NSW Land Tax Assessment Notice Checklist 2026

Short answer

Check a NSW land tax assessment against the land you owned at midnight on 31 December, the exemptions shown, the taxable and average land values, the owner details and the payment date.

If a property, ownership detail or exemption is wrong, Revenue NSW says many errors can be corrected by updating your land tax details before the due date. A land value objection goes to the NSW Valuer General. A formal objection about how land tax law was applied goes to Revenue NSW. Both generally have a 60-day time limit from the assessment issue date.

Use the NSW Land Tax Calculator to reproduce a general-rate estimate. It is an indicative cross-check, not an official assessment, valuation or objection.

1. Confirm the assessment year and taxing date

NSW land tax is assessed for a full calendar year based on non-exempt land owned at midnight on 31 December before that year.

It is not normally apportioned because a property is sold during the assessment year. Revenue NSW gives the example that a February sale does not reduce that year's land tax liability for the person who owned the taxable land at the taxing date.

Start by checking:

• the assessment year;
• whether you owned each listed property at the relevant midnight;
• whether a recent purchase or sale has been recorded correctly; and
• whether a reassessment covers an earlier year.

2. Check every property and ownership detail

The notice should identify the land being assessed. Compare the addresses and ownership information with your records.

Joint ownership can produce more than one assessment. Revenue NSW may issue an assessment to the joint ownership and another individual assessment that considers an owner's interests with other taxable NSW land.

Do not add two notices together without understanding what each one represents. Check any secondary deduction shown, which is intended to reduce double taxation of the same jointly owned land.

3. Check exemptions and concessions

Look for the treatment of each property, especially:

• principal place of residence;
• primary production land;
• deceased estate or permitted absence treatment;
• boarding house or other specific exemption;
• foreign owner surcharge treatment; and
• trust or company ownership.

An exemption is fact-specific. Selecting principal place of residence in a calculator cannot establish that the statutory occupation and ownership conditions are satisfied.

Revenue NSW says an owner should also disclose an exemption that appears on the notice but should not apply. Leaving an incorrect exemption uncorrected can lead to reassessment, interest or penalties.

4. Use land value, not the property sale price

The assessment uses land values supplied by the NSW Valuer General. It does not use the property's full market price including the building.

For strata property, the relevant figure is the land value attributed to the lot or ownership interest, not the apartment's sale price.

If the land value itself appears wrong, the objection is made to the NSW Valuer General. Revenue NSW says the deadline is 60 days from the issue date on the assessment notice.

5. Check the average land value

NSW generally uses an average of the land value for the current tax year and the prior two years when calculating ordinary land tax.

The assessment details can show:

• taxable land value for each property;
• the average land value used in the calculation;
• exemptions applied;
• any secondary deduction; and
• why a reassessment was issued.

If the calculator result differs from the notice, first check whether you entered the notice's average taxable value rather than a current market estimate.

6. Reproduce the general-rate estimate

For the 2026 NSW land tax year, the general threshold is $1,075,000 and the premium threshold is $6,571,000. Revenue NSW says the thresholds have been fixed since the 2025 land tax year.

For an individual with $1,400,000 of aggregated taxable average land value and no surcharge or special trust treatment:

• excess above the general threshold: $325,000;
• percentage component: 1.6% of $325,000, or $5,200;
• base amount: $100; and
• indicative ordinary land tax: $5,300.

This example does not cover foreign owner surcharge land tax, trusts, joint ownership deductions, exemptions, arrears or interest.

7. Separate a correction from an objection

Revenue NSW says most notice errors can be addressed by updating land ownership and personal details in Land Tax Online before the due date.

Examples include:

• a property missing from or wrongly included in the land list;
• a sale or acquisition that has not been recorded;
• an exemption or concession that needs to be claimed or removed; or
• circumstances that changed and were not previously considered.

A formal objection is different. Use it when you believe land tax legislation was incorrectly applied to the assessment. Evidence should support the stated grounds.

8. Record the 60-day dates and payment date

Revenue NSW states:

• a land value objection should be lodged with the NSW Valuer General within 60 days of the assessment issue date;
• a land tax assessment objection should be lodged with Revenue NSW within 60 days of the issue date; and
• tax remains payable by the due date while an objection is being considered.

The notice may offer payment in full with a discount or an interest-free payment plan within the stated period. Follow the dates on the actual notice because a reassessment can have different timing.

Documents to keep together

• the complete notice and any reassessment;
• purchase and sale settlement records;
• title and ownership records;
• principal residence or other exemption evidence;
• Valuer General land value notices;
• trust deed or company details where relevant;
• Land Tax Online confirmations; and
• copies of correspondence and lodged objections.

Do not upload unrelated bank, tax file or health information. Revenue NSW specifically warns against including sensitive information that is not required for tax administration.

Common mistakes

• Entering the property's market price in a land tax calculator.
• Checking one property while ignoring aggregation with other NSW land.
• Treating a joint ownership assessment and an individual assessment as duplicates without checking the secondary deduction.
• Assuming a principal residence exemption applies automatically after moving out or renting the property.
• Waiting for an objection decision before paying the assessed amount.
• Missing the 60-day limit while informally asking questions.

Sources

• Revenue NSW: understand your land tax assessment notice, updated 11 June 2026 and checked 20 July 2026.
• Revenue NSW: lodge a land tax objection, updated 16 October 2025 and checked 20 July 2026.
• Revenue NSW: land tax thresholds and rates, checked 20 July 2026.

General information disclaimer

This guide provides general information only. It is not tax advice, legal advice, a valuation, an objection or an official assessment. NSW land tax depends on ownership, land, exemptions, surcharge status, trusts, valuations and the assessment year. Check the notice and current Revenue NSW guidance, and speak with a registered tax adviser or lawyer where appropriate.