NSW Premier to stonewall Queensland’s plan to hike land tax by refusing to share data

Dominic Perrottet is stonewalling his Queensland counterpart’s attempts to tax NSW residents more on their property, but their Treasurer claims they don’t need his help to “close the loop”.

The Perrottet government will refuse to hand over data to Queensland to help Annastacia Palaszczuk slug NSW residents thousands if they own property in the Sunshine State.

The Daily Telegraph can reveal that Premier Dominic Perrottet is set to stonewall his Queensland counterpart’s attempts to reach over the border and tax potentially thousands NSW residents more, by refusing to share crucial data required to implement a controversial land tax policy.

It can also be revealed that the Queensland government has not yet made any data sharing requests with Revenue NSW in order to get access to the data they need to implement the tax.

“We will reject any request from Queensland Labor to help facilitate this lazy policy,” Premier Dominic Perrottet said.

“Labor don’t support first home buyers in NSW and now the Queensland Labor Government is reaching across the border to tax NSW properties and hard working residents.”

Dominic Perrottet will not co-operate with the Queensland government’s tax plans. Picture: NCA Newswire/ Gaye Gerard

Queensland treasurer Cameron Dick hit back at the NSW Premier’s plan, claiming his state doesn’t require the co-operation of counterparts to enact the tax changes and will instead strip data from publicly available registries and valuations.

“If (Mr Perrottet) doesn’t want to help us, that’s fine,” Mr Dick told local media. “We don’t need him to close this loop.”

“Dom Perrottet has got some hide lecturing us about land tax. This is a bloke who wants to put an annual land tax on every home in NSW forever.”

Under controversial tax reforms set to come into effect from June next year, NSW residents would face a massive hike in the amount of land tax they pay to the Queensland government if they have investment properties in both states.

On one estimate, thousands of NSW residents would cop Queensland tax hikes in turn worth thousands of dollars.

The tax changes mean that from next year, Queensland residents will have their land tax calculated according to the value of property they own across Australia.

Queensland Treasurer Cameron Dick addressed the matter at a press conference on Monday. Picture: NewsWire / Sarah Marshall

Anyone with investment properties in multiple states including Queensland would be impacted. If the total value of eligible property across Australia exceeds the $600,000 threshold, they will be charged.

For example, a retiree who owns $599,999 worth of property in Queensland and an investment property worth $400,000 in NSW would not currently pay land tax in either state as both properties are below relevant thresholds.

However under Ms Palaszczuk’s changes that retiree would have to pay almost $2700 in land tax each year in Queensland.

A Queensland government fact sheet states that land owners will need to “declare” interstate holdings.

It is believed the scheme will rely on other jurisdictions – like NSW – to share taxpayers’ data with Queensland so that the new tax can be enforced.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk first mooted the plans last year. Picture: Tara Croser.

The Telegraph asked Ms Palaszczuk’s office how the policy would be implemented if they did not get the data required from other states.

“This is an example of crazy and lazy ideas that are in Labor’s DNA – higher taxes and taking more of your money to prop up their economic mismanagement,” Mr Perrottet said.

While owners won’t be charged land tax on interstate properties, the amount of tax imposed will be based on the Queensland proportion of the land someone owns across the entire country.

Someone’s primary home is exempt from land tax, but Queensland government information states that a property owner would need to “apply” to have their home “excluded” from the land tax calculation.

Finance Minister Damien Tudehope said NSW Labor Leader Chris Minns has questions to answer over whether he would implement a similar scheme.

“A sneaky new tax like this on retirees as well as mum and dad investors is exactly the sort of thing Chris Minns would sign up for,” he said.

However, NSW Labor’s Treasury spokesman Daniel Mookhey said the party would not change land tax rules if they win government.

“We’re busy opposing Dominic Perrottet’s radical plan to introduce a permanent land tax on family homes, starting with first home buyers and then pensioners,” Mr Mookhey said.

“We have no plans to change NSW’s rules about eligibility for land tax.”

NSW Property Council Acting Executive Director Adina Cirson said the organisation had raised concerns about the new tax since December and has sought legal advice about whether it is constitutional.