Tax Simplification Measures

Reducing the general rate of duty

Transfer duty is imposed under the Duties Act on transactions including transfers of land and certain business assets. Previously, transactions involving residential property were assessed at a concessional residential rate of duty while those involving commercial property, vacant land and business assets were assessed at the general rate of duty.

The amendment aligned the general rate of duty with the concessional residential rate and removed the existing concessional residential rate. This effectively applied the previous concessional residential rate to all dutiable transactions.

Taxpayers and conveyancers are no longer required to apply to receive a reduced duty rate, also removing the need to apply for a refund of duty in certain circumstances.

This change came into effect on 1 July 2022.

Adjusting the residential or business property concession

A separate concessional rate of duty applies to transactions involving residential land used as a principal place of residence or business property where the transaction is valued at less than $200,000. Previously, the residential rate of duty provided a greater benefit than the concessional rate that otherwise applied to residential property valued between $116,000 and $200,000.

The amendments adjusted the concessional rate of duty so that it provides a greater benefit to all eligible transactions valued less than $200,000 as a consequence of the new single rate of duty.

This change came into effect on 1 July 2022.

Parties to the breakdown of a marriage or de facto relationship may make a financial agreement under family law legislation to transfer property between the parties. A transfer of land made in accordance with such a financial agreement is charged with nominal duty of $20.

Previously, nominal duty applied to Family Court Orders following the breakdown of a marriage or de facto relationship, and the resultant transfers of land were exempt from duty. The amendments reversed how the duty is applied, with nominal duty applying to the transfer of land rather than the order for the transfer. This aligns the treatment of Family Court Orders with financial agreements made under family law legislation.

This change came into effect on 28 May 2022.

The amendments introduced a vehicle licence duty exemption for service demonstrator vehicles used by car dealers to entice customers into upgrading their vehicles. As these vehicles are exclusively loaned to customers having their own vehicles serviced at the dealership rather than solely available for demonstration purposes, they did not qualify under the previous exemption provisions.

A second vehicle licence duty exemption was introduced for transactions involving a vehicle that is returned to the seller for a full refund of the purchase price or a replacement vehicle, and for when an agreement to purchase a vehicle is cancelled before the purchaser takes possession.

These changes came into effect on 28 May 2022.

Transactions involving prospecting licences and no other dutiable property are no longer dutiable transactions and do not need to be lodged with RevenueWA. This includes transfers and agreements for the transfer of prospecting licences, and the grant or transfer of a derivative mining right over a prospecting licence.

A transaction that includes prospecting licences and other dutiable property (such as another kind of mining tenement) is dutiable, and duty will be charged on the value of all dutiable property including the prospecting licences.

A transaction involving prospecting licences may be aggregated with another dutiable transaction if the transactions form substantially one arrangement. In this case the transaction involving prospecting licences is a dutiable transaction and needs to be lodged with RevenueWA.

This change came into effect on 1 July 2022.