Adding or removing a name from a property title in Queensland

How the change is actually made

Queensland titles are changed by lodging a Form 1 Transfer with Titles Queensland, signed by the transferor and transferee and accompanied by identity verification for each party. Where the property is mortgaged, the lender's written consent and its release or new mortgage documents are lodged with it.

There is no such thing as informally 'adding someone to the title'. Until the transfer is registered, the legal ownership has not changed, whatever anyone has agreed.

Transfer duty — the part that surprises people

Transfer duty is generally payable on the market value of the interest being transferred, even where no money changes hands. Transferring a half share in a $800,000 home to a partner as a gift is treated as a $400,000 dutiable transaction unless an exemption applies.

The main Queensland exemptions and concessions to check are:

• Transfers between spouses of an interest in the principal place of residence, which can be exempt where the requirements are met
• Transfers made under a Family Court order, binding financial agreement or other qualifying matrimonial or de facto property arrangement
• Transmission of an interest to a beneficiary under a will or on intestacy
• Transfers to a surviving joint tenant, which are not a dutiable transfer at all

Removing a name after separation

This is the most common reason for a title change. Where the transfer is made under a formal property settlement — consent orders or a binding financial agreement — duty exemptions are usually available and the paperwork is straightforward.

Doing it by informal agreement, without orders, generally means paying full duty on the transferred share and losing the protection of a final settlement. It is almost always worth formalising the settlement first.

Refinancing is the separate hurdle. The remaining owner must qualify for the loan alone; the outgoing party must be released by the lender, or they remain liable on the debt even after their name comes off the title.

When an owner dies

If the property was held as joint tenants, the survivor lodges a Form 4 Request to Record Death with a death certificate and the title passes automatically. No duty and no probate is required for that step.

If it was held as tenants in common, the deceased's share passes under the will or intestacy rules, which usually means probate or letters of administration first, then a transmission by death to the personal representative and a transfer to the beneficiary.

Joint tenants or tenants in common

When you add a name, decide deliberately how the property will be held. Joint tenants means the survivor automatically takes the whole — usual for couples. Tenants in common means each holds a defined share that passes under their will — usual for friends, family members contributing unequally, or blended families.

Getting this wrong quietly defeats an estate plan. If unequal contributions are involved, record them in a co-ownership agreement at the same time. Call 0488 340 853 and we will quote a fixed fee once we know what is on the title.

Changing names on a title — common questions