Purchase of Australian Property : FIRB Approval & Process

The Australian Assistant Treasurer announced significant changes in April, 2010 to the rules surrounding the purchase of established (ie. previously occupied) residential housing by temporary residents, and the rules surrounding the purchase of vacant land. Temporary residents were again required to seek Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) approval when acquiring established property and to sell the property when leaving Australia.

The FIRB rules are relatively complex and we have tried to simplify some aspects in the documents below. The first is a Guide focussed on explaining the purchase process for foreign citizens who are not resident in Australia wishing to invest in Australian property. The second document contains Flow Charts which attempt to summarise the FIRB rules as they apply both to Temporary Residents in Australia and Foreign Non-Residents (FNR) outside of Australia. These flow charts constitute our interpretation of the rules and areNOT intended to be relied upon – you are encouraged to contact the FIRB (www.firb.gov.au) directly or we can arrange professional advice, if requested.