6Concession for unoccupied land intended to be owner’s principal place of residence

#### 6 Concession for unoccupied land intended to be owner’s principal place of residence 6 Concession for unoccupied land intended to be owner’s principal place of residence > > (1) An owner of unoccupied land is entitled to claim the land as the owner’s principal place of residence if the owner intends to use and occupy the land solely as the owner’s principal place of residence. In such a case, the owner is taken, for the purpose of the principal place of residence exemption, to use and occupy the unoccupied land as the owner’s principal place of residence. > > > > Note. > > > > It is an offence under section 55 of the [Taxation Administration Act 1996](/view/html/inforce/current/act-1996-097) to make a statement to a tax officer, or give information to a tax officer, orally or in writing, knowing that it is false or misleading in a material particular. > > > (2) This clause does not apply unless— > > > > > (a) the land is unoccupied because the owner intends to carry out, or is carrying out, building or other works necessary to facilitate the owner’s intended use and occupation of the land as a principal place of residence, and > > > > > (b) if those building or other works have physically commenced on the land, no income has been derived from the use and occupation of the land since that commencement, and > > > > > (c) the intended use and occupation of the land is not unlawful. > > > (3) This clause applies in respect of the assessment of a person’s ownership of land only in the period of— > > > > > (a) 4 tax years immediately following the year in which the person became owner of the land, or > > > > > (b) if, after the person became owner and before the building or other works physically commence, the land is used and occupied for residential purposes by another person—4 tax years immediately following the tax year in which the other person ceases to use and occupy the land for those purposes. > > > (4) Without limiting subclause (3) (a)— > > > > > (a) this clause does not apply in respect of the assessment of a person’s ownership of land in a period referred to in subclause (3) (b) unless the Chief Commissioner is satisfied that, by the end of the first of the 4 tax years concerned— > > > > > > > (i) the building or other works will be, or have been, physically commenced, or > > > > > > > (ii) significant steps will be, or have been, taken to enable those works to physically commence, and > > > > > (b) if the building or other works are not physically commenced by the end of that tax year (or the Chief Commissioner is not satisfied that, by the end of that tax year, significant steps have been taken to enable those works to physically commence)— > > > > > > > (i) the principal place of residence exemption applying by operation of this clause to the land is taken not to have applied to the land in respect of that tax year (unless subclause (3) (a) applied to the assessment in that tax year), and > > > > > > > (ii) land tax liability is to be assessed or reassessed accordingly. > > > (5) If the principal place of residence exemption applies by operation of this clause to land not actually used and occupied by a person as the person’s principal place of residence on a taxing date, that exemption is revoked if the person fails to actually use and occupy the land as the person’s principal place of residence by the end of the period in which this clause applies in respect of the assessment of the person’s ownership of the land and to continue to so use and occupy the land for at least 6 months. > > > (6) The effect of the revocation is that the principal place of residence exemption is taken not to have applied to the land in respect of any tax year to which, but for the revocation, it would have applied. Land tax liability is to be assessed or reassessed accordingly. > > > (6A) For the purposes of section 9 (3) (c) of the [Taxation Administration Act 1996](/view/html/inforce/current/act-1996-097), any reassessment under this clause is authorised to be made more than 5 years after the initial assessment. > > > (7) This clause does not apply in respect of land owned by a person if— > > > > > (a) the person or any member of the person’s family (within the meaning of clause 12) is entitled to have the person’s or member’s actual use and occupation of other land taken into account under section 9C or 9D or under this Schedule, or > > > > > (b) the person owns land outside New South Wales that is the principal place of residence of the person or a member of the person’s family (within the meaning of clause 12), or > > > > > (c) the land, or the land if combined with any adjoining land of which the person is an owner, is capable of having more than 2 residences or residential units lawfully built on it. > > > (7A) The Chief Commissioner may extend the period of 4 tax years in subclause (3)(a) or (b) to a period of up to 6 tax years if the Chief Commissioner is satisfied— > > > > > (a) there has been a delay in the completion of the building or other works necessary to facilitate the owner’s intended use and occupation of the land as a principal place of residence, and > > > > > (b) the delay is due primarily to exceptional circumstances beyond the control of the owner, and > > > > > (c) the delay could not reasonably have been avoided by the owner. > > > (7B) The Treasurer may, for the purposes of subclause (7A), approve guidelines by publishing the guidelines in the Gazette. > > > (7C) The Chief Commissioner must, when making a decision under subclause (7A), consider any guidelines approved under subclause (7B). > > > (8) For the purposes of this clause— > > > > unoccupied land means land that is not being used or occupied for any purpose.