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Australian Capital Territory · Land tax

ACT land tax calculator

ACT land tax for 2026-27 on each home that isn’t where you live: a fixed charge plus a scale on its land value.

FY 2026-27 rates · verified against the official sources.

The parcel’s AUV — the average of its unimproved values over the last five years, shown on your rates notice. Each property is assessed on its own: the ACT never aggregates your holdings.

The ACT charges each property on its own, so each one is worked out separately and added up.

Foreign owner?

Your tally

Annual land tax

$5,558

That's an effective 1.24% of your taxable land value, each year.

The same $450,000 elsewhere (individual rates, no surcharges): NSW nil · VIC $1,800 · QLD nil · WA $375 · SA nil · TAS $1,513 · NT none. Compare every state.

Estimate for a whole year of liability. Part-year quarters, unit-entitlement apportionment and exemptions change the result — confirm with ACT Legislation Register.

Next: buying another property? → ACT stamp duty calculator

No threshold, no aggregation — if it’s not your home, it’s taxed.

The ACT model is unlike every state: land tax applies to each residential property that isn’t the owner’s principal residence — rented, vacant, or held by a company or trust — from the first dollar of value. Every liable property pays the $1,778 fixed charge plus the AUV scale, and the bill arrives quarterly.

How Australian Capital Territory land tax works

Work out ACT land tax for 2026-27 — the Territory’s per-property charge on any residential home that isn’t the owner’s principal residence, built from the $1,778 fixed charge plus a scale on the property’s average unimproved value.

Forget state-style thresholds: in the ACT, every residential property that isn’t the owner’s principal place of residence pays land tax — rentals above all, but also empty second homes and anything owned by a company or trust. Each property is assessed separately on its average unimproved value (AUV): the mean of the last five years of the block’s unimproved values, which smooths out valuation spikes.

The 2026-27 bill is a $1,778 fixed charge plus a marginal scale on AUV: 0.54% to $150,000, 0.64% to $275,000, 1.24% to $1m, then 1.25% and 1.26% beyond $2m. It’s billed quarterly (due 15 August, 15 November, 15 February and 15 May), with liability tested on the first day of each quarter — start renting the place out in September and land tax only starts from the October quarter. Foreign owners add a 0.75% surcharge on AUV.

ACT land tax 2026-27 — fixed charge + AUV scale

ACT land tax 2026-27 — fixed charge + AUV scale — Australian Capital Territory land tax scale
Taxable valueLand tax
Every liable property$1,778 fixed charge
AUV up to $150,0000.54% of AUV
AUV $150,000 – $275,000$810 + 0.64% of AUV over $150,000
AUV $275,000 – $1,000,000$1,610 + 1.24% of AUV over $275,000
AUV $1,000,000 – $2,000,000$10,600 + 1.25% of AUV over $1,000,000
AUV over $2,000,000$23,100 + 1.26% of AUV over $2,000,000

Per property, billed quarterly; foreign owners add 0.75% of AUV.

Land tax in ACT — quick answers by value

Annual land tax at each taxable value, computed by the same tested engine as the calculator:

Land tax in ACT at a range of land values
Taxable land valueAnnual land tax
$150,000$2,588
$300,000$3,698
$450,000$5,558
$600,000$7,418
$750,000$9,278
$1,000,000$12,378
$1,500,000$18,628
$2,000,000$24,878

Worked examples

  • A rented townhouse with a $450,000 AUV: $1,778 + $1,610 + 1.24% × $175,000 = $5,558 a year — a bit under $1,400 a quarter.
  • A rented house on a $750,000 AUV: $1,778 + $1,610 + 1.24% × $475,000 = $9,278 a year. A foreign owner adds 0.75% × $750,000 for $14,903.
  • A modest unit with a $150,000 AUV still pays $1,778 + $810 = $2,588 — the fixed charge makes cheap properties expensive to tax, proportionally.

Land tax is one line of the annual holding picture — the negative gearing calculator shows the after-tax cost of the whole thing, since land tax is generally deductible against rent. Buying? The LMI calculator covers mortgage insurance over 80% LVR, and the CGT calculator covers the day you eventually sell.

Frequently asked questions

Who pays land tax in the ACT?
Anyone whose residential property is not their principal place of residence: rented homes, vacant second properties, and any home owned by a company or trust. Owner-occupiers pay none — there’s no investigation of value, because there’s no threshold to cross. The ACT also never aggregates: three rentals mean three separate assessments, each with its own fixed charge.
How is ACT land tax calculated for 2026-27?
Fixed charge of $1,778 plus a marginal scale on the property’s AUV: 0.54% to $150,000, then 0.64% to $275,000, 1.24% to $1m, 1.25% to $2m and 1.26% beyond. A $450,000 AUV works out to $5,558 for the year. The only 2026-27 change was the fixed charge rising 5% from $1,693.
What is AUV?
The average unimproved value — the mean of the block’s unimproved land values over the five years to now (2026-27 averages the 1 January 2022–2026 figures). It’s on your rates notice. Averaging means a single hot revaluation only moves a fifth of your base.
Why is ACT land tax billed quarterly?
Because liability is tested on the first day of each quarter — 1 July, 1 October, 1 January, 1 April — and each bill covers just that quarter (weighted by its days, due on the 15th of the second month). Move into your rental yourself mid-year and the tax simply stops from the next quarter; no annual reconciliation needed.
What is the foreign ownership surcharge?
Foreign persons — not citizens, permanent residents or NZ special-visa holders — pay an extra 0.75% of AUV per year on top of land tax, assessed quarterly the same way. On a $750,000 AUV that is $5,625 a year on top of the land tax.
Is there any exemption apart from living in it?
The one most likely to matter to an owner is a home lent rent-free: it is exempt from land tax, although a foreign owner still pays the 0.75% surcharge on it. This calculator does not model exemptions, so check the ACT Revenue Office before relying on one.

Keep tallying

ACT

Stamp duty calculator ACT

The one-off duty when you buy — with every concession applied.

Open calculator →

Australia

Negative gearing calculator

Land tax is deductible against rent — see the true after-tax cost of holding.

Open calculator →

Sources

Prefer the method itself? See how to calculate land tax. Rates last verified 2026-08-28 for the 2026-27 assessment year. General information only — not financial, legal or tax advice.