Minerals and coal rents
Annual rent is payable on most resource authorities. It is important that you pay your rent by the due date or penalties may apply.
Due date
The due date is 31 August for the rental year starting from 1 September to 31 August the following year. Rent for mineral exploration permits is payable on the anniversary date of the granted tenure.
Deferring the first year's rent for a critical mineral mining lease
Under the Mineral Resources Act 1989, the Minister for Resources must defer payment of the first year's rent for the grant of a mining lease if all these conditions are met:
- the mining lease application is to mine critical minerals (as prescribed in Schedule 4A of the Mineral Resources Regulation 2013)
- you've requested a deferral for payment of the first rent for the lease (which you can do when you apply for your lease)
- you can prove that the amount of rent deferred will be spent on start-up costs and development, to the value of at least the deferred first year's rent.
How it works
If your first year's rent is deferred, you must repay the deferred rent in instalments after 3 years.
The rent deferral is available for the first year's rent only. It is only applicable for new grants.
Repayment schedule
| Year of lease | Rent paid |
|---|---|
| Year 1 | Rent deferred |
| Years 2 and 3 | Annual rent |
| Years 4 to 8 | Annual rent + 20% of deferred amount each year over 5 years |
| Year 9 onwards | Annual rent paid for each year of the lease, increasing in line with CPI |
For example, if the first year of rent on the mining lease is $1000, you would pay:
- no rent in your first year
- annual rent in years 2 and 3 of the lease
- annual rent plus $200 for years 4–8 of the lease.
Your first rental period lasts from the start of the mining lease term until 31 August. Your first year's rent is the amount you have to pay for this period (pro-rata).
This repayment schedule is set out in the Mineral Resources Regulation 2013.
Eligibility
Existing applicants
If you've already applied for a mining lease, you’ll need to contact the Department of Resources at mining.rentenquiries@resources.qld.gov.au to request a deferral to the first year's rent. You won't be automatically eligible.
Demonstrate how you'll use the funds
You must spend the deferred rent on start-up and development costs.
When you submit your application for mining lease and a rent deferral, you'll need to provide a statement from a suitably qualified person (such as a director, auditor or chief financial officer) that:
- sets out the proposed expenditure
- describes how these costs directly relate to the start-up and development of the project.
Start-up and development costs can vary due to the complexity and size of a project. However, examples of start-up costs might include:
- engaging a consultant for pit design
- refurbishing an old dam or building a new dam
- paying for assessments and reports
- paying costs associated with groundwater monitoring bores and developing new bores.
If you're planning to engage third parties, those costs must directly relate to the construction phase for the mine. It can't include tenure management services and other services engaged once-construction is complete.
Mining lease is a mix of critical and other minerals
If you think that you may mine a critical mineral incidentally while mining other non-critical minerals, you’ll need to include additional information in your request for rent deferral.
Make sure you:
- list the critical mineral in your application for the grant of the mining lease
- add the rationale for including the critical mineral in the work program or initial development plan.
How to apply
You can request a rent deferral when you apply for your mining lease.
Find full instructions for applying in our mining lease application guide.
Making your rent payment
We have expanded our payment options to now include BPAY, BPOINT and Australia Post Billpay.
Refer to your invoice for details and remember to include the relevant payment reference number.
You can also make payments at any mines lodgement office or phone (07) 3199 8133 to pay by credit card (have your details handy).
Late payment penalty
An additional amount of 15% of the rent is payable if rent is not paid by the due date on mining leases and mineral development licences. If you fail to pay rent and penalties on mining leases and mineral development licences before 1 December, the mining tenement may be cancelled.
Rental rates
| Resource authority | Rental rate |
|---|---|
|
EPM (exploration permit – mineral) EPC (exploration permit – coal) EPS (exploration permit – special) | {{ pass_35327 }} per sub-block |
| MC (mining claim) | $0.00 |
| ML (mining lease – variable rate) | {{ pass_35333 }} per hectare |
| ML (mining lease – fixed rate) | Special agreement acts |
Mineral development licences
Rent for the mineral development licence is calculated using the appropriate annual rental rate and including a discount based on the area of the licence.
Annual rental rates for mineral development licences
| Year of the licence | Rental rate |
|---|---|
| Year 1 | {{ pass_35328 }} per hectare |
| Year 2 | {{ pass_35329 }} per hectare |
| Year 3 | {{ pass_35330 }} per hectare |
| Year 4 | {{ pass_35331 }} per hectare |
| After 4 years | {{ pass_35332 }} per hectare |
Area discounts for mineral development licences
| Hectares | Percentage discount |
|---|---|
| First 1,000ha | 0% |
| Next 1,000ha | 60% |
| Next 3,000ha | 75% |
| Next 10,000ha | 95% |
| Each addition 1ha | 99% |
Contact us
For more information or technical assistance, contact:
Rental officer
Phone: +61 7 3199 7916 or +61 7 3199 7924
Email: mining.rentenquiries@resources.qld.gov.au
Also consider...
- Read the Mineral Resources Regulation 2013 for more information on rents.
- Last reviewed: 16 Mar 2021
- Last updated: 14 Dec 2022