you'd pay varies with the insurer, the lender and the loan.

What this means for you: the deposit you choose changes the cash you need far more than the duty does. With a 10% deposit, LMI costs more than the duty itself. With the 5% Deposit Scheme, the duty is about a fifth of the cash you need. Work the two out together, not one after the other.

How stamp duty eats into your deposit

Stamp duty comes out of the same savings as your deposit, so every dollar of duty is a dollar less deposit. Work out the duty first, and the deposit is what's left.

Say you've saved $80,000 and you're buying a $650,000 home in Western Australia. As a first home buyer, the duty is $8,075, which leaves $71,925 for the deposit, and a loan of $578,075, about 89% of the price [23]. Without the concession, the duty is $24,890, which leaves $55,110, and the loan climbs above 90% of the price [23].

What this means for you: the duty can push you over a line a lender cares about, such as 80% or 90% of the price, and that changes the LMI and which lenders will lend. See how much can I borrow and no deposit home loans.

Do the 5% Deposit Scheme and Help to Buy change your stamp duty?

The 5% Deposit Scheme and Help to Buy don't change your stamp duty, but they sit beside it. Housing Australia says that if you have 20% or more saved after covering costs such as stamp duty and legal fees, your loan isn't eligible for the 5% Deposit Scheme [20]. So the duty counts against your savings when the scheme is checked.

Help to Buy keeps your state's help: the government says stamp duty concessions and grants still apply. You can't use the 5% Deposit Scheme and Help to Buy together; you choose one [20][21].

One thing to see clearly: the scheme's price caps sit above the duty lines in most states. A first buyer at $1.2 million in Sydney can still buy with 5% down and no LMI, but pays normal duty of $48,187 on top [4][20][23].

Each state's own stamp duty calculator

Each state's revenue office runs its own duty calculator, and theirs is the official figure: Queensland Revenue Office, Revenue NSW, State Revenue Office Victoria, RevenueWA, RevenueSA, State Revenue Office Tasmania, ACT Revenue Office and Territory Revenue Office.

What they don't do is tell you whether you qualify for a concession, or what the duty does to your deposit and your loan. Our state pages set out each state's grant, duty and conditions: Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Western Australia, South Australia, Tasmania, the ACT and the Northern Territory. For the grants side by side, see first home buyer grants.

What does a broker cost you?

How a broker is paid, and the rule Money Brain holds against it, is set out in full on its own page: what a mortgage broker costs.

Your first move

You've seen the rates, the lines and the conditions. Now there's one question left: what's the duty on your contract, and what does it leave you for the deposit? That depends on your state, your price, whether you're a first home buyer and how much you've saved, and it's what Money Brain works out before anything goes to a lender.

When you're ready, the closing section below is the simplest way to start.