The parliamentary committee is looking at a number of options, including a charge on Foreign ­Investment Review Board approval for residential property.

An even more dramatic measure to be considered by the joint-Coalition and Labor committee – due to report in October – is whether extra stamp duty should be imposed on all foreign buyers. The move could mirror Singapore’s 2011 decision to curb excessive offshore buying with a 10 per cent duty.


The hearing heard from real estate agents that many Chinese buyers regarded the potential maximum $85,000 penalty for illegally buying an existing home as a “cost of doing business” in Australia.