Frequently asked questions
These FAQs outline important information you need to know about the Queensland Building Boost Grant.
When did the Building Boost finish?
30 April 2012.
How long is the Building Boost Grant available for?
The Building Boost Grant ran from 1 August 2011 to 30 April 2012. The contract to buy or build a new property must have been entered into between those dates. For owner builders, laying of the foundations must start between those dates.
Applications for the grant must be lodged with the Queensland Office of State Revenue by 31 August 2012. However, if your transaction is not completed by that date, you must lodge a notice of intention to apply (preliminary notice) by 31 August 2012 to ensure your later application may be considered.
If a First Home Owner Grant is paid or payable to the applicant in relation to the acquisition of the home, the application for the Building Boost Grant may be lodged no later than the application for the First Home Owner Grant.
What are the Building Boost Timeframes?
You can find out what the relevant dates are by viewing the relevant dates page.
What is a Notice of intention to claim?
By lodging the Notice of intention to claim form (PDF 240 K), you are advising the Commissioner that you have an eligible transaction but are unable to lodge a complete application on or before 31 August 2012.
Once the eligible transaction is complete and you are able to provide all of the required supporting documentation, please submit the documentation with a completed application form.
What was required by 30 April 2012 to be eligible for the QBBG under an owner builder arrangement?
Laying of the foundations i.e. footings.
NOTE: The timing of the laying of foundations is subject to local government and other approvals. Written acknowledgement by the building certifier that the footings have been passed is required to satisfy that the work has commenced within the eligibility period.
A Building Boost Grant is not payable at the time of foundation laying - the construction must be completed and a final inspection certificate issued within the appropriate time limits, before lodging an grant application direct to OSR.
If you are unable to lodge a completed application form, with all required supporting documentation, before 31 August 2012, you must lodge a Notice of Intention to Claim form by this date.
What is required to verify the start date of the laying of foundations?
Written acknowledgement by the building certifier that the footings have been passed.
What is the Queensland Building Boost Grant?
The Queensland Building Boost Grant was a grant of $10,000 for a person or corporation buying or building a new home in Queensland for a value less than $600,000 (house and land). The grant is to assist housing affordability, increase housing supply and support employment in the housing construction industry, Queensland's third-largest job generating industry.
How much is the Building Boost Grant?
The amount of the grant is the lesser of the consideration for the transaction or $10,000. For working out the amount of the consideration, the amount must be reduced for any of the following that the applicant for the grant has received or is entitled to receive:
- any First Home Owner Grant payable for the home
- the amount of the Commonwealth’s contribution to a First Home Saver Account used or to be used for the transaction
- the total value of any financial incentive for 2011-12 under the National Rental Affordability Scheme for the transaction
- any reimbursement of the consideration paid or payable to the applicant such as an insurance payout to build the home
- any amount paid or payable under another financial assistance scheme prescribed under a regulation.
However, the amount of the consideration will not be reduced by the amount of any assistance that the Commonwealth or State has given the applicant to mitigate the effects of a natural disaster.
When is the Building Boost Grant payable?
The date the grant is paid depends on whether you are building or buying, and if you are applying through an approved lodger or the Office of State Revenue (OSR).
NOTE: If you are applying directly with OSR, the Building Boost Grant can not be paid until:
- the transaction is complete (purchase or construction)
- the application form is completed in full and
- all required supporting documentation is available and lodged with the application.
If you are unable to lodge a completed application form with all required supporting documentation before 31 August 2012, you must lodge a Notice of Intention to Claim form by this date.
The following table details the various scenarios.
|
Type of transaction |
Applying through |
Payment of grant |
|---|---|---|
|
Purchase of a new home |
Approved lodger |
At date of settlement. The grant is paid by the approved lodger. |
|
OSR |
Within 10 working days of receiving a complete application and all supporting documentation. The grant is paid by OSR to your nominated bank account. |
|
|
Contract to build a new home |
Approved lodger |
On date of first progress payment. The grant is paid by the approved lodger as long as the payment is more than the grant payable. This does not include the deposit on the contract to build. |
|
OSR |
Within 10 working days of receiving a complete application and all supporting documentation. The grant is paid by OSR to your nominated bank account. |
|
|
Owner builder or purchase of a new home off the plan |
OSR |
Within 10 working days of receiving a complete application and all required supporting documentation. The grant is paid by OSR to your nominated bank account. |
How do I apply for the grant?
To apply for the Building Boost Grant, read the how to apply page of this website.
If you are a first home buyer also applying for the First Home Owner Grant you are required to submit separate applications for the Building Boost Grant and the First Home Owner Grant. Each grant has separate eligibility criteria.
Your eligibility is determined after you have completed the application forms containing full details of eligibility criteria. The Office of State Revenue will then make a decision based on the information in your application and other relevant information.
Who can obtain the Building Boost Grant?
The grant is open to home buyers and investors. Corporations and trustees (including superannuation funds) may also apply.
The grant is not payable for a building contract, or to an owner builder, if the applicant carries on the business of building homes and the home was constructed for sale in the course of that business.
Commonwealth, state, territory and local governments, government owned corporations, government agencies, offices, authorities and public authorities are not eligible for the grant.
An individual applicant must be 18 years of age or over and a citizen or permanent resident of Australia.
A corporation must be substantially Australian owned to be eligible. Similarly, if the applicant is a trustee, the trust must be substantially Australian owned.
A corporation is substantially Australian owned if 75% by value of all the shares in the corporation are either:
- quoted on the ASX (an ASX listed entity) or
- ultimately owned by one or more citizens or permanent residents of Australia or
- an ASX listed entity is the ultimate parent of the corporation.
A trust is substantially Australian owned if 75% by value of all the trust interests in the trust are either:
- quoted on the ASX (also an ASX listed entity) or
- ultimately owned by one or more citizens or permanent residents of Australia or
- an ASX listed entity is the ultimate parent of the trust.
Ultimately owned means held, other than as a trustee, either directly as a shareholder or beneficiary, or indirectly through one or more interposed corporations or trusts.
An ASX listed entity is the ultimate parent of a corporation or a trust (the subsidiary) if the entity owns 75% by value of all the shares in the subsidiary either directly, as a shareholder or beneficiary, or indirectly through one or more interposed corporations or trusts.
A trust interest in a trust is a person’s interest as a beneficiary of the trust, whether vested or contingent. For a discretionary trust, every beneficiary has a trust interest and all trust interests are of equal value. For a superannuation fund, every member of the fund has a trust interest in the fund.
If it is difficult or impracticable to properly determine whether a corporation or a trustee is an eligible applicant because of a complexity or uncertainty or for another reason, the Commissioner may decide the applicant’s eligibility based on all the available information. The Commissioner also has the power to decide an applicant is not substantially Australian owned if he considers that an ineligible individual may significantly benefit financially from the applicant.
What homes are eligible?
To qualify for the Queensland Building Boost Grant, you must be buying or building a new home.
A ‘new’ home is a home that:
- has not been previously occupied or transferred as a place of residence or
- is a substantially renovated home.
A home is a substantially renovated home if:
- the home is the subject of a contract for the purchase of the home and
- the sale of the home under the contract is, under the A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 (Cwlth), a taxable supply as a sale of new residential premises as defined under section 40-75(1)(b) of that Act and
- the home, as renovated, has not been previously occupied or transferred as a place of residence.
New homes include new house builds, house and land packages, units, duplexes, townhouses and other detached dwellings.
Manufactured homes under the Manufactured Homes (Residential Parks) Act 2003 are also eligible.
An applicant can also obtain the grant for a new home constructed on a relative’s land such as a detached granny flat or a new home on a farm.
A contract for the purchase of a new home on a proposed lot on an unregistered plan of subdivision of land (off the plan purchases) may qualify for the grant if all other conditions are met.
Can I get the Grant for a substantially renovated house?
A person who substantially renovates their home and lives in it after the renovation is completed cannot obtain the grant because they have not satisfied the requirements of the definition of a substantially renovated home.
A purchaser of a substantially renovated home may be eligible for the grant if the home qualifies as a new home and all other eligibility criteria are satisfied. Substantially renovated homes qualify as a new home when bought from a vendor who is registered for GST and who sells the home in the course of their enterprise before it’s occupied after the renovation is complete.
Can the Building Boost Grant be obtained more than once for the same land or home?
No. The grant is only payable once for the same relevant interest in land. The grant is also only payable once for a particular new home.
Are there value limits?
Yes. To receive the Building Boost Grant, the home and land value must be less than $600,000. In all cases the consideration must also be less than $600,000. The following apply for working this out.
Contract to purchase a new home (already built)
The total of the following must be less than $600,000:
- the unencumbered value of the home
- the unencumbered value of the relevant interest in the residential land when the contract is made.
Contract to purchase a new home (to be built by the vendor)
The total of the following must be less than $600,000:
- the unencumbered value of the home
- the unencumbered value of the relevant interest in the residential land when the contract is made.
Contract to have a home built
The total of the following must be less than $600,000:
- the consideration for the building work
- the unencumbered value of the relevant interest in the residential land when the contract is made.
Owner builders
The sum of the following must be less than $600,000:
- the actual costs to the owner of carrying out the work, excluding any allowance for the owner's own labour
- the unencumbered value of the relevant interest in the residential land when the laying of the foundations starts.
Contract to purchase a new home off the plan
Both of the following must be less than $600,000:
- the unencumbered value of the home
- the unencumbered value of the relevant interest in the residential land when the contract is made.
For example, if land was purchased in 2008 for $150,000 and is worth $200,000 on 1 September 2011 when a building contract is made or when foundations are laid by an owner builder, the land is valued at $200,000 for determining eligibility for the grant.
NOTE: where the grant is paid before the transaction is completed and on completion of the relevant transaction, the unencumbered value of the home results in it not being an eligible transaction (value exceeds $600,000) the applicant must give the commissioner notice of ineligibility and repay the amount of the grant.
How is land value determined?
Evidence of the value of the land can be provided by an independent third party valuation, market appraisal by a local real estate agent or, in some cases the site valuation issued for the land by the Valuer-General under the Valuation of Land Act 2010 may be all that is required.
Are there special conditions about arrangements affecting the value of a home (including the land)?
Yes. The value of a home is determined without regard to the following:
- any encumbrance to which the property is subject
- any arrangement between parties not dealing at arms length resulting in the reduction of the value of the property
- any arrangement for which a significant purpose of any party to the arrangement was, in the opinion of the Commissioner of State Revenue, to reduce the value of the property.
The unencumbered value of property held on trust must be determined without regard to the liabilities of the trust, including the liability to indemnify the trustee.
Do replacement contracts and options qualify?
No. The Building Boost Grant applies to a legally binding contract to purchase or build a new home entered into on or after 1 August 2011. Contracts made before that date are ineligible. The grant will not be payable if there is a legally binding arrangement made on or after 14 June 2011 and before 1 August 2011 having the sole or main purpose of deferring the making of a contract until on or after 1 August 2011 so that the grant will apply, including the following:
- A contract made on or after 1 August 2011 which replaces a contract made before that date and cancelled on or after 14 June 2011.
- An option granted on or after 14 June 2011 to enter into a contract to purchase or build a new home and exercised on or after 1 August 2011.
A preliminary agreement, such as that issued by the Master Builders’ Association (form PA-H 10/09) and the Housing Industry Association, authorises preparatory work to be carried out before a comprehensive home building contract is made by the parties. These agreements usually do not bind the parties to enter into a comprehensive home building contract or grant an option to require a comprehensive home building contract to be made. A preliminary agreement of this kind made before 1 August 2011 will not prevent a comprehensive home building contract made on or after that date from being eligible for the grant.
Are there occupancy requirements?
First home buyers
Yes. To be eligible for the First Home Owner Grant you must move into the property within 12 months and live in it for a period of at least 6 months as your principal place of residence. If you satisfy the First Home Owner Grant occupancy requirement above you will be taken to have satisfied the occupancy requirement for the Building Boost Grant.
Where the occupancy requirement is not satisfied, the applicant must notify the Commissioner of State Revenue and repay the grant within 14 days.
Existing home owners, builders and investors
Yes, the home must be occupied as a place of residence for at least three months in the first year of your ownership of the home. The home may be occupied by you, a family member or someone else, or rented to a tenant.
A person, such as a builder, who builds a home and sells it before it is occupied cannot claim the grant. The purchaser may be eligible however.
Where the occupancy requirement is not satisfied, the applicant must notify the Commissioner of State Revenue and repay the grant within 14 days.
If my home has been destroyed in a natural disaster and I intend to build a new house, can I get the QBBG?
As it will be the construction of a completely new home, which has not been previously occupied or sold as a place of residence, this would constitute a comprehensive home building contract to have a new home built on land. Please note that the contract would need to be between the owner of the land and the builder to qualify for the QBBG and that there are construction time limits for contracts to build new homes. The other matter to note is that the consideration for the contract will be reduced by the amount of any financial assistance, eg, insurance payments, the owner receives to build the new home. This could result in the QBBG amount being reduced or extinguished. For example, if the consideration for the contract to build the new house was $220,000 and the owner received an insurance payment for the destroyed house of $220,000, then the amount of the QBBG the owner could receive would be nil. If the insurance payment was $215,000 then the QBBG amount would be $5,000 because that is the amount the owner is contributing to the construction of the new home. The amount of any assistance that the Commonwealth or State has given the applicant to mitigate the effects of a natural disaster does not reduce the consideration for the contract and therefore does not affect the amount of the grant.
How many times can I obtain the Building Boost Grant?
The grant can be obtained for each new home purchased or built where the grant conditions are met.
However, if an applicant or a related person of the applicant has applied for, had approved or been paid four or more grants the Commissioner of State Revenue will only pay the grant if satisfied, having regard to the relevant factors, that the transaction has been entered into for a purpose that advances the purpose of the grant, is not an artificial, blatant or contrived arrangement and has not been entered into for the sole or main purpose of obtaining the grant. The relevant factors are set out in section 23(4) of the Building Boost Grant legislation.
A person may apply to the Commissioner for a private ruling on whether a transaction satisfies the requirements of the legislation. You must set out all relevant facts, including why you consider that the transaction should be eligible for the grant.
How does strata titling affect a Building Boost Grant application?
Strata titling can only occur after a building has been completed. At that time, a plan of subdivision for the building is lodged with the Department of Environment and Resource Management (DERM) and the titles are created by DERM for each unit and the common areas. The grant cannot be paid until the building is completed. Once the building has been completed and strata titles issued by DERM, it is possible for the grant to be paid in respect of each unit, subject to the other eligibility criteria being met.
If the units are built and the grant is claimed before strata titling occurs, only 1 grant can be paid (if eligible). If the building is then strata titled, no further grant will be payable (even though the units now have new titles) because there has been a previous claim paid for the home (building).
More questions about the Building Boost Grant
These FAQs provide additional details about the Queensland Building Boost Grant.
What is a home?
A building is a home if:
- it is designed, or approved by a local government, for human habitation by single family unit
- it is suitable for use, and lawfully able to be used, as a place of residence
- it is used or intended to be used mainly for residential purposes
- it is fixed to land
- the land on which it is fixed is used or intended to be used mainly for residential purposes or for primary production and for residential purposes.
If the First Home Owner Grant is paid or payable for the home, it will be taken to be a home for the purposes of the Building Boost Grant.
Despite it not being used for residential purposes, a home that is used as a display home may also be a home for the purpose of the Building Boost Grant.
What transactions qualify for the Building Boost Grant?
Each of the following transactions may attract the grant.
- A written legally binding home purchase contract made between 1 August 2011 and 30 April 2012 (both inclusive) for the purchase of a new home in Queensland.
- A written comprehensive home building contract made between 1 August 2011 and 30 April 2012 (both inclusive) by the owner of land in Queensland, or a person who will on completion of the contract, be the owner of land in Queensland, to have a new home built on the land. All owners of the land must enter into the contract.
- The building of a home in Queensland by an owner builder if the building work starts between 1 August 2011 and 30 April 2012 (both inclusive). For owner builders, the start of building work is usually the laying of foundations for the home.
The applicant must usually own freehold title to the land. However, some other interests in land are also eligible.
Can I obtain the Building Boost Grant along with the First Home Owner Grant and the First Home concession?
Yes. If the new home being purchased is your first home and you meet all eligibility criteria, you may be entitled to the $10,000 Queensland Building Boost Grant and the $7,000 First Home Owner Grant. First home buyers may also be eligible for a transfer duty home concession.
Read more on the First Home Owner Grant (OSR website) and First Home Owner duty rate concessions (OSR website).
Can I obtain the grant for more than one new home on the same land if I subdivide the land?
The grant is available only for one new home per relevant interest in land. However, if the grant is obtained for a new home and the land is then subdivided, the grant is available if another new home is built on a vacant lot in the subdivision if all other eligibility conditions are met. The lot must not be the lot on which the first new home was built.
For example, assume that (X) purchases lot 100, a large parcel of land on which a new home (A) is erected. X obtains the grant for the purchase of home A. X then subdivides lot 100 into lots 1, 2 and 3. Home A is on lot 1. X then enters into comprehensive home building contracts to construct two new homes, one on lot 1 (home B) and one on lot 2 (home C). X cannot obtain the grant for home B as the grant has already been paid for home A on that lot. X will be eligible for the grant for home C on lot 2 if other eligibility conditions are met.
What value do I use when building a second home on my land?
| Transaction | Value of land |
|---|---|
| Building a second house on the same parcel of land that you own | Full value of the land, excluding the existing home, providing the grant has not been previously paid on the land |
| Building a second detached dwelling (e.g. granny flat) on the land you own | Full value of the land, excluding the existing home, providing the grant has not been previously paid on the land |
| Building a detached dwelling (e.g. granny flat) on a relative's land, where the relative has granted a right to occupy their land | Value of the relevant interest of the part of the land on which the structure will be built, including surrounding area of land which is being used exclusively for this residence |
| Building a second house on land used mainly for primary production and for residential purposes | Value of the relevant interest of the part of the land, excluding the home being built, including surrounding area of land which is being used exclusively for this residence |
Are contracts between related persons eligible?
No. The grant is not payable if the transaction is a contract to buy or build a new home made between related persons unless the applicant is eligible for the First Home Owner Grant for the home.
However, if the parties are related because they are members of the same family or one of the parties is a family company, family trust or family partnership in relation to the other person and the transaction is genuine and commercially realistic, you should contact the Commissioner of State Revenue as ex gratia assistance may be available.
The following are related persons:
- for individuals - they are members of the same family
- for an individual and a corporation - the person or a member of the person's family is a majority shareholder, director or secretary of the corporation or a related body corporate of the corporation, or has an interest of 50% or more in it
- for an individual and a trustee - the person or a related person is a beneficiary of the trust
- for corporations - they are related bodies corporate
- for a corporation and a trustee - the corporation or a related person is a beneficiary of the trust
- for trustees:
- there is a person who is a beneficiary of both trusts or
- a person is beneficiary of 1 trust and a related person is a beneficiary of the other trust.
If I'm building a new home or buying off the plan, are there construction time limits?
Yes.
- For a comprehensive home building contract, building work must commence within 26 weeks of the date of the contract and be completed within 18 months of the work starting.
- For an owner builder, building work must be completed within 18 months of the work starting.
- For a contract to purchase a new home off the plan, the building work must start on or before the 30 April 2013 and be completed on or before 30 April 2015.
The Commissioner has power to extend the start date for building contracts and completion date for each of the above categories.
Are contracts to purchase a home which do not attract transfer duty eligible?
The grant is not payable if the transaction is a contract to buy a new home for which transfer duty is not imposed or payable under the Duties Act 2001 unless this is because one of the following applies:
- the first home transfer duty concession (section 92 Duties Act 2001)
- the transfer duty exemption for charitable institutions (section 414 Duties Act 2001)
- the transfer duty exemption for manufactured homes (section 138 Duties Act 2001).
What types of land title are required for the grant?
The applicant must hold one of the following types of land title to be eligible for the grant:
- owner of freehold title
- an interest as purchaser under a contract for the purchase from the Commonwealth or the State, or any Commonwealth or State instrumentality or authority, of freehold title to the land by instalments
- an interest as purchaser under an instalment contract under the Property Law Act 1974, part 6, division 4, for the purchase of freehold title to the land
- a right, given by a relative, to occupy a new home that is a detached dwelling built or to be built on land that is a part of land owned by the relative under a contract entered into by the person or by an owner builder
- an interest under the Manufactured Homes (Residential Parks) Act 2003 as a manufactured home owner in a site agreement for a site on which a manufactured home is positioned
- a leasehold interest in the land granted by the Commonwealth or the State for which building a home is permitted under the terms of the lease or Act under which the lease is granted
- a sublessee’s interest under a lease mentioned above that is for a term of at least 10 years
- an interest in a lease granted under the Aboriginal Land Act 1991, section 119(1)(a) or the Torres Strait Islander Land Act 1991, section 84(1)(a)
- another interest declared by regulation to be a relevant interest.
Freehold title means an estate in fee simple in the land.
If there are two or more owners, each of the owners must be an applicant.
Does the Building Boost Grant apply if I buy only a part interest in a new home?
No. The grant is not payable for a contract to purchase a partial interest in a new home.
Can I enter into a home building contract where construction has already commenced?
No. Building work must start within 26 weeks after the transaction commencement date, being the date the building contract is signed.
However, if you are purchasing the land separately from the developer and the builder has commenced work on this land prior to signing a home building contract with you and the work under your contract is for the building work from start to finish, you should contact the Commissioner of State Revenue as ex gratia assistance may be available.
What happens if I don’t meet the conditions of or incorrectly claim the Building Boost Grant?
Your application will usually not be approved if the conditions of the grant are not met. However, in some cases, the grant may be paid before all conditions are met, such as the occupancy requirement. If the grant is paid and conditions are not subsequently met, you must notify the Commissioner of State Revenue as required and repay the grant in full in that time. If you receive the grant and subsequently the value of the home on completion of the transaction exceeds $600.000 you have 28 days to notify the Commissioner and repay the grant. If you do not meet the occupancy requirement you must notify the Commissioner within 14 days and repay the grant. If you receive the grant subject to conditions to be satisfied and fail to meet the conditions you must notify the Commissioner and repay the grant within the period stated in the conditions.
If you do not repay the grant as required by the legislation, you may be subject to penalties and interest charges.
Are arrangements circumventing grant limitations or affecting eligibility effective?
No. The grant is not payable if the transaction forms part of an arrangement to circumvent limitations on, or requirements affecting, eligibility or entitlement to the grant.
What if I receive other government financial assistance for buying or building the home?
The Building Boost Grant is not payable if you benefit from another Commonwealth or State government assistance scheme for the home unless the scheme is one of the following:
- the First Home Owner Grant
- Queensland’s transfer duty first home concession
- Commonwealth Government contributions to a First Home Saver Account for the home
- incentives under the National Rental Affordability Scheme
- a loan on commercial terms
- assistance to mitigate the effects of a natural disaster
- other assistance under a financial assistance scheme prescribed under a regulation.
Is the Building Boost Grant payable to builders and developers?
No. The grant is not payable for a building contract, or to an owner builder, if the applicant carries on the business of building homes and the home was constructed for sale in the course of that business. However, the purchaser of the home may be eligible for the grant.
If I purchase a display home and lease it back to the developer as a display home, am I entitled to the QBBG?
No. The legislation recognises that purchasing a display home satisfies the definition of a home, however if you lease the home back to the developer or builder, you cannot satisfy the occupancy requirements.
If you are considering this arrangement, you should contact the Commissioner of State Revenue as ex gratia assistance may be available.
Is the Boost different to the First Home Owner Grant?
Yes. The First Home Owner Grant is a grant of $7,000 for any person 18 years of age or over who is a citizen or permanent resident of Australia buying their first home in Queensland as their principal place of residence for a value of less than $750,000 (house and land).
Does GST apply in relation to the Queensland Building Boost Grant?
Queensland Treasury has obtained a private ruling from the Australian Taxation Office confirming the Queensland Building Boost Grant is not consideration for a supply made by an applicant to the Queensland Government. As this ruling can only be relied on by the party to whom it was issued, that is, Queensland Treasury, an applicant registered for GST purposes should seek their own GST advice in relation to the Queensland Building Boost Grant.