Stamp Duty Calculator
Estimate your transfer (stamp) duty, first-home-buyer savings, any foreign-buyer surcharge and your total upfront cash — for every state and territory, on FY2025-26 rates.
The straight answer
Stamp duty is the biggest bill nobody budgets for — a bracket tax that varies wildly by state ($16,912 on a $500k home in NSW, about $8,750 in QLD), and it's cash at settlement, not something you can roll into the loan. First home buyers often pay $0; foreign buyers pay 7–9% extra on the full price.
Stamp duty by state & territory
Same price & buyer settings across all eight — tap a bar to switch state.
Duty vs price
Drag the price slider to move the marker.
Estimate only. Government registration and transfer fees are approximate and change regularly — confirm with your state revenue office and lender.
What this calculator does
- Base duty your state’s FY2025-26 schedule
- Concession first-home-buyer exemption or taper off
- Surcharge foreign-buyer surcharge on, if it applies
- Fees government title and mortgage fees at settlement
- Total upfront cash the number you need saved
Stamp duty — officially called transfer duty (or conveyance duty in the ACT, land transfer duty in Victoria) — is the single biggest upfront tax most people pay when buying a home.
What the tool covers
This tool estimates transfer duty for all eight states and territories using the current FY2025-26 schedules, then layers on the things that actually change your bill: first-home-buyer concessions, the foreign-buyer surcharge, and the government title fees you also pay at settlement. The result is an estimate of your total upfront cash, not just the duty in isolation.
Exactly how it is calculated
Every state uses a progressive marginal scale, much like income tax: your price falls into a bracket, and the duty is a fixed base amount for that bracket plus a marginal rate applied only to the slice of value above the bracket’s lower threshold.
The NSW worked example, line by line
In NSW the bracket from $372,001 to $1.24m is "$11,152 plus $4.50 per $100 over $372,000". A $500,000 home therefore attracts $11,152 + 4.5% × ($500,000 − $372,000) = $11,152 + $5,760 = $16,912 of base transfer duty. Because only the top slice is taxed at the top rate, the average rate is always lower than the headline marginal rate.
Two states that break the pattern
Two states break the simple bracket pattern. The Northern Territory uses a quadratic formula for homes up to $525,000: D = (0.06571441 × V²) + 15V, where V is the price divided by 1,000; above $525,000 flat rates of 4.95% to 5.95% apply. Victoria charges a flat 5.5% of the whole value between $960,001 and $2m (not just the slice). This calculator codes each state's real rule rather than approximating.
Owner-occupier discounts, not just for first home buyers
A few states also give owner-occupiers a lower scale even when they are not first-home buyers — Victoria's principal-place-of-residence rates (to $550,000) and Queensland's home concession (a reduced rate for anyone who moves in within a year) are the main examples, and this calculator applies them when you select "Owner-occupier".
The point: only the top slice is taxed at the top rate.
- Base duty worked out on your state’s scale first
- First-home-buyer concession reduces the duty — a full exemption below a price cap, then a sliding taper up to a higher cap
- Foreign-buyer surcharge added on the full property value, calculated independently of any concession — the surcharge is not discounted
First home buyer concessions, state by state
This is where the states diverge most: Queensland and South Australia charge eligible first-home buyers $0 on a new build with no price cap, while the NT offers no duty concession at all — only grants.
| State | Full exemption | Taper / concession | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| NSW | Up to $800,000 | Tapers to $1,000,000 | Vacant land: full to $350,000, taper to $450,000 |
| VIC | Up to $600,000 | Tapers to $750,000 | — |
| QLD | New home or vacant land: $0, no price cap (from 1 May 2025) | Established: exempt to $700,000, tapers to $800,000 | The most generous on new builds |
| SA | Eligible new home or vacant-land build: $0, no cap | — | — |
| WA | Up to $500,000 | Concessional rate to $700,000 metro / $750,000 regional | Rates from 21 March 2025 |
| TAS | Homes up to $750,000 | — | Temporary — ends 30 June 2026 |
| ACT | Income-tested full exemption up to a dutiable value of $1,020,000 (Home Buyer Concession Scheme) | — | Eligible owner-occupiers also get a lower conveyance-duty scale than investors |
| NT | No FHB duty concession | — | Offers grants instead |
The other costs — and the foreign surcharge
Title and mortgage registration fees add a few hundred dollars each; the foreign-buyer surcharge is the one that adds tens of thousands. It's 9% in NSW, 8% in VIC, QLD and TAS, and 7% in SA and WA — charged on the full price, so a $1m purchase costs a foreign buyer an extra $70,000 to $90,000 on top of normal duty.
Fees and the surcharge, in detail
Duty is not the only upfront cost. You also pay a government transfer (registration of title) fee and, if you have a loan, a mortgage registration fee. These are modest — typically a few hundred dollars each — but real, so the calculator includes approximate current figures. If you are not an Australian citizen or permanent resident, the foreign-buyer surcharge is large: 9% in NSW, 8% in VIC, QLD and TAS, and 7% in SA and WA, charged on the full price. On a $1m purchase that is an extra $70,000 to $90,000 on top of normal duty.
Key caveats
This is a general estimate — here is what it deliberately leaves out.
- Eligibility isn’t checked — it does not test residency requirements, prior-ownership tests, income tests (ACT), or whether your contract date falls before or after a rate change.
- Individuals only — it assumes residential property bought by an individual, not a company or trust.
- Off-the-plan not modelled — off-the-plan and house-and-land concessions (which can cut duty dramatically by taxing only the land value) are not included.
- Rates move — rates and thresholds change at most state budgets, and several FHB measures are temporary.
- Confirm before you commit — always confirm your exact figure with the official state revenue office calculator before you sign or budget.
Your call
Treat the duty as part of your deposit target from day one — it's cash at settlement, and the bank won't lend it to you. If you're a first home buyer near a taper threshold, run both prices above: a few thousand dollars of purchase price can swing the duty by tens of thousands. Then confirm the exact figure with your state revenue office before you sign.
Frequently asked questions
- How is stamp duty calculated?
- Each state and territory charges transfer (stamp) duty on a progressive scale. Your property value falls into a bracket, and the duty equals a fixed base amount for that bracket plus a marginal rate applied to the slice of value above the bracket threshold. So the higher the price, the higher the average rate. First-home-buyer concessions, then any foreign-buyer surcharge, are applied on top of that base calculation.
- Do first home buyers pay stamp duty?
- Often not, up to a price cap that varies by state. NSW gives a full exemption up to $800,000 and a sliding concession to $1,000,000. Victoria is fully exempt to $600,000 with a taper to $750,000. Queensland exempts established homes to $700,000 (sliding to $800,000) and new homes or vacant land with no price cap. South Australia and Tasmania currently offer big or full exemptions on certain purchases. Eligibility rules, residence requirements and income tests apply, so always confirm with your state revenue office.
- What is the foreign buyer stamp duty surcharge?
- If you are not an Australian citizen or permanent resident, most states add a surcharge on top of normal stamp duty when you buy residential property. As at FY2025-26 it is 9% in NSW, 8% in Victoria, Queensland and Tasmania, and 7% in South Australia and Western Australia. The surcharge is charged on the full property value and is payable even when you qualify for other concessions.
- Can I add stamp duty to my home loan?
- Generally no. Stamp duty is an upfront cash cost paid at settlement and lenders will not lend against it directly because it is not part of the property's value. Some borrowers fund it by borrowing more against the property's equity or using a guarantor, but for most buyers it must be saved on top of the deposit. That is why this calculator shows your estimated total upfront cash, not just the duty.
- Is stamp duty the same in every state?
- No. Every state and territory sets its own brackets, rates and concessions, and they differ a lot. On a $500,000 home the base transfer duty is about $16,912 in NSW, $21,970 in Victoria for an owner-occupier on the principal-place-of-residence scale, about $8,750 in Queensland for an owner-occupier on the home concession (or $15,925 on the general rate, e.g. for an investor), and $21,330 in South Australia. Never use one state's figure for another — this calculator uses the correct schedule for the state you select.
- When is stamp duty payable?
- Timing varies by state but it is usually due at or shortly after settlement, and in some states within a set number of days of the contract date (for example, around three months in NSW). Your conveyancer or solicitor typically arranges payment as part of settlement. Late payment can attract interest and penalties, so check the exact due date with your state revenue office.
General information only — an estimate, not financial, tax, credit or legal advice. Figures current as at FY2025-26, reviewed June 2026. Confirm with the ATO / your lender / the relevant state revenue office before you act.
Sources
Sources: Revenue NSW (transfer duty & surcharge purchaser duty); Victorian State Revenue Office (land transfer duty current rates, PPR & general); Queensland Revenue Office (transfer duty & first home concessions, from 1 May 2025); RevenueSA (rate of stamp duty); WA Dept of Treasury & Finance / RevenueWA (transfer duty, first home owner rate from 21 March 2025); ACT Revenue Office (conveyance duty for non-commercial property, 2025-26, owner-occupier & general scales, & Home Buyer Concession Scheme); State Revenue Office Tasmania (property transfer duty & foreign investor duty surcharge); NT Territory Revenue Office (conveyance duty formula). All accessed June 2026.