Under section 28 of the Land Tax Assessment Act, owners of taxable private residential property situated in an area of the State prescribed as an inner city area may apply to the Commissioner for a rebate of land tax if the land
- is also in an area the subject of a local planning scheme or redevelopment scheme in force under the Metropolitan Redevelopment Authority Act 2011 and
- is not zoned for use solely for residential purposes.
The rebate entitlement is the difference between an owner’s land tax liability assessed on the actual zoned valuation of the land, and their liability if a valuation based on a residential zoning (provided that this is lower) is used in the calculation of land tax.
To be eligible for a rebate, a private residence must have been constructed on the land at 30 June before the assessment year, or if under construction, completed before the end of the assessment year and was occupied or fit to be occupied and intended by the owner to be occupied, as a place of residence during the assessment year or during the part of the assessment year remaining after construction is completed.
The private residence can be a house, flat, unit or other self-contained dwelling, incorporating cooking and bathing facilities and intended for long term residential use. However, it does not include a building or a part of a building used or ordinarily used for holiday accommodation such as a hotel, motel or hostel. Other excluded uses include boarding houses, lodging houses, clubs, and land used for educational, hospital, aged care, nursing or other similar purposes.
