Buying gold in Northern Territory
Gold has one price in Australian dollars across Australia, and investment gold (gold of at least 99.5% fineness, in bars, wafers or bullion coins) carries no GST anywhere. What differs in the Northern Territory is how second-hand gold buyers are licensed and how long they must hold what they buy, and the rules for fossicking.
Gold has one national spot price in Australian dollars: the prices on this page are the same as on the gold price in Australia page. What differs in Northern Territory is how dealers are regulated and other local rules, explained below.
Selling gold or jewellery to a dealer in the Northern Territory
- Licence: A pawnbroker, second-hand dealer or combined licence is required (one to three years); applicants must be over 18, pass a police check and advertise their application. Operating without a licence can attract a fine of up to 2,500 penalty units. Auctioneers, motor dealers, banks and some others are exempt.
- The law: Consumer Affairs and Fair Trading Act 1990 (NT); Consumer Affairs and Fair Trading (Pawnbrokers and Second-Hand Dealers) Regulations 1998
Fossicking for gold in the Northern Territory
You do not need a licence to fossick in designated areas of the Northern Territory.
Where: All NT land is open to fossicking if the required notices and consents are obtained: some areas need at least 7 days' written notice to the landowner or title holder, others written consent requested at least 14 days ahead. Declared fossicking areas have their own conditions.
Rules: Digging by hand or with hand-held tools to a depth of up to 1 m. Per-person limits include 100 g of gold (larger nuggets can be kept if reported), 1 kg of gemstones and 20 kg of other minerals. Fossils, meteorites, diamonds and Aboriginal artefacts may not be taken. Carry photo ID and proof of notice or consent.
Check the state's current rules and any land-access permission before you go: national parks and many reserves are closed to fossicking. Compare states: gold fossicking rules across Australia.
Gold in the Northern Territory: history
Early gold was worked at Arltunga in the MacDonnell Ranges, where a rich find was reported in 1902. The Tennant Creek rush began in December 1932, after Frank Juppurla, a local Aboriginal man, brought gold to telegraph operator Woody Woodruffe; it is called Australia's last major gold rush, and in the 1930s the field was the country's third-largest gold producer. The No. 3 Government Gold Stamp Battery at Battery Hill is now a heritage centre. Newmont's Tanami operation in the Tanami Desert, on Aboriginal freehold land, is the territory's main gold mine (about 448,000 oz in 2023).
More: history of gold in Australia.
GST and tax on gold in Australia
For GST, 'precious metal' means gold of at least 99.5% fineness, silver of at least 99.9% or platinum of at least 99%, in investment form (bars, wafers or bullion coins with a recognised fineness mark, traded at prices linked to spot). Other supplies of precious metal are input taxed (s 40-100), so no GST is charged on resale of investment bullion. Jewellery, numismatic and proof coins, and unmarked granules are not 'precious metal' in investment form, so normal GST rules apply.
Collectables such as jewellery and coins or medallions are subject to CGT unless bought for AUD 500 or less; capital losses on collectables can only be offset against capital gains on collectables. Individuals who hold an asset for at least 12 months can generally reduce the capital gain by 50%.
AUSTRAC rules for gold dealers
From 1 July 2026, dealers who buy or sell precious metals, stones or products for AUD 10,000 or more in physical currency or virtual assets (including linked transactions that add up to AUD 10,000) are regulated under the AML/CTF Act reforms. Dealers that will accept or pay AUD 10,000 or more in cash or virtual assets had to enrol with AUSTRAC by 1 July 2026 and need an AML/CTF programme; a streamlined customer due diligence process is available for low or medium risk individuals paying cash. Dealers can stay outside regulation by not accepting cash or virtual assets at all, or by accepting them only below AUD 10,000 per transaction and watching for linked transactions.
Tax and duty information last reviewed October 2026. Rules change — confirm with your dealer or tax authority before a large purchase.