Key Highlights

  • Older South Australians who want to move somewhere smaller can now buy without paying stamp duty, provided they meet a list of conditions.
  • RevenueSA's guidance sets out the thresholds.
  • Vacant land has lower limits.
  • The contract for the new property must be signed on or after 25 March 2026.

Older South Australians who want to move somewhere smaller can now buy without paying stamp duty, provided they meet a list of conditions. The relief is for people aged 60 or over buying a new home or an off-the-plan apartment. It is worth up to $103,830, according to the state government. With the spring selling season under way, the eligibility rules, deadlines and application process matter for anyone planning a move in the coming months.

What the relief covers

RevenueSA's guidance sets out the thresholds. Full relief applies to a new home or off-the-plan apartment with a dutiable value of $2 million or less. Partial relief applies between $2 million and $2.1 million, and there is no relief at $2.1 million or more.

Vacant land has lower limits. Full relief applies up to $1.2 million, and partial relief applies below $1.3 million.

The contract for the new property must be signed on or after 25 March 2026. When announcing the change, Premier Peter Malinauskas said: "We said this tax abolition would come into effect on the day the new Malinauskas Government is sworn in."

Who qualifies

At least one applicant must be aged 60 or over when the contract is signed. At least one applicant must also be an Australian citizen, a permanent resident or an eligible New Zealand citizen.

The new property must sit on less land than the existing home. That existing South Australian home must have been the applicant's principal place of residence.

There are timing rules too. The existing home must be sold within 12 months before or after settlement of the replacement property.

How much it can save

The government's June 2026 budget material says eligible buyers can save up to $103,830, and that the concession is costed at $75 million over four years.

That maximum matches South Australia's general conveyance duty scale. For properties above $500,000, the scale charges $21,330 plus $5.50 for every $100 above $500,000. On a $2 million purchase, that comes to $103,830.

Hypothetical example: a couple sells their family home in Adelaide's eastern suburbs, and one of them is 63. They sign a contract for a new off-the-plan apartment at $1,146,500, which is the average purchase price among early approvals according to the government. Under the general scale, duty would be $21,330 plus 5.5% of $646,500 ($35,557.50), a total of about $56,887.50.

Early take-up has been modest

483 people registered their interest in the first two months, and 16 applications had been approved by the time of its budget release. The average purchase price among those approvals was $1,146,500.

Approvals may lag behind interest, because buyers of off-the-plan apartments may not settle for some time. The conditions about selling the old home and moving into the new one also take months to meet.