Australian Budget Update 2026

Most Australian Expats Have Assets Back Home.

Far Fewer Have a Plan for What Happens Next.‍

The 2026 Australian Budget is no longer a headline to watch. It is now a planning event. From 1 July 2027, Australia replaces the 50% CGT discount with inflation-based indexation and introduces a minimum 30% tax rate on capital gains. Negative gearing rules change for many residential property investors. And from 2028–29, discretionary trusts come under a new minimum tax framework.

For Australians abroad, the question isn't whether the Budget was good or bad politics. It's much more personal: what do these changes mean for your Australian property, your investment portfolio, your trust structure, your tax residency and your plans to return home?

What You'll Learn

What actually changed in the Budget - and what didn't
How the new negative gearing rules affect existing and future property holdings
What the shift away from the 50% CGT discount means in practice
Whether your return-home timeline needs to change
What discretionary trust holders need to consider now
What to act on in the next 90 days

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Who This Is For

Australian expats working overseas - Middle East, Europe, Asia, the UK or elsewhere
Those holding Australian assets: property, shares, super, business interests or trust-linked investments
Anyone considering buying or selling Australian property in the next few years
Expats connected to a discretionary trust
Those planning to return to Australia in the next one to three years
Anyone building long-term wealth offshore who needs to understand how the new rules could affect future decisions

Why This Matters

The speculation is over. The review window is open.

These reforms are prospective - gains arising after 1 July 2027 are affected. That means there is still time to plan. But that window is shorter than it looks, and the decisions Australian expats make in the next 90 days could matter significantly.

Get the structure right now, and the path home becomes cleaner. Leave it too long, and you're reacting to rules instead of planning around them.

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Ryan Donaldson

Private Wealth Partner, Skybound Wealth

Ryan advises Australians abroad on cross-border wealth planning - building long-horizon plans for clients who hold assets across jurisdictions, balancing what works abroad with what works on return. He runs Skybound's Australian-expat practice and has hosted six prior post-Budget webinars with Geoff Taylor

Geoff Taylor

Partner, Australian Tax Specialist

Geoff is a dual-qualified Tax Accountant and Financial Planner who has spent 14+ years working exclusively with Australian expats. He is one of Australia's most experienced advisers on residency, CGT, and the timing of returning home - and a regular keynote speaker on these subjects.