How Victorian land tax works: the scales, the $50,000 threshold and the absentee surcharge
Victorian land tax is charged on the total site value of the land you own at 31 December. This guide sets out the current scales, how trusts and absentee owners are treated and what five holdings would pay.
The short answer
Victorian land tax is charged on the combined site value of your taxable land at midnight on 31 December. Nothing is payable under $50,000 ($25,000 for a trust). Above that it rises from $500 to $1,350 plus 0.3% over $300,000, and on to $31,650 plus 2.65% over $3 million.
What is taxed and when
Victorian land tax is an annual tax on land you own, assessed on the combined site value of all your taxable land as at midnight on 31 December of the year before the assessment. Site value is the value of the land alone, set by the Valuer-General, and it excludes buildings and other improvements. It is usually well below market value and appears on your council rates notice.
The tax is assessed on your total holding, not property by property, so adding a second block can push the whole holding into a higher band. Your principal place of residence is generally exempt and is left out of the total, as is some land used for primary production.
The general scale, 2024 to 2033
The State Revenue Office publishes the current scale, which applies for the 2024 to 2033 land tax years. For most individuals and companies it is:
| Total taxable site value | Land tax payable |
|---|---|
| Under $50,000 | Nil |
| $50,000 to under $100,000 | $500 |
| $100,000 to under $300,000 | $975 |
| $300,000 to under $600,000 | $1,350 plus 0.3% of the amount over $300,000 |
| $600,000 to under $1,000,000 | $2,250 plus 0.6% of the amount over $600,000 |
| $1,000,000 to under $1,800,000 | $4,650 plus 0.9% of the amount over $1,000,000 |
| $1,800,000 to under $3,000,000 | $11,850 plus 1.65% of the amount over $1,800,000 |
| $3,000,000 and over | $31,650 plus 2.65% of the amount over $3,000,000 |
Land held in a trust
Land owned through most trusts is assessed on a separate trust surcharge scale, which starts at a lower $25,000 threshold and runs higher across most of the range. For example, a trust holding $600,000 of site value pays $4,263 on the trust scale, compared with $2,250 on the general scale. The two scales meet at $3 million, where both reach $31,650 plus 2.65% of the amount above it.
Whether a trust is subject to the surcharge depends on its terms, and some trusts, such as fixed trusts with named beneficiaries, may be assessed on the general scale. Check with the State Revenue Office or a tax adviser.
The absentee owner surcharge
Absentee owners, broadly foreign persons who own land in Victoria, pay an additional surcharge. It is a flat 4% of the total taxable site value on top of the normal land tax, charged once the holding is above the threshold. The State Revenue Office's absentee tables follow this exactly: a $300,000 holding pays $1,350 on the general scale, plus 4% of $300,000, which is $13,350 in total.
The calculator on this site includes an absentee option, with the surcharge rate in an editable field.
The absentee owner surcharge is separate from the foreign purchaser additional duty paid when buying property.
What five holdings would pay
The table applies the general scale to five total site values, with and without the absentee owner surcharge.
| Total site value | General scale | With absentee owner surcharge |
|---|---|---|
| $300,000 | $1,350 | $13,350 |
| $600,000 | $2,250 | $26,250 |
| $1,000,000 | $4,650 | $44,650 |
| $1,800,000 | $11,850 | $83,850 |
| $3,000,000 | $31,650 | $151,650 |
Practical points
Land tax is assessed for a calendar year using the site values set by the Valuer-General at 1 January of the year before; for the 2026 assessment that means valuations made at 1 January 2025. That is why a revaluation can lift your bill sharply in a single year. The State Revenue Office issues the assessment, and its website lists the payment options.
Vacant residential land tax is a different tax, assessed on capital improved value rather than site value, and is not part of the figures on this page.
Where these numbers come from
- State Revenue Office Victoria — land tax current rates General, trust and absentee owner scales for the 2024 to 2033 land tax years (page updated 29 September 2026)
- State Revenue Office Victoria — land tax How land tax is assessed and the exemptions
Method last reviewed 2026-10-28 This guide is re-checked against the sources above at least once a year, and again whenever a rule it explains changes. Out of date? Tell us and we will fix it.