Mining royalties
Under the Mineral Royalty Act 1982, mining companies must pay to remove non‑renewable resources. This payment is known as a royalty.
How to lodge, pay and calculate
There are rules you must follow when paying royalties and submitting royalty returns.
Royalties
Royalties should be paid every 6 months, no later than 30 days after the end of each 6-month period in the royalty year.
You can nominate a date on which a royalty year begins. This could be based on the calendar year or the financial year. You will need to include a provisional royalty return with your payment.
How to pay
You should make your payments to the Territory Revenue Office.
Find out how to pay.
Returns
You should submit a provisional return even if you have a negative net value and don't owe any royalty.
You should submit an annual return and any residual payment within 3 months of the end of the royalty year.
If you don't pay royalties by the due date, you will incur interest.
Royalty that remains unpaid for 6 months or more from being due may also lead to the cancellation of the mining tenement.
How to submit
To submit a provisional or annual royalty return, follow these steps:
Step 1. Read the instructions of the royalty return form XLSM (5.3 MB).
Step 2. Fill in the provisional or annual return form.
If you are submitting an annual royalty return, you must include an audit report from an approved auditor to show it complies with the requirements of the Mineral Royalty Act 1982.
You will also need to attach additional information for an annual royalty return. A list of required documents can be found in the overview.
Step 3. Submit your royalty return and any supporting documents by email to royaltiesandassurance.dtf@nt.gov.au.
Report significant changes
You must notify the mineral royalty secretary within 30 days of a significant change occurring.
This includes when a decision is made to start mineral production.
Read more about reporting significant changes.
More information
To read more about mineral royalties in the NT, go to the Department of Treasury and Finance website.
Contact
Territory Revenue Office
GPO Box 1974
Darwin NT 0801
Phone: 1300 305 353
royaltiesandassurance.dtf@nt.gov.au