Below is a list of guidelines for 1 July 2021 – 31 December 2021 land tax COVID-19 relief.

About the program

The NSW Government has introduced measures to provide relief to commercial and residential landowners, who provide a reduction in rent to a tenant who is experiencing financial distress as a result of COVID-19.

The 2021 land tax COVID-19 relief is intended to reduce a landowner’s land tax payable for 2021, by up to 100 per cent, for a taxable parcel of land where rent relief has been given to the tenant who occupies that land.

Relief available

Reduction in land tax payable

A landowner can receive a reduction of up to 100 per cent of land tax payable for the 2021 land tax year, subject to the terms of these guidelines.

A landowner providing a reduction in rent to a tenant between 1 July 2021 and 31 December 2021 can receive a reduction in land tax payable for the relevant parcel of land. The land tax reduction will be the lesser of:

  • the amount of rent reduction provided to an eligible tenant for any period between 1 July 2021 and 31 December 2021, or
  • 100 per cent of the land tax attributable to the parcel of land leased to that tenant.

Landowners can be eligible for land tax relief provided all eligibility requirements are met.

If you haven’t completed payment of your land tax for 2021, the relief granted will be used to offset the balance of land tax you have left payable. If your land tax for 2021 has been paid in full, the reduction can be refunded to you.

Eligibility criteria

You’ll be eligible if:

  • you’re leasing a parcel of land to:
    • a commercial tenant, who has an annual turnover of up to $50 million and is eligible for the Micro-business COVID-19 Support Grant, the 2021 COVID-19 NSW Business Grant and/or the JobSaver scheme, or
    • a residential tenant ,
  • the tenant is in financial distress as a result of COVID-19,
  • you reduce the rent of the affected tenant for any period between 1 July 2021 and 31 December 2021, and
  • for 2021, you have land tax attributable to the parcel of land leased to that tenant.

Financial distress

A tenant is considered to be in financial distress where:

  • for commercial tenants – there is a reduction in turnover compared to a previous comparable period of 30 per cent (or more),
  • for residential tenants – there is a reduction in household income of 25 per cent (or more).

You are responsible for verifying that your tenant is in financial distress.

Rent reduction

To be eligible, the rent reduction must not be required to be paid back at a later date. If a reduction in rent is provided but is required to be paid back at a later date, this is considered to be a deferral of rent and won’t be considered as a reduction of rent under this program.

If you’re not eligible for relief under this program but you’re having difficulty paying, you can still apply for a payment plan to extend your payment dates.

How to apply

Applications for the land tax relief program will be made available via Service NSW shortly.

Please do not hesitate to contact our office if you require assistance with claiming the Land Tax relief once the applications become available.