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Guide · Every state · 2026 & FY 2026-27

How to calculate land tax

Aggregate, compare against the threshold, read the schedule — the same three steps in every taxing state, with thresholds nineteen times apart and two jurisdictions that break the pattern entirely. Here's the method, state by state, with the numbers computed from the official scales.

2026 & FY 2026-27 rates · verified

Rates verified against the official sources — how we check.

The three steps behind every bill

  1. Aggregate your taxable land. Add up the Valuer-General's land values (not market prices, not what you paid) for everything you own in that state — minus the exemptions, which almost always cover your own home and genuine farmland. What's left is rentals, holiday houses, commercial land and vacant blocks.
  2. Compare the total against the threshold. This is where states diverge most: Victoria taxes from $50,000, Queensland from $600,000 (individuals), NSW from a frozen $1,075,000, SA from an indexed $936,000. Trusts often get a lower threshold or none at all.
  3. Read the excess into the schedule. A base amount at the bracket floor plus a marginal rate — then add any surcharge (foreign, absentee, trust) the state applies on top.

Aggregation is the step people miss — and it's where bills switch on

Thresholds apply to your state-wide total, not per property. In NSW, one $800,000 holding is comfortably under the $1,075,000 threshold: $0 to pay. Buy a second identical holding and the aggregated $1,600,000 owes $8,500 a year — the first property becomes retrospectively expensive, because the threshold applies once, not per title. Every state calculator on this site works on your aggregated value for exactly this reason.

The same method in each state

QLD

Aggregated statutory land value at 30 June. Individuals: tax-free to $600,000; companies and trusts get a lower $350,000 threshold and their own scale. Foreign companies/trusts add a 3% surcharge.

$800,000 of land → $2,500 for an individual, $9,100 for a company or trust.

NSW

Averaged land values at 31 December, aggregated. The threshold is frozen at $1,075,000 (premium $6,571,000) — $100 + 1.6% above it. Special trusts get no threshold; foreign owners add 5% of residential value.

$1,500,000 of land → $6,900 ($100 + 1.6% × $425,000).

VIC

Site value at 31 December, aggregated. The COVID-levy scale runs 2024–2033: flat charges from just $50,000, marginal rates to 2.65%. Trusts pay a higher schedule from $25,000; absentees add 4% of the whole value.

$800,000 of land → $3,450 at general rates, $6,213 on trust.

WA

Aggregated unimproved value at 30 June, one scale for every owner: nil to $300,000, a flat $300 to $420,000, then marginal rates. Perth metro land adds MRIT at 0.14% over $300,000.

$800,000 of land → $1,250 — or $1,950 in metro Perth with MRIT.

SA

Site value at 30 June, aggregated, with Australia's highest threshold — $936,000 for 2026-27, indexed annually. The Act charges per $100 or part (the excess rounds up). Non-nominated trusts pay from $25,000 on the full value.

$1,200,000 of land → $1,320 at general rates, $7,320 on a non-nominated trust.

TAS

Assessed land value of "general land" at 1 July — your home and farmland are separate classifications and never taxed. $50 + 0.45% from $125,000, then $1,737.50 + 1.5% over $500,000. Foreign owners add 2% (FILTS).

$400,000 of general land → $1,287.50 — the SRO's own published example.

ACT

No threshold, no aggregation: every residential property that isn't the owner's home pays a $1,778 fixed charge plus a scale on its five-year-averaged value (AUV), billed quarterly. Foreign owners add 0.75% of AUV.

A rental with a $450,000 AUV → $5,558 a year, paid quarterly.

NT

The Northern Territory has no land tax — the only Australian jurisdiction without one.

Any landholding → $0, every year.

Every example is generated by the same tested engines as the calculators — pinned to the revenue offices' published scales, their worked examples, and (for SA) their own online calculators to the cent.

Want the arithmetic done for you?

Pick your state — QLD, NSW, VIC, WA, SA, TAS or ACT — or put one value through all seven systems at once on the land tax by state comparison.

Frequently asked questions

How is land tax calculated in Australia?
Three steps in every taxing state: aggregate the taxable land you own in that state (your home and usually farmland are exempt), compare the total against the state's threshold, then read the excess into its schedule — a base amount plus a marginal rate. The thresholds are wildly different ($50,000 in Victoria, $936,000 in SA), the ACT skips thresholds entirely and taxes each rental from the first dollar, and the NT charges nothing.
What value is land tax calculated on?
The land value alone, set by each state's Valuer-General — called site value (VIC, SA), unimproved value (WA), assessed land value (TAS) or averaged unimproved value (ACT, NSW averages three years). The building on it doesn't count, and the price you paid is irrelevant. The figure is on your rates notice or valuation notice.
Why did my land tax jump when I bought a second property?
Aggregation. Thresholds apply to your state-wide total, not per property — so a second holding can push the whole portfolio over the line. In NSW, one $800,000 landholding sits under the $1,075,000 threshold and pays nothing; add a second $800,000 holding and the aggregated $1,600,000 owes $8,500 a year. The second property didn't just add tax — it switched the tax on.
How can I legally reduce land tax?
The levers that exist: your principal residence is exempt everywhere, so which property you live in matters; thresholds apply per state, so land spread across states uses several thresholds instead of one; ownership structure changes the bill (trusts pay surcharge scales in VIC and SA and lose the threshold in NSW — but nominating beneficiaries in SA restores general rates); and primary production exemptions cover genuine farmland. Artificial splitting to multiply thresholds is what the grouping and aggregation rules exist to catch.
Is land tax deductible?
Yes, for income-producing property — land tax on a rental is an ordinary deduction against your rental income in the year it's assessed, which softens (but never erases) the bill. Our negative gearing calculator has a line for exactly that. Land tax on a holiday home you never rent isn't deductible.
When is land tax assessed and paid?
Liability crystallises on a snapshot date — midnight 31 December in NSW and Victoria, 30 June in QLD, WA and SA, 1 July in Tasmania, and quarter-by-quarter in the ACT. Whoever owns the land at that instant wears the whole year (adjustments between buyer and seller are a contract matter). Assessments arrive during the year, usually payable in instalments.

Keep tallying

Every state

Land tax by state

One land value, all seven systems side by side — live.

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Australia

Negative gearing calculator

Land tax is deductible against rent — see the true after-tax holding cost.

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Sources

Method and figures verified against each revenue office's published scale — see the individual state calculators for their source lists, and the methodology for how the engines are tested. Rates last verified 2026-08-28. General information only — not financial, legal or tax advice.