Worked Cost Examples and Checklists
How to calculate stamp duty: worked examples for NSW, Victoria and Queensland
Step-by-step transfer duty calculations at $500,000, $650,000 and $1.5 million in NSW, Victoria and Queensland, including owner-occupier rates, first home and foreign buyers.
Transfer duty is calculated in three steps: find the bracket the dutiable value falls into, take that bracket's base amount, and add the marginal rate times the amount above the bracket's lower threshold. Then apply any concession, and add any foreign buyer surcharge as a flat percentage of the whole value. Below we run that method for a $650,000 unit and a $1,500,000 house in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland, plus a $500,000 owner-occupier purchase in Victoria. The NSW figures use the 2026-27 scale published by Revenue NSW; the Victorian and Queensland figures use the current scales published by their revenue offices.
This guide belongs to the net sale proceeds worked example section. The full rate tables and who collects duty in each state are in stamp duty by state.
The method in one line
Duty = base amount for the bracket + rate x (dutiable value - lower threshold of the bracket)
Victoria's $960,000 to $2,000,000 bracket is the exception: duty there is simply 5.5% of the whole value.
NSW and Queensland express rates "per $100 or part of $100". If the excess is not a round hundred, round it up to the next $100 before multiplying. For example, an excess of $262,950 is treated as $263,000.
Example 1: $650,000 unit, no concession
New South Wales (2026-27). $650,000 is in the $387,001 to $1,290,000 bracket: base $11,602, rate $4.50 per $100.
- Excess: $650,000 - $387,000 = $263,000
- $263,000 / 100 x $4.50 = $11,835
- Duty = $11,602 + $11,835 = $23,437
Victoria. $650,000 is in the $130,000 to $960,000 bracket: base $2,870, rate 6%. The owner-occupier rate does not apply above $550,000.
- Excess: $650,000 - $130,000 = $520,000
- 6% x $520,000 = $31,200
- Duty = $2,870 + $31,200 = $34,070
Queensland, investor (general rates). $540,000 to $1,000,000 bracket: base $17,325, rate $4.50 per $100.
- Excess: $650,000 - $540,000 = $110,000; x 4.5% = $4,950
- Duty = $22,275
Queensland, owner-occupier (home concession rates). Same bracket under the home concession scale: base $10,150, rate $4.50 per $100.
- Duty = $10,150 + $4,950 = $15,100, a saving of $7,175 for living in the home.
Example 2: $1,500,000 house, no concession
| State | Calculation | Duty |
|---|---|---|
| NSW (2026-27) | $52,237 + 5.5% x ($1,500,000 - $1,290,000) = $52,237 + $11,550 | $63,787 |
| Victoria | 5.5% x $1,500,000 | $82,500 |
| Queensland, general | $38,025 + 5.75% x $500,000 = $38,025 + $28,750 | $66,775 |
| Queensland, home concession | $30,850 + 5.75% x $500,000 | $59,600 |
The Victorian figure is much higher because 5.5% applies to the whole value in that bracket.
Example 3: $500,000 owner-occupier in Victoria
Victoria's principal place of residence (PPR) rates apply between $130,000 and $550,000 if you will live in the home and meet the conditions.
- PPR bracket $440,000 to $550,000: base $18,370, rate 6% above $440,000
- $18,370 + 6% x $60,000 = $21,970
- General rate for comparison: $2,870 + 6% x $370,000 = $25,070
- Saving: $3,100
A first home buyer at $500,000 would pay nothing, because Victoria exempts first homes up to $600,000.
Example 4: first home buyers
| Purchase | Duty without concession | First home buyer pays |
|---|---|---|
| NSW, $650,000 established home | $23,437 | $0 (exempt up to $800,000) |
| Victoria, $650,000 | $34,070 | Concession on the sliding scale between $600,000 and $750,000; use the SRO calculator |
| Queensland, $650,000 established home | $15,100 at home concession rates | $0 (exempt up to $700,000) |
| Queensland, $1,500,000 new home | $59,600 at home concession rates | $0 (first home new home concession, no cap) |
Conditions apply: see first home buyer concessions by state.
Example 5: a foreign buyer
A foreign buyer of a new $650,000 apartment pays the general duty plus the surcharge on the full value:
- NSW: $23,437 + 9% x $650,000 ($58,500) = $81,937
- Victoria: $34,070 + 8% x $650,000 ($52,000) = $86,070
- Queensland: $22,275 + 8% x $650,000 ($52,000) = $74,275
Federal rules on what a foreign person may buy are in foreign buyer surcharges and the ban.
Check your answer
Always confirm with the official calculator on the revenue office website for your contract date. It handles details this method does not: indexation dates, rounding, partial interests, concessions that combine, and land that is partly non-residential. Small differences of a few dollars usually come from rounding up to the next $100.
Frequently asked questions
Which date decides which rate scale applies?
In NSW, the contract date (or the transfer date if there is no contract). Most states use the date liability arises, normally the contract date. Settlement date can matter for some concessions, such as Tasmania's former exemption.
Is duty calculated on the deposit or the price?
On the full dutiable value, regardless of how much you borrow or what deposit you pay.
Why does my calculation differ from the agent's estimate?
Agents' online calculators may use an old scale or assume the wrong concession. Use the revenue office's calculator.
Does duty apply to furniture included in the sale?
Duty is charged on the dutiable property as defined by each state; chattels are often excluded in practice, but an inflated chattels value to cut duty can be challenged. Ask your conveyancer.
Official sources
- Revenue NSW — 2026-27 transfer duty thresholds and calculator
- State Revenue Office Victoria — general and principal place of residence rates
- Queensland Revenue Office — general and home concession rates
