Property transfer · Conveyancing

Transferring property from a family trust to a company: Victorian conveyancing.

Once the structure is decided, each property has to be moved, and each one is a conveyance in its own right: a transfer of land, a duty assessment, a mortgagee to satisfy, tenants to notify and a settlement on PEXA. The roll-over sets the window; the conveyancing sets the pace, and the bank usually sets both.

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Lawyer-led structuring

Deeds, constitutions and transfer documents prepared by a solicitor, not generated from a kit.

Alongside your accountant

The tax modelling stays with your adviser; the legal structure is built to match it.

Fixed fee, quoted first

Quoted before any work starts, with duty, searches and ASIC costs itemised separately.

Property and duty in-house

Victorian duty, land tax and the property transfers handled by the same firm.

Proposed law

The 30% minimum tax on discretionary trusts is before Parliament and is not yet law. The Treasury Laws Amendment (Tax Reform No. 3) Bill 2026 and the Income Tax Rates Amendment (Minimum Tax on Discretionary Trusts) Bill 2026 were introduced on 14 October 2026. As introduced, the tax would apply from 1 July 2028 and the restructure roll-over would run from 1 July 2027 to 30 June 2030. The detail may change before enactment. Last reviewed 27 October 2026.

Title

A transfer of land, with the trust on one side.

The trustee transfers the land to the company for the consideration the roll-over documents fix, usually shares. The transfer is lodged electronically with the duty assessed or the exemption applied for, a land tax clearance certificate obtained so that the trust's liability does not follow the land, and any caveat, covenant or notice on title dealt with. Where the trustee is a company, its own resolutions and the trust's authority to sell have to be in order; where an individual trustee has died or retired, the title may need to be corrected first.

Finance

The bank's consent, or a refinance in the company's name.

A mortgaged property cannot be transferred without the mortgagee's consent, and most lenders will not consent to a change of borrower without a fresh application. In practice the company borrows, the trust's loan is discharged at settlement, and the directors give new guarantees. Credit approval, valuations and loan documents run on the bank's timetable, which is the reason the roll-over window should not be approached from the wrong end.

Leases

The leases carry across; the paperwork does not.

A lease runs with the land, so a tenant's rights are unaffected by the transfer. The tenant is notified of the new landlord and where to pay rent, the bond or bank guarantee is re-documented in the company's name, outgoings are adjusted at settlement, and any lease that has been assigned, varied or extended informally is tidied up before it becomes the company's problem.

The State

Assessed before settlement, not after.

The duty position is settled before the transfer is signed: which exemption, if any, applies; whether the consideration the roll-over requires defeats it; whether landholder duty follows on the shares; and whether a foreign shareholder brings the surcharge. Land tax for the current year is apportioned and the trust's grouping and surcharge position closed off. For commercial premises, the going concern conditions for GST are met or the GST is accounted for.

Stamp duty and land tax in detail

FAQs

Common questions.

Still unsure? Call us on (03) 9008 7224 and speak to a lawyer, not a call centre.

How long does a transfer take?

The conveyancing itself is a matter of weeks. Bank approval, a duty ruling where one is sought and a valuation each add months, and they run in parallel if they are started early.

Does the roll-over set the consideration?

The roll-over provisions deal with the cost base of the shares issued for the assets. The transfer of land still records a consideration or a value for duty, and the two have to be consistent.

What does the conveyancing cover, and what does it not?

It covers the transfer, the duty and land tax steps, the mortgagee and tenants, and settlement. It does not include valuation, building or planning matters, or the tax advice on whether to transfer at all.

Trust tax changes

This page is general information about proposed Commonwealth legislation and current Victorian law. It is not legal or taxation advice and does not take your circumstances into account. The Bills may change before they are enacted, and some matters, including capital gains tax interactions, are to be dealt with in later legislation. Advice should be obtained before any election is made or any asset is transferred.

Page TT-11 · Trust tax changes · Last reviewed 27 October 2026

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