Plenty of guides still quote the Queensland first home owner grant at $15,000 — the figure that applied to contracts signed before 20 November 2023. Others fold the grant together with the transfer duty concession, even though these are two separate programs with separate rules. This article sets out the current amount and the eligibility criteria as published by the Queensland Revenue Office, checked on 3 September 2026.
The short answer: the first home owner grant in Queensland is $30,000 for eligible first home buyers, available on a brand new home valued under $750,000 including the land. The applicant must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident (or apply with someone who is), be at least 18, not have received the grant before, and not have owned a home they lived in.
What the grant is, and how much it is
The first home owner grant is a payment from the Queensland Government to first home buyers, to help with the cost of buying or building a brand new home.
| When the contract was signed | Grant amount |
|---|---|
| On or after 20 November 2023 | $30,000 |
| Before 20 November 2023 | $15,000 |
For owner–builders the trigger is the date the foundations are laid rather than a contract date: $30,000 where foundations are laid on or after 20 November 2023, $15,000 where they were laid before that date.
How the grant differs from the first home transfer duty concession
This is the most common confusion, and it produces two opposite budgeting errors.
| First home owner grant | First home transfer duty concession | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Money you receive | Tax you do not have to pay |
| Applies to | New homes only | Both new and established homes |
| Mechanism | A payment made to the buyer | A lower transfer duty assessment |
| Conditions | Its own, under the grant rules | Its own, under the transfer duty rules |
They are separate benefits with separate requirements, and QRO says so directly. An eligible buyer of a new home can receive the grant and claim the transfer duty concession at the same time — the mechanics of the concession are set out in our guide to transfer duty in Queensland. A buyer of an established home is outside the grant altogether but may still be assessed for a duty concession.
The grant is also separate from the home guarantee schemes administered by Housing Australia; qualifying for one of those does not affect grant eligibility.
The eligibility criteria
You, any co-applicant, and each of your spouses need to meet all of the following.
The home and land must be under $750,000
The value of the new home must be less than $750,000, including the land and any contract variations. At $750,000 or more, the application is outside the scheme.
For house and land buyers this is the number to watch: land price, plus the build, plus upgrades and variations, reaches the threshold more easily than people expect.
It has to be a new home
The grant applies to a new home — one that has not been previously occupied or sold as a place of residence — or to a substantially renovated home as QRO defines it. There are no home owner grants for established homes.
One case catches people out: an apartment bought from someone who purchased off the plan but never moved in. Nobody has lived in it, but it has already been sold as a place of residence once, so it falls outside the scheme.
Citizenship or permanent residency
You must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident, or apply with someone who is.
QRO gives the example itself: if you are not a permanent resident but your spouse is an Australian citizen, you may be eligible for the grant provided the other requirements are met. A permanent resident holds a permanent visa, or is a New Zealand citizen with a special category visa as defined by the Migration Act 1958 (Cwlth) — and a New Zealand citizen with a special category visa must hold a current New Zealand passport.
The same condition means a foreign buyer is outside the grant. Foreign buyers face a different set of charges instead, set out in our guide to foreign buyer duty and the land tax surcharge.
No previous grant, and no home you have lived in
- You and your spouse must not have previously received a first home owner grant in any state or territory of Australia. If a grant was received and later paid back together with any penalty, you may be able to reapply.
- You and your spouse must not have owned residential property in Australia on or after 1 July 2000 that you lived in, and must not have owned residential property before 1 July 2000 whether you lived in it or not.
If you have held an interest in residential property since 1 July 2000 that has been used solely for investment, you may still be eligible for the new home that will be the first one you live in. QRO asks for evidence covering the entire period of ownership: tenancy or lease agreements, electricity or phone accounts, and tax return details declaring the rental property.
The residence requirement
You must move into the new home as your principal place of residence within 1 year of the completed transaction, and live there continuously for 6 months.
Two details are worth knowing, and QRO states both. You can rent the home out before moving in and keep the grant — but you may lose the first home duty concession by doing so. And you can rent out one or more rooms during the 6-month residency period and keep the grant, as long as the arrangement does not affect your use of the home; where rooms were rented out before 10 September 2024, eligibility for the first home concession or the first home vacant land concession may be affected. The two programs set their own residence rules and they do not line up.
The remaining conditions
- You are a natural person aged 18 or older — not a company or a trust.
- Your income has no bearing on your eligibility for the grant.
- You are outside the scheme if you enter into an arrangement with the sole purpose of obtaining the grant rather than acquiring a home, or if you buy or build the home with financial help from a related person in the circumstances QRO describes.
- In some exceptional circumstances the Commissioner of State Revenue may use discretion in relation to some eligibility criteria — for example where an applicant is under 18, or where an application is made on behalf of a legal disability trust by a guardian.
How a house and land package is assessed
A house and land package usually runs on two separate contracts: a land contract with the developer, and a building contract with the builder. That combination is not assessed as “buying a new home”, because that category is for a contract where the seller supplies both the land and the completed home at their own cost.
Instead the application is assessed as a contract to build, on these conditions:
- The building contract is a comprehensive home building contract — QRO defines this as a contract under which a builder undertakes to build a home from the start of the building work (laying of foundations) through to the point where the home is ready for occupation.
- You hold a relevant interest in the land the home is built on.
- The total of the land value and the building contract is still under $750,000.
If the building contract excludes something needed for the home to be certified as ready for occupation, it is no longer a comprehensive contract — the application may then be assessed under the owner–builder category instead.
If this is the product you are looking at, our house and land packages in Brisbane page shows how the two contracts are put together, and the current Brisbane projects show what is available against the threshold.
Five things people get wrong
| The assumption | What the rules actually say |
|---|---|
| “The grant is $15,000” | $15,000 applies to contracts signed before 20 November 2023. From that date it is $30,000 |
| “The grant and the stamp duty discount are the same thing” | Two separate programs with separate rules. The grant is money received; the concession is duty not charged |
| “An established home still counts if it is my first” | The grant is for new homes. An established home is outside the grant, but may still attract a duty concession |
| “I earn too much to qualify” | Income has no bearing on eligibility for the grant |
| “I have to move in straight away” | You have 1 year from the completed transaction to move in, then 6 continuous months of residence |
| “A house and land package counts as buying a new home” | With two separate contracts it is assessed as a contract to build, which has its own conditions |
The eligible transaction types
| Transaction | What it covers |
|---|---|
| New home | A home not previously occupied or sold as a place of residence |
| Off-the-plan purchase | A single contract for a new home together with the interest in the land, where the lot is still a proposed lot |
| Contract to build | A comprehensive building contract, from laying the foundations to the point the home is ready for occupation |
| Owner–builder | You build it yourself, or engage trades without a single builder taking responsibility for the whole job |
| Substantially renovated home | A home renovated to the extent that most of the building was removed or replaced, not occupied since, where the sale meets the GST conditions |
QRO also lists homes moved from one site to another (including kit homes and modular homes) and homes in a manufactured home park, provided the general conditions are met.
There is a further case: building a separate home for yourself on land belonging to a relative — a granny flat or a small dwelling, for instance — with the building contract in your name and the total value under $750,000. For that case QRO defines the relative narrowly: a parent, grandparent, child, stepchild or sibling of the applicant, or the spouse of one of those. Note this is narrower than the general “related person” definition used elsewhere in the grant rules, which also includes an uncle or aunt.
Frequently asked questions
How much is the first home owner grant in Queensland?
$30,000 for contracts signed on or after 20 November 2023. Contracts signed before that date attract $15,000. For owner–builders the date the foundations are laid is used instead of a contract date.
Can I get the grant on an established home?
No. The grant applies to a new home, or to a substantially renovated home as QRO defines it. A buyer of an established home may still be assessed for the first home transfer duty concession.
Can a permanent resident receive the grant?
Yes, if the other requirements are met. The criterion is that you are an Australian citizen or permanent resident, or apply with someone who is. A permanent resident holds a permanent visa, or is a New Zealand citizen with a special category visa and a current New Zealand passport.
Does a house and land package qualify?
It can, but usually as a contract to build rather than as buying a new home, because there are two separate contracts. That requires a comprehensive building contract, a relevant interest in the land, and a combined value under $750,000. How the two contracts fit together is explained in house and land packages in Brisbane, and the builder side is worth checking with a QBCC licence check.
Next steps
For a first home buyer in Queensland, $30,000 is worth planning around — but it is tied to two hard constraints: the home has to be new, and the total value has to stay under $750,000. On a house and land package those two constraints shape how you choose the lot and how you configure the build, right from the start.
Compare the current Brisbane projects against that threshold, or book a consultation to go through the conditions against your own situation.
Sources
- QRO — First home owner grant
- Queensland Government — Eligibility for the first home owner grant
- QRO — Differences between the first home concessions and the first home owner grant
Note: the amounts, thresholds and conditions in this article were checked against the QRO pages on 3 September 2026. Conditions and amounts can change — check with the Queensland Revenue Office and take advice from a solicitor or an accountant before making a decision.
This article is general information only and does not take into account your personal circumstances, financial situation or objectives. It is not legal, financial or taxation advice. You should obtain independent professional advice before making any property decision.
