Stamp Duty SA 2026: Rates, Calculator Examples And First Home Buyer Concessions

Stamp duty in SA is charged on a nine-bracket scale that starts at A$1 per A$100 and reaches A$21,330 plus A$5.50 per A$100 above A$500,000. That makes it A$26,830 on a A$600,000 property and A$43,330 on A$900,000. Eligible first home buyers pay no stamp duty on a new home, off-the-plan apartment or vacant land for contracts from 6 June 2024, with no value cap, but there is no first home buyer concession on established homes.

Stamp duty is the largest government cost in most South Australian property purchases, and on top of it SA charges one of the highest title registration fees in the country. This guide copies the rate table exactly as RevenueSA publishes it, works through the arithmetic a stamp duty calculator SA buyers use would do at three prices, and covers first home buyer relief, the seniors downsizing relief introduced in 2026, the off-the-plan position, the foreign ownership surcharge, payment at settlement and the Land Services SA fees. Figures are current as at October 2026.

• What Stamp Duty In SA Is
• South Australia Stamp Duty Rates For 2026
• How To Calculate Transfer Duty SA By Hand
• Worked Examples At A$600,000, A$900,000 And A$1.5 Million
• First Home Buyer Stamp Duty SA
• Seniors Downsizing Stamp Duty Relief
• Off-The-Plan Apartment Concession
• Foreign Ownership Surcharge
• When Duty Is Due And How It Is Paid
• Land Services SA Transfer And Mortgage Fees
• How SA Compares With Western Australia
• What Drives The Cost
• Step By Step Checklist
• Frequently Asked Questions
• The Short Version

What Stamp Duty In SA Is

In South Australia the tax is still officially called stamp duty, charged on conveyances of land under the Stamp Duties Act 1923 and collected by RevenueSA. Many buyers and some advisers call it transfer duty SA, because it is triggered by the transfer of land, and you will see both names used for the same charge. The buyer pays it.

It applies to houses, units, vacant land and commercial property. Unlike some states, South Australia has no general concession for established homes bought by owner-occupiers, so the same scale applies whether you will live in the property or rent it out. The concessions that do exist are targeted at new housing: first home buyers and, from March 2026, older buyers who are downsizing into a new home.

South Australia Stamp Duty Rates For 2026

These are the conveyance duty rates published on RevenueSA’s rate of stamp duty page, copied bracket by bracket. The same nine brackets appear in a June 2026 guide to stamp duty in South Australia from Aussie, and PwC’s summary of the 2026-27 South Australian Budget notes no new taxes, tax increases or changes to State tax policy, so the scale remains current.

The top bracket starts at A$500,000, which is well below the typical Adelaide house price, so most buyers pay the top marginal rate of A$5.50 per A$100 on part of their purchase.

How To Calculate Transfer Duty SA By Hand

RevenueSA’s Stamp Duty Conveyance Calculator is the official tool, and every stamp duty calculator SA comparison sites offer follows the same steps:

1. Find the bracket your dutiable value falls in.
2. Subtract the bracket’s starting point to get the excess.
3. Divide the excess by 100 and round up to a whole number, because the scale charges “for every A$100 or part of A$100”.
4. Multiply by the bracket’s rate and add the bracket’s base amount.

The base amounts already contain the duty on everything below the bracket. A$21,330, for example, is the total duty on a A$500,000 property, so for anything above that you only add A$5.50 per A$100 on the excess.

Worked Examples At A$600,000, A$900,000 And A$1.5 Million

The figures below were calculated with a script from the rate table above, applying the round-up rule. They assume a buyer who does not qualify for any relief and is not a foreign person.

As a share of the price, that is about 4.47% at A$600,000, 4.81% at A$900,000 and 5.09% at A$1.5 million. Because the top bracket begins so low, each extra A$10,000 on the price adds A$550 in duty for nearly every Adelaide buyer. For a property at A$500,000 the duty is exactly A$21,330, and at A$750,000 it is A$35,080.

First Home Buyer Stamp Duty SA

South Australia’s first home buyer relief is generous but narrow: it applies only to new housing. According to RevenueSA’s page on first home buyer relief from 6 June 2024, eligible buyers can get full relief on new homes (including substantially renovated homes bought from a GST-registered developer), off-the-plan apartments, house and land packages, and vacant land to build on. The relief is not available on an established home, a knock-down rebuild or an investment property.

The South Australian Government’s budget page states that removing the property value thresholds “effectively abolishes stamp duty for all eligible first home buyers” who enter into a contract to buy a new home or vacant land on or after 6 June 2024. RevenueSA’s own example shows full relief on an A$870,000 new home contracted in August 2025.

Relief By Contract Date

Key Conditions

• Applicants must be at least 18 and natural persons; at least one must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident (or an eligible New Zealand citizen).
• You must live in the home as your principal place of residence for at least six continuous months, starting within 12 months of settlement for a new home. For vacant land the period must start within 12 months of the home being able to be lawfully lived in, or 36 months from settlement, whichever is first.
• The application is normally lodged by your conveyancer and must be assessed by RevenueSA; it cannot be self-determined.
• If you did not claim at settlement, you can apply for a refund within five years of settlement.

First Home Buyer Example

A first home buyer signing a contract for a new A$600,000 townhouse saves the full A$26,830. On a new A$900,000 house the saving is A$43,330. Buy an established A$600,000 home instead and the full A$26,830 is payable. That gap is the main reason first home buyer stamp duty SA advice usually starts with the question “new or established?”. The state budget page also lists a A$15,000 First Home Owner Grant for eligible new homes. A mortgage broker in Adelaide can show how relief and the grant change the deposit you need.

Seniors Downsizing Stamp Duty Relief

A new relief for older buyers applies to eligible contracts entered into on or after 25 March 2026. RevenueSA’s seniors downsizing stamp duty relief page sets out these thresholds, and PwC’s budget summary describes it as a 100% exemption for South Australians aged 60 and over.

At least one applicant must be 60 or over when the contract is signed. You must sell your existing home within 12 months before or after settlement of the replacement (measured from practical completion for a newly built home or off-the-plan apartment), and live in the new home for at least six continuous months. Like first home buyer relief, it does not apply to established homes.

Off-The-Plan Apartment Concession

South Australia once had a dedicated off-the-plan apartment concession, but it is not open to new contracts. RevenueSA’s off the plan concession document guide (version 4, April 2022) shows every qualifying contract window closing on 30 June 2018. For contracts from 1 July 2014 to 30 June 2018 the reduction for apartments over A$500,000 ranged from A$15,500 at the first construction stage down to nothing at completion.

In 2026 the practical routes to lower duty on an off-the-plan apartment are the first home buyer relief and the seniors downsizing relief above, both of which cover off-the-plan apartments. Other buyers pay the general scale.

Foreign Ownership Surcharge

RevenueSA’s foreign ownership surcharge page sets the surcharge at 7% of the value of the interest in residential land, on top of ordinary duty, for instruments and transactions entered into on or after 1 January 2018. Only the share bought by the foreign person is surcharged: a 20% interest valued at A$100,000 attracts A$7,000. Aussie’s 2026 guide gives the same 7% rate.

Where one buyer is a citizen and another is not, first home buyer relief and the surcharge interact. RevenueSA says the surcharge will not apply on qualifying new homes or off-the-plan apartments at A$650,000 or less, or vacant land at A$400,000 or less, if all relief criteria are met.

When Duty Is Due And How It Is Paid

Stamp duty is typically paid as part of the settlement process, as Aussie’s guide puts it. Your conveyancer or solicitor lodges the transaction with RevenueSA (through RevenueSA Online or electronic settlement) and the duty is paid from the settlement funds, together with the Land Services SA registration fee. Where you are claiming first home buyer or downsizing relief, the application goes in with the transaction so RevenueSA can assess it before settlement.

Plan to have the full amount in cleared funds. If relief has not been approved in time, you may have to pay duty and claim a refund afterwards, which for first home buyers can be done within five years of settlement. Book removalists in Adelaide once the settlement date is fixed, and keep their quote in the same budget as your duty and fees.

Land Services SA Transfer And Mortgage Fees

South Australia’s transfer registration fee is value-based and much larger than in most states. Land Services SA publishes the 2026-27 transfer registration fee table, effective 1 July 2026, and the 2026-27 document lodgement fees.

Within the table each A$10,000 band adds A$105, and the published table stops at A$1,070,000 (A$11,063). For a A$1.5 million purchase, ask your conveyancer for the exact figure from the full schedule of fees. For comparison, the 2025-26 fee for A$590,001 to A$600,000 was A$5,952.

Adding it up for a non-first home buyer with a loan, a A$600,000 purchase costs A$26,830 in duty, A$6,128 to register the transfer and A$204 for the mortgage, A$33,162 in government charges before conveyancing fees.

How SA Compares With Western Australia

Western Australia’s general scale tops out at A$28,453 plus A$5.15 per A$100 above A$725,000, according to RevenueWA’s transfer duty assessment page. Both columns were calculated with the same script.

For first home buyers the comparison flips depending on the property. SA charges nothing on any eligible new home regardless of price, while WA’s first home owner rate, from 7 May 2026, covers both new and established homes but only up to A$800,000. Our Australia services hub collects the guides for other states.

What Drives The Cost

• Price. Above A$500,000 every extra A$100 costs A$5.50 in duty, plus about A$1.05 in transfer registration fee.
• New or established. First home buyers and downsizers only get relief on new homes, off-the-plan apartments and vacant land.
• Contract date. First home buyer relief depends on contracts from 6 June 2024 (full) or 15 June 2023 (partial); downsizing relief on contracts from 25 March 2026.
• Previous property ownership. From 13 February 2025, any earlier relevant interest in Australian residential property rules out first home buyer relief.
• Foreign ownership. Adds 7% of the value of the foreign person’s interest.
• Meeting the residence rules. Failing to live in the home for six continuous months can mean the relief is reassessed and duty becomes payable.

Step By Step Checklist

1. Run the price through RevenueSA’s Stamp Duty Conveyance Calculator and check it against the rate table above.
2. Decide whether the property is new or established, as that decides whether any relief is possible.
3. Check your contract date against the relief start dates (6 June 2024 for full first home buyer relief, 25 March 2026 for downsizers).
4. Check the ownership history of every applicant and their spouse or partner.
5. Add the Land Services SA transfer fee, which runs to several thousand dollars on a typical home, and the A$204 mortgage fee.
6. Give your conveyancer the relief application and supporting documents well before settlement.
7. Have the duty and fees available in cleared funds for settlement day.
8. Diary the six-month residence requirement and tell RevenueSA in writing within 14 days if your plans change.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Much Is Stamp Duty In SA On A A$600,000 House?

For a buyer with no relief, it is A$26,830. A$600,000 is in the top bracket, so the duty is A$21,330 plus A$5.50 for every A$100 above A$500,000. The excess is A$100,000, or 1,000 lots of A$100, which adds A$5,500. An eligible first home buyer pays nothing if the house is new, but the full A$26,830 if it is established.

Is There An Official Stamp Duty Calculator SA Buyers Should Use?

Yes. RevenueSA publishes a Stamp Duty Conveyance Calculator on its website, and its result reflects the assessment RevenueSA will make. Bank and comparison site calculators are fine for quick estimates. Because the scale has only nine brackets and a simple round-up rule, you can also check any figure by hand using the worked examples in this guide.

Do First Home Buyers Pay Stamp Duty In South Australia?

Not on an eligible new home, off-the-plan apartment, house and land package or vacant land, for contracts from 6 June 2024, regardless of value. They do pay full stamp duty on an established home, as South Australia offers no first home buyer concession for established properties. Conditions include living in the home for six continuous months and, from 13 February 2025, no previous interest in Australian residential property.

Is Transfer Duty SA The Same As Stamp Duty?

Yes. South Australian law calls it stamp duty on conveyances, under the Stamp Duties Act 1923, while many buyers and advisers use the term transfer duty because it is charged when land is transferred. The rate scale, relief and payment process are the same whichever name is used. RevenueSA’s own pages refer to stamp duty.

When Is South Australia Stamp Duty Paid?

In practice it is paid at settlement. Your conveyancer lodges the transaction with RevenueSA and pays the duty from the settlement funds, along with the Land Services SA transfer fee. If you are claiming relief, the application must be lodged with the transaction so RevenueSA can assess it, because first home buyer relief cannot be self-determined.

Do Downsizers Get A Stamp Duty Break In SA?

From 25 March 2026, buyers aged 60 or over who sell their home and buy a new home or off-the-plan apartment worth A$2 million or less (or vacant land up to A$1.2 million) can get full relief, with partial relief just above those values. The existing home must be sold within 12 months before or after settlement, and the new home lived in for six months.

Can I Get A Stamp Duty Refund If I Forgot To Claim First Home Buyer Relief?

For contracts entered into from 15 June 2023, RevenueSA says eligible buyers who did not claim at settlement can apply for a refund within five years of settlement through its online refund application. You will need the contract, the transfer details and evidence that you meet the eligibility and residence conditions.

The Short Version

• SA stamp duty runs from A$1 per A$100 up to A$21,330 plus A$5.50 per A$100 above A$500,000, with each part of A$100 rounded up.
• Duty is A$26,830 at A$600,000, A$43,330 at A$900,000 and A$76,330 at A$1.5 million.
• Eligible first home buyers pay nothing on new homes and vacant land for contracts from 6 June 2024, with no value cap, but get no relief on established homes.
• Buyers aged 60 and over downsizing into a new home up to A$2 million get full relief for contracts from 25 March 2026.
• Foreign buyers add 7%, and the Land Services SA transfer fee adds A$6,128 at A$600,000.

This guide is general information, not legal or financial advice, so confirm current rates and your eligibility with RevenueSA or your conveyancer before you sign.