Principal residence land
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Principal Residence Land (PRL) is land on which an owner of at least a 50 per cent or more interest in the land or related person (as defined by the Land Tax Act 2000), resides as their principal residence.
Eligible land categories
The following categories of land may be eligible to be classified as principal residence land.
For land to be the owner's principal place of residence, the property must be where the owner (or multiple owners) of at least a 50 per cent interest in the land ordinarily resides as at 1 July of each financial year.
Only one property can be classified as PRL unless you have adjoining land or related person is residing at the property. (See descriptions of 'Adjoining land' amd 'Related person residing at the property' further below).
Leaving personal possessions at a property only or using it as a weekend home would not ordinarily qualify it for the PRL classification.
Where a related person to the owner, as defined in the
Land Tax Act 2000, resides at the property, as at 1 July of each financial year, the principal residence classification may apply.
Common examples of related person include a beneficiary of the estate of a deceased owner or a spouse or former spouse of an owner.
If the status of the person residing at the property does not fit with any of the related person definitions in the
Land Tax Act 2000, you are not eligible to claim this property as principal residence land.
A PRL classification may remain on the property on 1 July of the financial year following a sole owner’s death providing the property:
- was classified as principal residence land on 1 July of the year of the owner’s death; and
- all or part of the property has not been sold or not been transferred to another person other than the personal representative of the deceased person.
Where a company is the beneficial owner of land and a person who owns at least 50 per cent of the shares in that company resides at the property as at 1 July of each financial year, the principal residence land classification may apply.
The principal residence land classification will only be applied if the shareholder does not own any other principal residence land as at 1 July.
Land held in trust may be granted a principal residence land classification if a beneficiary of the trust resides at the property as their principal residence and the land is held by:
- a registered trustee company;
- an executor, administrator, guardian, committee, receiver or liquidator;
- a trustee appointed by a court;
- a trustee of a Special disability trust (see the Special disability trust guideline); or
- a trustee of a fixed trust in which:
- all beneficiaries are individually named or are descendants of individually named beneficiaries; and
- the beneficiary would be entitled, on the winding up of the trust, to 50 per cent or more of the value of the income and capital of the trust.
The principal residence land classification will only be applied if the beneficiary does not own any other principal residence land as at 1 July.
To apply for the classification, use the Principal residence land application.
In some circumstances land adjoining your
principal residence land can also receive the classification. To qualify:
the adjoining land must be on a separate title held by the owner of the principal residence land;
there must not be a dwelling on the adjoining land which is used as a place of residence;
the land must be used in conjunction with the principal residence land;
the owner of the adjoining land must not receive an income from the use of the adjoining land; and
the owner of at least a 50 percent interest in the principal residence land must also be the owner of at least 50 percent interest in the adjoining land.
Where land classified as PRL is subject to fire, flood or a similar disaster, the owner may apply to extend the PRL classification for up to two financial years following the disaster, even if the property is not being used as their principal place of residence.
If the extension is granted, the owner of the principal residence land is not entitled to have any other land classified as principal residence land during the period of the extension.
To apply, use the Principal residence land application.
Land owned by a home-unit company can be classified as PRL if shareholders of that company live in the flats as their principal place of residence.
Land tax applies to any proportion of the land not used as shareholders’ principal residence.
For more information about home-unit companies refer to the Land Tax Act 2000 or email us. We will ask you to provide specific information about the property's different usages. (and percentage use).
Additional situations
If you rent out any part of your property, even if it is your principal residence land, land tax may apply based on the value of the portion of the rented portion.
If you rent out part of the property, that you use as your PRL, email us. We will ask you for details to help calculate the taxable portion accurately..
Refer to the Land tax and residential land factsheet for more information.
Land tax is normally payable on the part of your principal residence where it is being used for business purposes. If its use meets the eligibility criteria for a qualifying home business, land tax may not payable.
Refer to
Home business concession for more information.
Refer to Exemptions and rebates for more information.