The Duties Act 2008 (WA) applies to various types of transactions, including transfers of real property between couples, and has the effect of raising a charge for payment to the government, based on the value of the transfer.
In some circumstances, a transfer of real property between a couple may be eligible for reduced duty. Those circumstances are as follows:
- Duty is not chargeable where a home is held in the name of one spouse, and the spouses wish to hold the property jointly, either as joint tenants, or tenants in common in equal shares. The home must be the couples “ordinary place of residence” and the couple must be married or have lived in a de facto relationship for two years;
- Nominal duty applies to transfers of real property when a couple separates, if the transfer of property is from one spouse to the other, or from both spouses to one, and the transfer is pursuant to an Order under the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) or the Family Court Act 1997 (WA) or pursuant to a Binding Financial Agreement made under either of those Acts.
In the first example above, an application must be made on the appropriate form for the exemption to apply. In the second example, a copy of the Order or Agreement must be tendered with the Transfer form