What New Zealand Citizens need to know before considering purchasing Property in Queensland?
In this video, Property Law Associate Jessica Thomas talks about legal considerations for New Zealand Citizens thinking about purchasing Property in Queensland.
Contact our Gold Coast Lawyers team for more information here Property Law Enquiries.
Transcript
Hi, my name’s Jess Thomas, I’m an Associate here at OMB Solicitors and today I’ll be providing some advice to our Kiwi cousins across the ditch about purchasing property in Australia.
The first issue I’d like to discuss is the Foreign Investment Review Board approval and whether or not a New Zealand citizen must apply for approval before they enter into a transaction to purchase property in Australia.
The answer is no, a New Zealand citizen does not need to apply for Foreign Investment Review Board approval before entering into a transaction in Australia.
The second issue I’d like to discuss is stamp duty and in particular, Additional foreigners’s acquire duty. Now, Additional foreigners acquire duty is an additional amount of stamp duty imposed on foreign purchases.
The rate of AFAD is currently 7 %, so this is on top of the standard rate of stamp duty that is imposed on a purchaser in Queensland. There are some exemptions to this, however, a New Zealand citizen who holds a special category visa when entering into a transaction is exempt from paying the Additional foreigners acquire duty.
Now, a special category visa is granted automatically to a New Zealand passport holder when they enter Australia. We act for a number of New Zealand clients at OMB and we encourage you to seek proper legal advice before entering into any transaction involving residential land in Queensland.