Australian Capital Territory Land Tax Calculator

Which ACT properties pay land tax

ACT land tax applies to residential property that is not the owner’s principal place of residence. The ACT Revenue Office lists rented properties, vacant properties, rented dwellings on the same block as your home (such as a granny flat) and properties owned by a corporation or held as trustee. Commercial property is not subject to land tax.

Unlike the states, the ACT does not add your properties together. Each parcel is taxed on its own average unimproved value (AUV), and there is no tax-free threshold, so owning one small rented unit is enough to pay. The flip side is that buying a second investment property does not push the first one into a higher bracket.

You must tell the Revenue Office when a property becomes liable

ACT land tax relies on owners notifying the Commissioner. When you buy a residential property, you are asked whether it will be your principal place of residence; if you say yes, you must move in within three months after settlement. If you later move out and rent the home or leave it vacant, you have 30 days to notify the Revenue Office using the Land Tax Notification Form, with your rates account number, address and the dates liability starts or stops.

Late notification is a tax default, with interest and penalties on top of the land tax. Using a property manager does not shift the responsibility: if the agent fails to notify, the owner is liable for the tax, interest and penalties. Going on a long holiday does not by itself make your home taxable; the FAQs give six months away as an example of a vacancy that keeps the exemption.

ACT land tax examples for 2026–27

Every liable parcel pays the $1,778 fixed charge plus the valuation charge on its AUV. The quarterly column is the annual amount × 92 ÷ 365, the method used for the quarter starting 1 October 2026; the surcharge column applies only to foreign owners.

Units and apartments

For a unit, the valuation charge is worked out on the AUV of the whole complex’s residential land and then multiplied by the unit’s entitlement, but the fixed charge is paid in full by every unit. In a complex with a residential AUV of $8,000,000, a unit with a 1.5% unit entitlement has a valuation charge of $1,480.50, so its annual land tax is $3,258.50. A rented house on its own block with an AUV of $600,000 pays $7,418, so for apartments the fixed charge is a much larger share of the bill.

Exemptions: mostly self-assessed

Most ACT exemptions are self-assessed: you decide whether you qualify and only tell the Revenue Office if you are liable. You must keep supporting documents for five years in case you are asked to prove eligibility, and notify any change in circumstances within 30 days.

• Self-assessed exemptions cover your principal place of residence, moving into or out of your home, deceased estates and life tenants, loss of independence, property unfit for occupation, nil or nominal rent arrangements and certain land uses.
• The old builder’s exemption has been replaced by the unfit for occupation exemption.
• Compassionate cases and an extension of the two-year deceased estate exemption must be applied for and are decided by the Revenue Office.
• If you live in the main house and rent out a granny flat, land tax applies to a share of the property based on the rented floor area. If the second dwelling is not rented, no land tax applies.

Affordable community housing exemption

Owners who rent through a registered community housing provider can be exempt from land tax, with a cap of 1,000 properties across the ACT. The rent must be less than 75% of market rent, and the tenants’ combined gross income must be under $100,000 a year or the published household limits, whichever is higher. You apply within 14 days of renting the property, attaching the agreement with the provider and the signed tenancy agreement. Forms received in the last two weeks of a quarter are processed from the next quarter.

Paying quarterly and what happens if you are late

Land tax is paid in four quarterly payments, by direct debit, card online, EFT, BPAY or at a post office. If you are struggling to pay, contact the Revenue Office about an alternative arrangement before the due date.

Unpaid land tax attracts interest that compounds monthly and is imposed on the 16th of each month, and a part month counts as a whole month. In the Revenue Office’s own example, land tax due on 15 August and paid on 5 October attracts two full months of interest. When a property is sold, any rates and land tax still owing after settlement become the new owner’s problem, which is why buyers order a certificate of rates, land tax and other charges before settlement.