Free stamp duty for public servants moving to Canberra

Taxpayers are footing the bill for public servants to make the move to Canberra, paying the entire stamp duty of their new homes.

The subsidy is part of a relocation assistance program offered to department secretaries and not only covers stamp duty, but also real estate agent commissions, advertising fees, legal fees and auction costs, the Courier Mail revealed.

The entitlements come on top of relatively generous salaries which can run into hundreds of thousands of dollars a year.

The relocation scheme could see them reap benefits in the tens of thousands of dollars.

Stamp duty on the median Canberra house price is $19,710 and stamp duty on the median Canberra unit price is $11,440, calculated with the ACT government’s latest property data.

Further discounts on newly built homes and subsidies for conveyancing fees, auction fees and agent fees add thousands of dollars more to the taxpayer bill.

Senator Nick Xenophon has said the extensive entitlements need to end.

"I would have thought what department secretaries get paid would be more than enough to pay for their own stamp duty," he said.

Public servants are not required to detail the perks they have received, even though federal politicians have faced intense scrutiny on the matter.

Earlier this month, Health minister Sussan Ley resigned from the frontbench after it was revealed she used taxpayer funded trips to buy property and attend New Year’s Eve functions.

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