ACT Revenue Office demands hundreds of Canberrans repay tens of thousands of dollars in home stamp duty concessionsABy Adam ShirleyStatelineTopic:Housing Policy15m ago15 minutes agoMon 12 May 2025 at 10:19pmMarian's son bought a unit with the help of the ACT government's stamp duty concession scheme. Then the ACT Revenue Office wrote telling him he owed thousands. (ABC News: Adam Shirley)abc.net.au/news/act-revenue-office-home-stamp-duty-concessions-review/105283914Link copiedShareShare articleMarian's son travelled a long road to live independently. After many years of hard work, dedication and family support, things were looking up."So he was very well, and he had got his ute and a job, and he got the place lined up, and then it was almost too exciting for words," Marian said.He bought a unit, with the help of the ACT government's stamp duty concession scheme, which is a program designed to help first home buyers break into the market.It was naturally a big achievement for Marian's son, and his first six months of living in his new place went well, but then came an abrupt change."He had a complete collapse really, of his mental health," Marian said."That was terrible. Probably the worst time of my life maybe."With little to no warning, Marian's son had to move into 24-hour supported care.It was a very challenging time, and with a mortgage on the home that needed regular repayments, the family moved a tenant into the unit.The ACT revenue office wrote to Marian's son asking him to explain why he was not living in the home he bought with the concession. (ABC News: Adam Shirley)By doing this — and because Marian's son hadn't been in the home for at least 12 months — the family unwittingly breached the concession scheme rules."I have to admit, it didn't even cross our minds. We were in such a state of crisis," Marian said.The ACT Revenue Office wrote to Marian's son asking for an explanation for why he was not in the home, with a series of requests for personal and financial details.It also included clear warnings if he did not comply."Failure to supply the above information by the due date may result in the imposition of up to 90 per cent penalty tax in respect of a tax default," the ACT Revenue Office notice said. "Please note, giving false or misleading information is a serious offence."Marian said that was a confronting experience for her son."He was still struggling, and because of the nature of the way that they write their letters, he just ignored it … because it's sort of too hard. And that was really too hard," Marian said.She said that the letter, and a series of follow up notices, were demanding in how they were worded."It was extremely … threatening I would say," Marian said."They used [a] very heavy-handed manner that they have and … very legalistic [in] their talk."When Marian discovered the notices, she said she considered appealing due to her son's situation and the difficulty they were all facing, but she feared further penalties.And interest was accruing the whole time on the concession amount, so Marian did everything she could to find the money to pay."We just had to ... beg, borrow and buy the rest of it," Marian said."It was very stressful because it's very hard to have to ask people for money out of the blue."'Everyone I've spoken to is confused' Marian and her son aren't the only ones to have recently gone through this experience.Hundreds of ACT residents have had their stamp duty concessions reviewed in the last few years.Thomas Ang thought he could waive stamp duty on his home purchase and used some of his super to buy. Now he's been told he must pay back $25,000. (ABC News: Adam Shirley)Thomas Ang thought his young family had finally broken through the brick wall of home ownership.For a long time he didn't consider trying to purchase a home, as he was focused on steadily building up his savings and his superannuation to afford a deposit. But like many renters, his hand was forced."We were asked to leave our rental, and it's incredibly difficult to find a rental as well, especially now with a son," Thomas said.He looked up an ACT government online calculator which assesses someone's overall income to see if they were under the threshold to qualify for a stamp duty concession.The calculator said he did, but he wanted to be sure, so he got legal advice."The solicitor asked us about the earnings, and they applied for it for us, and then we were granted [it]," Thomas said."I didn't even question that. Didn't even have the thought they were doing anything wrong, or … that we weren't eligible."Thomas Ang says he didn't question the legal advice that told him he and his partner were eligible for the scheme. (ABC News: Adam Shirley)When he bought his home, Thomas used some of his saved-up superannuation. He didn't realise that this was considered by the ACT Revenue Office to put his yearly earnings beyond the threshold for the stamp duty concession.He is adamant that he was never informed that this could be the case."No, not at all. [That was] never raised at any point," Thomas said.Late last year, the ACT Revenue Office told him it was reviewing his concession and needed sensitive personal details — the same notice given to Marian's son."They gave us about two weeks to reply to that," Thomas said."So it's 4th of December, we went on holidays on the 6th of December overseas, so it was very difficult to try and get any of that documentation ready."The notice Thomas Ang received from the ACT Revenue Office said he must pay back $25,000. (ABC News: Adam Shirley)Thomas made that deadline, but then soon afterwards he got a notice to pay back $25,000 within three weeks or face further interest and debt payments."It was horrifying … and made me angry," he said. Everyone I've spoken to is confused," he said."Everyone I've spoken to is confused. I'm confused. I still don't understand how they've worked that out."The ACT Revenue Office allows for objections to its decisions, but the appeal process can take more than six months. Thomas is appealing the decision against his family, but if unsuccessful, he will be liable for extra interest that accrues during the time it takes for the appeal to be assessed and ruled upon.The situation has left him "completely stressed out"."Do I have to now sell the home?" he said."I wouldn't be able to afford a home again if that happened."MLA Ed Cocks calls for pause on reassessments ACT Shadow Treasurer and Liberal MLA Ed Cocks has been gathering cases of people who the revenue office is recouping money from since late last year. He said the situation first came to his attention when people got in touch with his office about their difficulties in dealing with the revenue office."The starkest situation was clearly someone who had been trying to escape domestic violence," he said. "People have spoken with lawyers to try and get their assessment. People who've done the online assessment tool that the government puts out there — and they thought that they were eligible."It doesn't seem very reasonable to be chasing them like criminals when they've done everything they can to do the right thing."Liberal MLA Ed Cocks says an inquiry into the whole review process is needed. (ABC News: Harry Frost)Mr Cocks wants an immediate pause on the retrospective reviews. He's calling for a formal inquiry into the ACT Revenue Office's reassessment and debt collection practices under the home buyer concession scheme. He said it was not just stamp duty concessions that the revenue office was initiating reviews into."We're talking about rates, land tax and those sorts of things as well, and they [citizens] just don't have the documents anymore to prove what the situation was," Mr Cocks said. "For some people, they're scared that they're going to lose their home. For some people, it's even more severe. I've had people who I was concerned for their mental wellbeing."Sharp increase in reassessments The ACT Revenue Commissioner wasn't available to speak with the ABC for this story. However, in a written response to a series of questions, a spokesperson for the commissioner acknowledged that there has been a significant increase in reassessments since the middle of 2022. The spokesperson said that "during COVID years, compliance activity was scaled down and staff transferred to deliver community support benefits".Home buyer concession compliance2020-212021-222022-232023-242024-25 (YTD)Reassessments issued7881234176Value of reassessments$61,900$99,800$962,300$8,213,100$4,638,700Source: ACT Revenue OfficeThe spokesperson added that "the home buyer concession is not approved, people declare they will meet the eligibility criteria and the concession is offset against their duty liability at the time they purchase a property".'Vast majority are not eligible': Stephen-Smith ACT Finance Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith acknowledged that many people who has received notices were confused and afraid."I have been really distressed to hear some of the stories about the impact on people," she said. "I have a great deal of sympathy for those individuals, particularly people who genuinely thought that their circumstances made them eligible for the concession."And then they receive a letter that they don't either understand or it seems like it's quite a threat, that is really concerning."So we have been working hard with the revenue office to have another look at the language that they use in their correspondence."ACT Finance Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith says the revenue office can't be instructed to modify or waive debts. (ABC News: Charlie McLean)Ms Stephen-Smith defended the need for the revenue office to review cases of people who had claimed a stamp duty concession."It's not that the revenue office approves it and then goes back and reconsiders their approval. Many tax lines are self-assessed, and that's the process for the home buyer concession scheme."She also said that under ACT law, the revenue office worked independently of government and couldn't be instructed to modify or waive debts."This does have to be a balanced approach — the vast majority of people who receive these reassessments are not eligible for the concession," Ms Stephen-Smith said."We don't want a system that encourages everybody to request a review of that decision so that they can simply defer what they legitimately owe to the tax office."When asked what he would say if he could speak to someone from the revenue office or government, Thomas Ang was clear."Why are you doing this? Like, how do you explain your reasoning behind all this?"And Marian had a request."They should just behave like human beings and … treat people in a genuine manner, without acting like we're criminals."Posted 15m ago15 minutes agoMon 12 May 2025 at 10:19pm, updated 8m ago8 minutes agoMon 12 May 2025 at 10:26pmShare optionsCopy linkFacebookX (formerly Twitter)Top StoriesChild safety staff looking for missing 14yo did 'safety' check with child sex abuserTopic:Child AbusePhoto shows Saachi at the beach.Liberal leadership race goes down to the wire as Nats weigh net zeroTopic:Federal GovernmentPhoto shows Sussan Ley, David Littleproud, Angus Taylor, Peter Dutton QT 20221027_041653670_iOSAlbanese shifts Plibersek from environment in favour of 'can-do' WattMAnalysis by Michelle GrattanPhoto shows anthony albanese points towards reporters outside parliament house in canberraWhy the Reserve Bank is wary of rocketing real estate pricesIAnalysis by Ian VerrenderPhoto shows A man walks past two terrace housesPM's new ministry to be sworn in, Chalmers admits frontbench dumping 'messy'LIVEPhoto shows A close-up of Jim Chalmers in front of a black background. 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