Stamp duty clause: who pays duty in an Australian contract

Sample clause

Written for co ownership agreement between two fictional friends buying a Brisbane townhouse together in shares of 60 and 40 per cent.

Duty and Purchase Costs. (a) The Co-owners pay the transfer duty and registration fees on the purchase of the Property in their ownership shares: 60 per cent by Priyanka and 40 per cent by Thomas. (b) Each Co-owner pays their share into the conveyancer's trust account at least 5 business days before settlement, so the duty can be paid on time. (c) Any concession or exemption claimed is applied to the duty before it is shared. If a concession is later reversed because of one Co-owner's act, that Co-owner bears the duty, interest and penalty that result. (d) Each Co-owner indemnifies the other against any duty, interest or penalty arising from their failure to pay their share on time. (e) The amounts paid are recorded in Schedule 2 and count towards each Co-owner's contribution for the purposes of a later sale.

Sample wording, not legal advice.

Variants

What to negotiate

• Liability and bearing the cost

  State duty laws make a particular party liable to pay the revenue office, usually the purchaser or transferee. A contract can shift the cost between the parties, but not the legal liability to the state. If the paying party defaults, the revenue office can still pursue the liable party, which then relies on the contract's indemnity.

• Concessions and clawbacks

  First home buyer concessions and other exemptions often have conditions, such as living in the property for a period. If one buyer breaks a condition, the concession can be reversed with interest and penalties. A shared purchase should make the person who caused the reversal bear it, as the sample does.

• Timing

  Duty must be paid within a set time after the transaction, often at or soon after settlement, and late payment attracts interest and penalty tax. Clauses should require funds before settlement and say who bears interest if a party's money arrives late.

The risk of leaving it out

A contract silent on duty leaves the cost where the law puts it, which may not be the deal the parties thought they had, especially in shared purchases and business sales. Late payment caused by an argument over who pays attracts interest and penalty tax from the revenue office, adding cost to both sides.

Transfer duty in the states

Each state and territory imposes duty on transfers of land and some other property, under names such as transfer duty or land transfer duty. Revenue NSW, the State Revenue Office in Victoria and the Queensland Revenue Office each publish rates, concessions and payment deadlines. Rates are progressive and change, so a contract should allocate the duty rather than state an amount, and buyers should check the current calculator before signing. Law checked on 21 October 2026. This page explains how the law works and is not legal advice.

Shared purchases

When two or more people buy together, the revenue office assesses duty on the whole transaction, and the buyers sort out who bears what. The co ownership example records the deposit, duty and registration, conveyancing and inspection costs, each split 60 and 40, in a single table, so each owner's contribution is clear if they later sell or one buys the other out.

Leases and vehicles

Several states have abolished duty on leases, but registration fees and other charges can still apply, and some leases still allocate any duty that the law imposes, as the commercial lease example does by making the tenant pay the stamp duty and registration fees the law puts on it. Vehicle transfers attract motor vehicle duty paid by the buyer on registration, calculated on the price or market value, whichever is higher, as the vehicle sale example explains.

Where the clause sits in a generated document

Co ownership, sale, lease and business sale agreements carry this clause among the costs clauses. When asking the AI document generator for one, say who pays duty and fees, any split, the payment deadline, how concessions are treated and who bears interest or penalties for late payment.

Documents that carry this clause

Co-ownership agreement template for shares, costs and exitA co-ownership agreement is what two people write before they buy together, not after something goes wrong. This one covers a $780,000 unit held 60/40 as tenants in common, with tables for who paid what at settlement, who pays what each month, and how either of them gets out.Commercial lease agreement template with outgoings and fit out termsA retail lease is decided by three numbers and two clauses: the rent, the review, the outgoings, the fit out contribution and the make good. This 12 page Victorian lease sets all five out in the open, including the outgoings the landlord is not allowed to recover at all.Vehicle sale agreement templateA dual cab ute is changing hands between two people on the Central Coast for $28,500. No dealer, so no statutory warranty and no guarantee of clear title. What the buyer gets instead is five written warranties, a register certificate number, and a mechanic's report obtained before the balance moves.

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