Where the owner or purchaser of land has paid land tax in relation to the financial year for which the exemption is sought, they may be eligible for a refund as follows:

• Where the taxpayer owned land as at midnight on 30 June immediately for the financial year the exemption is granted, the refund will be the amount the taxpayer's assessment would have been reduced by if the land were exempt or partially exempt from land tax.

The amount of refund does not alter irrespective of whether the taxpayer commenced occupation before or during that financial year.

Land may be partially exempt if the land is the owner's principal place of residence and is used partially for a business or commercial purpose.

See the Eligibility for partial principal place of residence exemption section for more information.

• Where a refund of land tax is sought by a purchaser of land (where the land is acquired during the financial year for the purpose of being the owner's principal place of residence), the amount to be refunded will be the lesser of either:
  • the actual amount paid to the vendor by the purchaser as an adjustment of land tax, or
  • a proportion of the land tax that would be payable on the land for the financial year if the vendor only owned that land (referred to as the single holding amount) being a proportion of the number of days from the date of settlement to the end of that financial year, calculated using 365 days in a year, even in a leap year.

If the land is used partially for a business or commercial purpose, the amount of refund will also take into consideration the proportion of the floor area of all buildings on the land used for this non-residential purpose. RevenueSA can provide further information if applicable.

Application for refunds are limited to only that money which has been paid within 5 years of the application.