Anyone who’s bought a home knows that the process involves paying for more than just the property in question. Buying a home comes with a wide range of additional and ancillary expenses, ranging from inspections and government fees to perhaps the largest of the lot: stamp duty.
Stamp duty is an upfront tax (or ‘transfer duty’) charged by state and territory governments on the transfer of a property’s title from one party to another. Its purpose is to cover the bookkeeping costs involved in the property transfer, and it’s potentially one of the largest costs you’ll encounter as a property buyer (aside from the cost of the property itself).
But because stamp duty is typically charged on a sliding scale based on the value of the property, and the exact rates and thresholds vary around Australia, it can be hard to ballpark your potential stamp duty. Luckily, we’re here to help.
The Northern Territory’s stamp duty thresholds and rates are markedly simple compared against Australia’s other states and territories. Instead of charging flat sums with a sliding scale percentage amount attached, the NT simply deals in flat percentages based on the property’s purchase price for the most part (with the exception of the first tier).
The NT stamp duty rates (as of September 2022)¹ are listed in the table below.
| Property value | Rate of stamp duty payable |
| $525,000 or less | (0.06571441 x V²) + 15V (where V is 1/1000 of the property’s dutiable value) |
| $525,000-$2,999,999 | 4.95% of the property’s dutiable value |
| $3,000,000-$4,999,999 | 5.75% of the property’s dutiable value |
| $5,000,000 or more | 5.95% of the property’s dutiable value |
This makes ballparking the stamp duty you might pay on a property purchase much easier. Say you purchase a property for $700,000; this would attract a payable duty of 4.95%, which is equal to $34,650. So, that’s how much you would likely pay in stamp duty on your property purchase.
According to the NT Government, property-related transactions considered ‘dutiable’ (i.e. will attract a title transfer fee) include:²
The upshot of this is that if you buy an established home, vacant land or a combination of the two, you’ll most likely pay stamp duty on that purchase. This applies regardless of whether you’ve bought an investment property or a primary residence.
In the Northern Territory, stamp duty must be paid no less than 60 days after either:²
However, most buyers will generally have engaged the services of a solicitor or conveyancer during the homebuying process, and they will typically handle the stamp duty payment.
As of 30 June 2021, first home buyers in the Northern Territory are not eligible for any stamp duty concessions or exemptions and must pay the full applicable duty on their first property purchase.³
The Northern Territory has one stamp duty exemption available: the House and Land Package Exemption (HLPE).⁴ To be eligible for this full stamp duty exemption, you must purchase a house and land package from a building contractor before 30 June 2027, and in turn the contractor must do one of the following:
Additionally, the contractor must have bought the land in question from a developer and paid the applicable stamp duty on the purchase of said land. There are no means testing measures or price caps for the HLPE.
As of September 2022, foreign purchasers must pay the full amount of stamp duty applicable on any property purchase they make. However, unlike some of Australia’s other states and territories, the Northern Territory does not impose an additional stamp duty surcharge on foreign borrowers.
Stamp duty must be paid to the Receiver of Territory Monies (the Northern Territory revenue office).² However, if you’re working with a solicitor or conveyancer, they will generally handle the payment of your stamp duty on your behalf.
Like we mentioned before, stamp duty rates vary widely around the country, so the same house could theoretically incur notably different amounts of stamp duty if bought in different states and territories. Additionally, different states and territories offer different stamp duty concessions and exemptions, with some offering discounts for eligible pensioners, first home owners and families.
That’s why we’ve created stamp duty guides for all the states and territories around the country, including:
1 Northern Territory Government. STAMP DUTY ACT 1978. 2022.
2 Northern Territory Government – Department of Treasury and Finance. Frequently Asked Questions: Stamp Duty. 2022.
3 NT.GOV.AU. Home owner assistance. 2022.
4 NT.GOV.AU. Get stamp duty exemption on house and land packages. 2022.
