Published
Overview
The Home Ownership and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2026 (Qld) (Act No. 25 of 2026) received assent on 22 October 2026, and Queensland Revenue Office (QRO) has confirmed it took effect from that date. Several of its changes are back-dated, some as far as 2018, so they reach transactions and assessments that have already been completed.
The headline change ensures that buyers using the Queensland Government’s Boost to Buy scheme or the Australian Government’s Help to Buy scheme do not lose the transfer duty home concessions, the first home owner grant or the land tax home exemption because a government body co-owns the property. The Act also widens the first home vacant land concession, fixes the treatment of homes previously sold on builders’ terms, tightens the first home owner grant “good reason” test, extends the vehicle registration duty exemption to serving Defence Force members, limits how tax disputes can be taken to court or QCAT, and expands the Commissioner’s power to exclude businesses from a payroll tax group.
This article summarises each change, when it applies, and what transfer duty self assessors, conveyancers, buyers and business owners should do now.
The changes at a glance
| Change | Legislation amended | Applies from |
|---|---|---|
| Boost to Buy: State and QTC interest disregarded for duty, first home owner grant and land tax | Duties Act 2001 s 33A; FHOG Act s 8(2)(c); Land Tax Act 2010 s 13A(1) | 15 December 2025 (back-dated) |
| Help to Buy: Commonwealth and Housing Australia interest disregarded for duty, first home owner grant and land tax | Duties Act 2001 s 33B; FHOG Act s 8(2)(d); Land Tax Act 2010 s 13A(2) | 5 December 2025 (back-dated) |
| First home vacant land concession available where the land has only “eligible buildings” (such as a shed) | Duties Act 2001 ss 86C, 87 | Duty liabilities arising on or after 22 October 2026 |
| Home previously sold only under a builders’ terms arrangement can still be a “new home” (duty) | Duties Act 2001 s 86(4A), (6) | Duty liabilities arising on or after 1 May 2025 (back-dated) |
| Home previously sold only under a builders’ terms arrangement can still be a “new home” (grant) | FHOG Act s 6(2A) | Eligible transactions commencing on or after 1 December 2020 (back-dated) |
| First home owner grant “good reason” must be outside the applicant’s control | FHOG Act s 15(6) | 22 October 2026 |
| Vehicle registration duty exemption extended to current Defence Force members; primary producer and special vehicle definitions updated | Duties Act 2001 s 390, sch 6 | 22 October 2026 |
| Related tax matters must go to the Supreme Court or QCAT, not both | Taxation Administration Act 2001 s 69 | 22 October 2026 |
| Commissioner may exclude a set of two or more persons from a payroll tax group | Payroll Tax Act 1971 s 74 | 31 October 2018 (back-dated) |
The Act also makes smaller technical amendments, including removing collection and exchange boxes as a method of giving documents to the Commissioner, updating references to the Property Law Act 2023, and correcting the build-to-rent provisions. It also amends the City of Brisbane Act 2010, Local Government Act 2009 and competition legislation, which are outside the scope of this article.
What the changes mean in practice
1. Shared equity buyers keep their concessions
Under Boost to Buy, Queensland Treasury Corporation (QTC) can take an equity interest of up to 25% in an existing home or 30% in a new home. Under Help to Buy, Housing Australia can take up to 30% of an existing home or 40% of a new home. Without a fix, the government co-owner’s interest could have affected whether the buyer met the tests for the home concession, first home concession, first home owner grant or land tax home exemption.
The Act now provides that, for those purposes, the State and QTC (Boost to Buy) and the Commonwealth and Housing Australia (Help to Buy) are taken not to have an interest in the land, and are taken not to be owners for land tax. Eligibility is assessed on the buyer’s own circumstances. Later transfers of the government’s share to the buyer, as the buyer increases their equity, are not subject to transfer duty, provided duty on the original purchase was assessed on the full dutiable value of the property.
QRO had applied this treatment administratively under Public Ruling GEN013.1. That ruling has now been withdrawn because the arrangement is in the legislation, and the provisions are back-dated to the dates each scheme opened.
2. Wider first home vacant land concession
Previously, land with any building on it could fail to be “vacant land” for the first home vacant land concession. The concession is now available where every structure on the land at acquisition is an “eligible building”. A building is not eligible if it is designed or approved for habitation by a single family, or is a Class 1 to 9 building under the Building Code of Australia. Class 10 structures, such as sheds, will generally not disqualify the land.
The buyer must still build a new, separate home. Renovating or living in an existing structure does not qualify. The change applies only where the duty liability arises on or after 22 October 2026. The former rules continue to apply to a transfer that replaces a pre-commencement transaction over the same land, to the exercise of an option granted before commencement, and to arrangements made mainly to defer a transaction past commencement.
3. Homes sold on builders’ terms can still be “new homes”
A home that has been sold before is not ordinarily a “new home”. The Act provides that a home previously sold only under a qualifying “builders’ terms arrangement” can still be a new home. For transfer duty, this applies to liabilities arising on or after 1 May 2025, the date Queensland’s first home (new home) concession began. For the first home owner grant, it reaches back to transactions commencing on or after 1 December 2020. Buyers who were refused the concession or grant on this ground may now be able to seek a reassessment or a fresh application, subject to the usual time limits.
4. Stricter “good reason” test for the first home owner grant
The Commissioner can vary or waive the grant’s residence requirements where an applicant has a “good reason”. The Act now provides that a reason can be a good reason only if it is outside the applicant’s control and prevents them from complying. This responds to a 2024 QCAT decision that read the term more broadly. Applicants will need clear evidence that the circumstances were beyond their control. QRO has issued Practice Direction FHOGA015.1.1 on residence requirements, replacing Public Ruling FHOGA015.1.4.
5. Vehicle registration duty
The exemption from vehicle registration duty, which previously applied to former Defence Force members, now also covers current members who are entitled to a concessional registration fee as prescribed service persons. It applies to applications made on or after commencement. The primary producer exemption and the definition of “special vehicle”, which attracts the concessional duty rate, have been updated to refer to the current vehicle registration regulation, including conditional registration. QRO has updated Public Ruling DA390.1.3 on reassessment for non-complying use by primary producers.
6. One forum for tax disputes
After an objection decision, a taxpayer can appeal to the Supreme Court or apply to QCAT for review. Where there are related tax matters, such as the primary tax and the interest and penalty tax assessed with it, the Act now requires all of them to go to the same forum. A taxpayer cannot run the primary liability in one forum and the penalty in another. The choice of forum should be made once, with the whole dispute in mind. Public Ruling TAA000.1.10 has been updated.
7. Payroll tax grouping exclusions
The Commissioner could previously exclude a single person from a payroll tax group. The Commissioner may now exclude a set of two or more persons where their business is carried on independently of the rest of the group, subject to restrictions where related bodies corporate are involved, and may revoke an exclusion. The change is back-dated to 31 October 2018. Public Ruling PTA031.4 has been updated and the earlier administrative arrangement, PTAQ074.1.1, withdrawn.
What self assessors and clients should do now
- Shared equity purchases: for Boost to Buy and Help to Buy purchases settled since December 2025, confirm that the home or first home concession was assessed on the buyer’s own circumstances and that duty was assessed on the full dutiable value, so later step-up transfers are duty free.
- Vacant land with sheds or similar structures: for contracts from 22 October 2026, identify every structure on the land and its Building Code classification before claiming the first home vacant land concession. Check whether the contract replaces an earlier contract or arises from a pre-commencement option, as the old rules may still apply.
- Past builders’ terms refusals: review files where the first home concession (since 1 May 2025) or the first home owner grant (since 1 December 2020) was refused because the home had been sold under a builders’ terms arrangement, and consider a reassessment request or new application.
- Grant residence variations: when seeking a variation of the residence requirements, document why the circumstances were outside the applicant’s control and why they prevented compliance.
- Serving Defence Force members: clients entitled to concessional registration as prescribed service persons should claim the vehicle registration duty exemption on new applications.
- Objections and appeals: before filing an appeal or QCAT application, decide on one forum for the primary tax and all related interest and penalty tax.
- Payroll tax groups: businesses grouped with independent businesses should consider whether an exclusion application for a set of entities is now available, given the back-dating to 31 October 2018.
- Update precedents and checklists: revise concession checklists and client questionnaires, review QRO’s updated public rulings and practice directions issued on 23 October 2026, and watch QRO’s webinar on the Act in its Self Assessor Education Program.
How GRM LAW can help
GRM LAW acts for buyers, developers, builders, lenders and business owners across Queensland on property transactions, transfer duty, land tax and payroll tax. We can help you:
- check eligibility for the home, first home and vacant land concessions, including for shared equity purchases
- review past assessments and prepare reassessment, refund or grant applications arising from the back-dated changes
- structure builders’ terms and off-the-plan arrangements so the new home concessions remain available
- prepare objections and advise on the right forum for an appeal or review
- apply for payroll tax group exclusions
For advice on how the Act affects your transaction or business, contact Gavin McInnes on 07 3367 8681 or at info@grmlaw.com.au.
This article is general information only and is current as at 4 November 2026. It is not legal advice and should not be relied on as a substitute for advice about your circumstances. Liability limited by a scheme approved under professional standards legislation.
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