Australian Capital Territory

Australian Capital Territory's Home Buyer Concession Scheme

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 income* of all buyers, including their partners (if any), in the previous financial year to the transaction date 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 5 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.***

* From 1 July 2024, assessed taxable income. Before 1 July 2024 or if there is no assessed taxable income, the income threshold applies to total gross income.

** Before 1 July 2024, the period was 2 years. There are limited exceptions to this requirement, including court orders and agreements, family violence orders or injunctions made under the Family Law Act 1975 (Cwlth). These orders or agreements must be made before the transaction date.

*** The Commissioner for ACT Revenue can exempt you from the residence requirements upon written application, 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.

Prior property interest

To be eligible for the HBCS, all buyers (including their domestic partners (if any) must not have owned (legal or equitable interest) any other property (anywhere – including overseas) in the past 5 years prior to the transaction date.

If you have owned property elsewhere in Australia or overseas in the previous 5 years prior to the transaction date, you are not eligible for the HBCS. An equitable interest refers to an interest you may own in property indirectly by being a beneficiary of a trust. A common example is that you are the beneficiary of a bare trust or a fixed trust. If you have disposed of this interest in the trust less than 5 years prior to the transaction date, you are not eligible for HBCS.

For example: Jane and Adam owned a house in Banks, they settled the sale on 30 June 2022. On 30 December 2024, Jane and Adam entered a contract to purchase a new property in Reid. On the transaction date of 30 December 2024, Jane and Adam had held a legal interest in property within the previous 5 years of the transaction date, that being the property they owned in Banks. Jane and Adam are not eligible for HBCS, as they failed the property ownership criterion.

There are exemptions to the property requirement. For example, if the court orders you to relinquish your interest in a property, such as part of a property order following a relationship breakdown, this will be an exempt interest. Noting that voluntary transfers prior to a court order are insufficient to meet the exemption nor would the sale of property to your former partner.

You are recommended to carefully read the instrument to see if you meet exemption criteria, and/or seek independent financial or legal advice on your proposed transaction to check your eligibility for the HBCS.

Income Thresholds

To be eligible for the HBCS, the 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.

• From 1 July 2024, income refers to assessed taxable income.
• Before 1 July 2024 or if there is no assessed taxable income, the income threshold applies to total gross income.

Your assessed taxable income will be located on the Notice of Assessment issued by the Australian Taxation Office for the financial year. Generally, your taxable income is your income minus deductions.

Your total gross income is the sum of all earnings, including earnings other than employment income such as interest, dividends, fringe benefits, foreign income, payouts etc. Gross income is your total income from all sources and does not include any deductions. The income for a self-employed person is their business’s trading profit, not the business’s turnover. A person is self-employed if they are a sole trader, not if they are a director, shareholder and/or employee of their company. Your partner’s income must be included, even if they won't be owner of the home.

* The transaction date refers to the date that a liability for duty occurs. Often the first time a liability arises is the date of exchange where you sign and exchange contracts for the purchase of the property and pay the deposit. The transaction date is rarely the date you settle the purchase of the property.

Income threshold for transactions from 1 July 2024

More Information:

https://www.revenue.act.gov.au