Amendments will be introduced into State Parliament to ensure transfer duty relief will continue for Western Australians who subdivide their property using a strata titles scheme and there is no change in land ownership.
The amendments follow a State Administrative Tribunal decision in February 2019 that changed how duty applied to these transactions.
The amendments to the Duties Act 2008 and Duties Regulations 2008 will address the unfair outcomes of the decision.
Transfer duty relief has always applied to strata subdivisions if there is no change in land ownership following subdivision. Without corrective action, a duty liability may be incurred by landowners completing these transactions.
Other amendments will ensure duty continues to apply to strata subdivisions involving a change in land ownership. These changes will apply from the date the strata titles reforms come into operation.
The strata titles reforms are proposed to commence on May 1, 2020.
Further information about these changes is available from https://www.wa.gov.au
As stated by Finance Minister Ben Wyatt:
“These amendments will allow eligible strata titles subdivision transactions to continue to benefit from generous duty relief.
“They will also ensure duty applies when land ownership changes as part of a strata subdivision, which maintains the integrity of the duties scheme and the State’s revenue base.”
