NSW Parliament is ending the concessional surcharge period during which trustees can vary discretionary trust deeds to prevent foreign persons being beneficiaries. Provided the variations are undertaken by 31 December 2019, the following exemptions may apply:

• Purchaser duty surcharge (now 8%) for transfers from 21 June 2016, and
• Land Tax Surcharge (now 2%) for the 2017, 2018 and 2019 land tax years.

Where variations are yet to be made, the Parliament has set the conditions for qualifying deed amendments. Trustees of relevant residential landowning trusts need to review deeds to determine if variations need to be made by 31 December 2019.