Negative Gearing Reform Budget 2026: What Changed at 7:30 PM AEST by Purchase Date
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Primary tax-year context: Current Australian tax settings
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General information only. This is not tax or financial advice. Consult a registered tax agent for advice specific to your situation.
At 7:30 PM AEST on Tuesday 12 May 2026, the Federal Budget reformed negative gearing for residential property investors. The new rules take effect from 1 July 2027 — but the most important date is right now: 7:30 PM tonight is the line that decides which set of rules applies to a property you own or are about to buy.
The reform is structured around four buckets, sorted by when you bought (or buy) the property. Most existing investors are completely unaffected.
The four buckets
| Bucket | Purchase date | What applies |
|---|---|---|
| A | Held at 7:30 PM AEST 12 May 2026 (including signed contracts not yet settled) | Grandfathered forever. Continue negative gearing against any income (salary, business, other rentals) until you sell. |
| B | Between 12 May 2026 7:30 PM and 30 June 2027 | Transitional. Negative gear normally only until 30 June 2027. From 1 July 2027, rental losses can only offset other residential property income; excess carries forward. |
| C | From 1 July 2027 (established property) | Losses can NOT offset wages/salary/other non-property income. Losses are deductible only against other residential property income; excess carries forward against future residential property income. |
| D | From 1 July 2027 (NEW BUILD) | Negative gearing fully retained for that property’s lifetime. Treated under current rules. |
The cutoff applies to the date the property was acquired. If you signed an unconditional contract before 7:30 PM AEST 12 May 2026 but settle later, you are still in Bucket A.
What counts as a “new build”
A new build is one that genuinely adds to housing supply. Treasury’s eligibility table:
| Eligible new build | NOT a new build |
|---|---|
| Newly constructed apartment bought off-the-plan | Established property extended to add bedrooms |
| Duplex built via knock-down rebuild replacing a single house | Free-standing house from knock-down rebuild replacing one house |
| Any residential construction on previously vacant land | A granny flat next to an established (non-eligible) property |
| Newly built property occupied <12 months before first sale | A new build occupied >12 months before sale to a subsequent investor |
The subsequent-purchaser rule
If you buy a “new build” from a previous investor (not the builder), the property loses its new-build status for you. You inherit the established-property rules.
Treasury draws the analogy to first-home-buyer stamp duty concessions — the new-build benefit is once-only, attached to the first investor purchase, not the property itself.
Mechanics of the loss carry-forward
For Buckets B (from 1 July 2027) and C, excess rental losses don’t disappear — they carry forward indefinitely against other residential property income, including future positive net rent on the same property and any future capital gains realised on a residential investment property.
What changes is what you can offset against. Under current rules, a $14,810 rental loss on a $1M property (the average loss in 2022-23 for someone in the top tax bracket) saves $6,961 in tax for a $210k earner because the full loss reduces taxable income. Under the new rules for Bucket C, that same loss can only be applied against residential property income — so it carries forward until the investor has positive net rent or sells.
Who is excluded
The negative gearing changes do NOT apply to:
- Widely held trusts (most managed investment trusts)
- Superannuation funds including SMSFs
- Commercial property of any kind
- Other asset classes — shares, business income, etc. (these are unchanged)
The changes apply to individuals, partnerships, companies, and most other (non-widely-held) trusts holding residential investment property.
Worked examples (from the Treasury explainer)
Michael — Bucket A (existing investor)
Michael owned an investment property purchased before 12 May 2026 that is negatively geared. He can continue to negatively gear against his salary in future years.
Michael sells the property two years after the policy commences for $560,000. Treasury notes:
- Michael still receives the 50% CGT discount for the portion of the gain accrued between purchase and 1 July 2027.
- The portion of the gain after 1 July 2027 uses the new indexation + 30% minimum tax rules (see CGT discount reform).
- Using ATO tools, the property’s value at 1 July 2027 was $500,000. With two years of 2.5% inflation, his taxable gain after 1 July 2027 is $34,688.
- At a 47% tax rate, total tax on the post-1 July 2027 gain is $16,303 (vs $14,100 under the old 50% discount). Net additional tax: $2,203.
Yoonseo — Bucket B (bought after announcement)
Yoonseo earns $100,000 and buys an established residential property for $519,000 (including stamp duty) after 12 May 2026 7:30 PM. She rents it out and sells it 10 years later for $814,447.
- Over the first 5 years she has net rental losses totalling $22,879, which become carry-forward losses (she cannot offset against her $100,000 salary).
- In years 6–10 she applies most of these carry-forward losses to reduce her positive net rent over those years from $18,079 to zero.
- When she sells, she uses the remaining carry-forward losses to reduce her real capital gain from $150,083 to $145,284.
- Overall, she pays $186 more in nominal tax over the investment compared to the old rules.
Had Yoonseo bought a new build instead, she would not pay additional tax — negative gearing and the 50% CGT discount would still be available for that property.
How this affects your EOFY planning
If you bought before tonight (Bucket A): Nothing changes for your current property. Continue claiming negative gearing as normal. Your 30 June 2026 EOFY tax return is identical to last year.
If you are about to buy this year (Bucket B): You can still negatively gear normally until 30 June 2027 — but plan for the loss to become a carryforward from 1 July 2027 onwards. Run scenarios for both the existing rules (12 months of negative gearing relief) and the future carry-forward case.
If you are looking at buying 1 July 2027+ (Bucket C / D): Consider whether the property qualifies as a new build (vacant land, off-the-plan, eligible knock-down rebuild). Established property purchases past 1 July 2027 only make sense if cash flow is positive, the carryforward strategy aligns with your timeline, or capital growth substantially outweighs the loss of immediate deductibility.
The Negative Gearing Calculator and Investment Property Calculator let you model both scenarios side-by-side.
Treasury impact figures
- Around 1% of taxfilers acquire negatively geared properties each year (230,000 individuals in 2022–23).
- Around 7% of taxfilers report a net capital gain each year (1.1 million individuals).
- Treasury modelling: 75,000 additional owner-occupiers over the next decade (equivalent to reversing 10 years of declining home ownership rates).
- Expected impact on house prices: ~2% lower over a couple of years vs no policy change.
- Expected impact on rents: less than $2/week increase on median rent.
Sources
- Treasury Budget Paper No. 1, Statement 4: Tax reform for workers, businesses and future generations (12 May 2026)
- Treasury fact sheet: Negative Gearing and Capital Gains Tax Reform (12 May 2026)
- Treasury Budget Paper No. 2, Tax Reform — Boosting Home Ownership measure (p21)
Related reading
- 50% CGT Discount Reform: Cost Base Indexation Explained — paired CGT changes that affect every property sale from 1 July 2027.
- 50% CGT Discount Under Review: Senate Inquiry Update — pre-Budget context and post-Budget outcome.
- Budget 2026 Explained: Winners and Losers — full Budget breakdown by persona.
- How Budget 2026 Changes Your EOFY Plan — EOFY 2026 and 2027 implications.