Understanding your land tax assessment
Each year between January and June, we will send land tax assessment notices to customers.
The information on this page will help you understand your land tax assessment and what you need to do. If you have received an assessment for the first time, you can learn more here.
Your assessment notice should list:
- all the Victorian land you own, including land you own jointly with others
- your beneficial interest in any land held in a trust
- any exemptions that apply
- a site valuation for each piece of land you own.
It’s important that you check the accuracy of your assessment each year and contact us promptly if you see any errors or omissions.
Check your assessment to confirm these critical points:
- Your postal and residential addresses are correct
- All land that you own, including any land that you own with others, is included in your assessment
- The land shown in your assessment was owned by you as at midnight on 31 December of the previous year
- If you own the property you live in, it is marked as your principal place of residence on the Statement of Lands page
- Any land you own that is eligible for an exemption from land tax is marked exempt
- No land is incorrectly marked as exempt
- Land you hold as trustee of a trust is not included.
Vacant residential land tax is different to land tax. If you have also received a vacant residential land tax assessment, you also need to understand it and make sure it is correct.
Frequently asked questions about land tax assessments
How is land tax calculated?
Land tax is calculated by applying the appropriate land tax rate to the total taxable value of your land holdings.
Your taxable value is the total site value of all of the lands you own. However, your total taxable value does not include exempt land such as your home. Site valuations are prepared as part of the general valuation process by the Valuer-General of Victoria. These valuations are also used by local councils to calculate rates. Find out more information about site valuations.
Your tax may have increased due to an increase in the valuation of a property or as a result of the COVID Debt Repayment Plan. We do not have discretion to change the land tax rates that apply to your landholdings.
Find out more about the current and historical land tax rates.
What is the assessment period?
Land tax is assessed on a calendar year basis on the land you own at midnight on 31 December before your assessment is issued. For example, the land you own at midnight on 31 December 2023 is used to calculate land tax in 2024.
We do not adjust land tax for property bought, sold or settled during an assessment year. The owner of a property as at 31 December is responsible for paying the land tax assessment for the following year.
When are assessments issued?
Land tax assessments are generally issued between January and June each year.
We are committed to ensuring all taxpayers pay the correct amount of land tax, so you may receive an assessment (including assessments for previous land tax years) at other times of the year.
For example, if we discover a principal place of residence exemption has been incorrectly applied to your land, we may issue reassessments to recover the land tax you should have paid for the years you incorrectly received the exemption. You may also be charged penalty tax.
What are the different types of assessments?
Individual assessments – if you own taxable land alone (not with any other joint owner), you will receive an individual assessment. This assessment displays all of the land you own alone, together with any interest in land you own jointly with others, and where a nomination or notification has been received, any interest you have in land held on trust. If a company owns land in its own right (not on trust), that company will receive an individual land tax assessment.
Joint assessments – if you own land jointly with others you may also receive a separate joint assessment. Each unique combination of owners is considered a different joint ownership, so you may receive more than one joint assessment if you are a member of a number of unique joint ownerships. The customer receiving the joint assessment is receiving it on behalf of the other joint owners. Find out more about joint ownerships.
Trust assessments – individuals or companies who hold taxable land as the trustee of a trust will receive an assessment which states that the assessment is issued to them as trustee for their trust. The trustee will receive an assessment for each different trust which holds taxable land. Find out more about land tax and trusts.
Land tax group assessments – for corporations which are grouped, the land holdings of each corporation in the group are combined and assessed as if they were a single land holding owned by a single corporation (i.e. land tax is calculated on the total taxable value of all land owned by members of a group as if it were a single piece of land held by a single company). Members of a land tax group are jointly and individually liable for the land tax payable by the group. Find out more about land tax and grouping.
Vacant residential land tax assessments – vacant residential land tax is separately assessed for certain residential properties which are vacant for more than 6 months in a calendar year and are not eligible for an exemption. Find out more about vacant residential land tax.
Why do I have 2 assessments for the same property?
A land that is jointly owned may be assessed under both an individual assessment and a joint assessment. The individual assessment will include a deduction reflecting the individual's share of the tax under the joint assessment to avoid double taxation.
A land that is held on trust may be assessed under both an individual assessment and a trust assessment. This will occur if the individual is a beneficiary of the trust. The individual assessment will include a deduction reflecting the individual's share of the tax under the trust assessment to avoid double taxation.
Remember, you may receive more than one assessment but you should receive only one individual assessment for land you own alone. If you receive more than one individual assessment, you must call us on 13 21 61 so that we can correctly record the land(s) you own.
What is single holding tax?
The single holding tax displayed on your assessment is for information purposes only. It is the amount of tax you would pay on one property at ordinary land tax rates if it was the only property you owned.
For example, if you own 3 taxable properties, then 3 separate single holding tax amounts will be shown on your assessment.
Single holding tax is shown against each taxable property on the Statement of Lands page of your assessment. Your principal place of residence and any other exempt land is not included in this calculation.
What is proportional tax?
Proportional tax is the tax applicable to a particular land as a proportion of the total land tax liability of your assessment.
We calculate the proportional tax on land using the formula (X ÷ Y) × Z where:
- X = taxable value of a property
- Y = total value of all taxable properties
- Z = total tax payable.
For example, if you own 4 taxable properties, 4 separate proportional tax amounts will be shown on your assessment. Proportional tax is shown against each taxable property on the Statement of Lands page of your assessment. Your principal place of residence and any other exempt land is not included in this calculation.
If your assessment is amended or a valuation for a land is updated following a valuation objection, this will impact the proportional tax amount shown against each property.
What do the codes mean on my land tax assessment?
- PC - Property is in a parcel and is not the lead property
- CP - Caravan park exemption
- CHR - Charitable exemption
- DPR - Dual principal place of residence exemption
- Ret - Retirement village
- SH - Single holding
- RS - Residential service exemption
- PPL - Primary production land exemption
- Mine - Mine exemption
- RES - Residential care
- SPO - Outdoor club exemption
- PPR BEN - Principal place of residence with beneficial interest
- DIV 4 - Divisional 4 exemption
- STAT - Statutory authority exemption
- Mun - Municipality exemption
- ARM - Armed services personnel exemption
- LCA - Low cost accommodation
- PPR - Principal place of residence exemption
- FRS - Friendly society exemption
- P (placed in front of the unimproved value) - Pro rata site valuation
- Sec 9 - Any other exemption
- CON - Construction for exempt uses
- CROWN - Crown land
- TS - Trust surcharge
- COR - Coronavirus (COVID-19) land tax reduction
- BFR - Bushfire land tax relief
- BTR - Eligible build-to-rent development
- CLB - Land tax club exemption
- PPR s61 - Exemption for recently built or renovated homes on land subsequently used as a principal place of residence
- COVE – Exemption for land protected by a conservation covenant
- PPR QD - Principal place of residence for land occupied by a person with a qualifying disability
What should I do if my assessment is incorrect?
Most common changes and updates can be made easily online via My Land Tax.
Common changes and updates include:
- updating your contact details
- updating your assessment delivery preference
- updating your principal place of residence
- removing land that you do not own as at 31 December
- applying for an exemption for a property that should have been marked as your principal place of residence or as primary production land.
If you need to remove an exemption from a land that you are no longer entitled to, call us on 13 21 61. Please have your assessment on hand along with any other information relevant to your request.
What happens if I don't notify you that my assessment is incorrect?
You must notify us of any errors or omissions in your assessment within 60 days of the issue date of your assessment. Penalties may apply if you do not notify us within this time. You must notify us if you:
- own additional land which has not been included in your assessment
- receive more than 1 individual annual assessment for lands you own by yourself
- are receiving a principal place of residence exemption for land that is not, or is no longer, your principal place of residence (your home)
- have received any other exemption for which you are not eligible
- the land is held on trust
- you are an absentee owner and your assessment has not included the absentee owner surcharge.
What can I do if I disagree with my site value?
If you disagree with the site value on your assessment, you can object via our online portal within 2 months of receiving your land tax assessment.
The Commissioner of State Revenue has no discretion to accept late objections.
How do I object to my assessment?
You do not need to lodge an objection to correct inaccurate information or make simple updates. You can update your contact details, remove land that you do not own or update your principal place of residence online via My Land Tax.
However, if you think you have been incorrectly assessed and the change you are seeking cannot be actioned through My Land Tax, you can formally dispute the assessment by lodging an objection.
Your objection must be received within 60 days of you receiving your assessment. If you lodge your objection after the 60-day timeframe, you must provide reasons for the delay. If you do not provide reasons for the delay, your objection will be refused.
An objection is a formal avenue of dispute resolution requiring you to explain the grounds of your objection and describe clearly the reasons why you disagree with your assessment. An objection is generally not valid if the grounds stated are vague, claim that the tax payable is too high or you state that an assessment should not be issued on compassionate grounds.
Even if you have lodged an objection, you must still pay your land tax in full by the due date or you may be charged interest. If your objection is successful, any amount overpaid will be refunded with interest.
We will advise you in writing of the outcome of your objection.
Last modified: 28 June 2024
News and updates
-
30 September 2024
More property tax seminars added this October
-
4 September 2024
Property taxes seminars – join us
-
3 September 2024
Have your say on our draft ruling on the land tax exemption for land being prepared for primary production
