Land with a shed on it now counts as vacant for the duty concession. A second fix, for new homes first sold to a builder, is backdated to 1 May 2025 for duty and 1 December 2020 for the First Home Owner Grant.
Queensland first home buyers will be able to claim the vacant land duty concession even if the block has a garden shed on it. State Parliament passed the change on 13 October 2026.
The Home Ownership and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2026 also fixes a second technicality. Under current law, a newly built home can stop counting as “new” if it was first sold from a developer to a builder.
Both fixes protect concessions that can be worth the whole duty bill. On contracts signed since 1 May 2025, eligible first home buyers pay no transfer duty on a new home or on residential vacant land to build one. There is no value cap, according to the Queensland Revenue Office (QRO).
The shed problem
Under the old rules, land only counted as vacant if there was no building, or part of a building, on it at purchase, according to the QRO. A shed on the block can be enough to rule it out.
The bill lets land with existing structures count as vacant, as long as each structure is an “eligible building”. A structure still rules the land out if it is fixed to the land and is either a home designed or council-approved for a single family, or a Class 1 to 9 building under the Building Code of Australia.
Class 10 structures, such as sheds, are not excluded on class alone, according to the bill’s explanatory notes.
The bill adds one condition: you must build a new home separate from any existing structure. The existing rule stays: you must move in and live there within two years of settlement. Renovating or moving into the shed won’t satisfy the residence requirement.
When it starts
The shed change applies to transactions entered into on or after 22 October 2026, the date the bill received royal assent. It is now the Home Ownership and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2026.
Cancelling a deal and re-signing after 22 October 2026 won’t help. The old rules still apply to contracts that replace a pre-assent deal on the same land. They also cover options granted before assent but exercised after it, and arrangements made mainly to push a purchase past the start date.
The builders’ terms problem
Some new homes are built under a builders’ terms arrangement. A licensed builder contracts to buy vacant land from a developer, but is allowed to build the home before the land settles.
When the land settles, the finished home transfers to the builder with it. Treasurer David Janetzki told Parliament this “constitutes a sale of the home”.
That matters because the QRO says a home only counts as new if it has not previously been occupied or sold as a place of residence. A first home buyer who then buys from the builder could miss out on a technicality.
Under the bill, a home that has only been sold under a builders’ terms arrangement can still count as new. The home must be ready to live in, with a final inspection certificate issued under the Building Act 1975, before the land contract settles.
What the backdating covers
For the First Home Owner Grant, the QRO has treated these homes as new since 1 December 2020 under a public ruling (FHOGA006.2.1). The bill writes that into law, backdated to the same date.
For the first home (new home) duty relief, the change applies where the duty liability arose on or after 1 May 2025. That is the date the relief started.
The Treasurer’s 13 October statement does not say how buyers who paid duty on one of these homes since 1 May 2025 can claim it back. If that’s you, ask the QRO about your position.
What hasn’t changed
The other eligibility rules still apply. For contracts signed from 1 August 2026, you must be an Australian citizen, permanent resident or specified foreign retiree to claim a home concession, the QRO says.
Mr Janetzki said the changes were made “so that well-intentioned Queenslanders acting in good faith are not deprived of a fair outcome”.
The Treasurer’s statement said more than 3,500 Queenslanders had benefited from the new home duty changes as at June 2026, saving more than $66 million.
Sources
Queensland Parliament Record of Proceedings, 13 October 2026; Home Ownership and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2026 and explanatory notes; Treasurer’s media statement, 13 October 2026; Queensland Revenue Office: first home vacant land concession, first home (new home) concession, vacant land definition, Public Ruling FHOGA006.2.1, home concession changes from 1 August 2026; Queensland Legislation notifications.
