Charges on my rate notice

This page outlines the main charges you may see on your rate notice. To confirm the specific amounts you have been charged, please refer to our Annual Budget document, see Budget, fees and charges

Understanding the General Rate Charge

This charge helps fund essential services and infrastructure that support our city and community every day.

The general rate charge is calculated based on several key factors:

  • the rateable value of your property
  • the general rating category it falls under
  • the applicable rate in the dollar
  • the relevant minimum charge.

For a detailed explanation of how your rates are calculated, please refer to our Rates and charges brochure(PDF, 122KB).

This charge contributes to the funding required to deliver key services provided throughout the city.

What Are Separate Charges?

The Environmental and Volunteer Fire Brigade charges are known as separate charges. These are fixed amounts applied to all rateable properties, regardless of their value or use.

Council applies separate charges when it believes there’s value in clearly identifying the cost of a specific service, facility, or activity to each ratepayer. Rather than being based on property value or category, these charges are applied equally to every rateable property across the local government area.

This approach ensures that all property owners contribute fairly to the services and infrastructure that benefit the entire community.

Environmental charge

The Environment Charge ($27.10 per quarter for 2025/26) helps fund our environmental program which includes:

  • community partnership projects such as Land for Wildlife and Voluntary Conservation Agreements
  • EnviroGrants and World Environment Day events
  • waterway rehabilitation, water quality monitoring and waterway management
  • acquisition of environmentally significant land
  • biodiversity and threatened species management
  • energy and climate change projects
  • vegetation management, bush care and bushland maintenance.

Volunteer fire brigade charge

The Volunteer fire brigade charge ($0.41 per quarter for 2025/26) helps fund the services provided by rural fire brigades in Logan.

State emergency levy

The State Emergency Levy is a charge collected by Council on behalf of the Queensland Government. It applies to all properties across Queensland and helps ensure a reliable funding base for vital fire and emergency services.

This levy recognises that all Queenslanders can be affected by emergencies such as floods, cyclones, storms, fires, and accidents.

The amount you are charged depends on several factors, including:

  • how the property is used
  • the size of the property
  • its distance from the nearest fire station
  • the staffing level at that station.

For more information, please visit the Queensland Government’s State Emergency Levy page.

Garbage charges

The garbage charge on your rates notice covers the cost of waste collection services provided to your property. Charges vary depending on the type and frequency of service you receive.

The most common service includes:

  • a 240-litre waste bin collected weekly, and
  • a 240-litre recycling bin collected fortnightly.

For the 2025/26 financial year, this standard service combination is $111.50 per quarter.

If you have a different service arrangement, your charge may differ.

Water service charge

The Water Service Charge helps fund the maintenance and operation of Council’s water network. This charge may apply to your property under several circumstances, including when:

  • a water meter is connected to the property
  • a non-metered service connection exists
  • the water service is available, even if not yet connected to the property.

The way this charge is calculated depends on the type of property and the number of service connections.

For the 2025/26 financial year, most standard residential properties are charged $82.13 per quarter.

For full details on how water charges are applied, please refer to our Budget, fees and charges.

Wastewater (sewerage) charge

The Wastewater (Sewerage) Charge helps fund the maintenance and operation of Council’s wastewater network.

This charge may apply to your property in the following situations:

  • your property is connected to Council’s wastewater network
  • the service is available, even if a connection has not yet been made.

The amount charged depends on the type of property and the number of wastewater connections.

For the 2025/26 financial year:

  • vacant land (not yet connected): $151.50 per quarter
  • standard residential properties (with a connection): $202 per quarter.

For a full breakdown of wastewater charges, please refer to our Budget, fees and charges.

Water usage

The water usage charge reflects the cost of supplying water and is based on the number of kilolitres used. The charge consists of two separate components:

  • State Government Bulk Water charge - $3.5170 per kilolitre
  • Logan City Council charge - $1.0793 per kilolitre.

Account establishment fee

When a property is purchased, Logan City Council charges an account establishment fee of $95.00 for the transfer of property ownership to the purchaser. This fee will appear on the first rates notice issued after the change of ownership is processed. Find more information on the Account establishment fee fact sheet(PDF, 206KB).

Supplementary charges

Supplementary rates or charges occur when there are changes to the property’s valuation or the services available. The charges are usually a one-off charge that is calculated on a pro-rata basis from the date the change takes effect.

Interest on overdue rates and charges

An interest rate of 12.12 percent per annum, compounded daily, is applied to all overdue rates and charges.

Council applies the maximum interest rate permitted by legislation to encourage timely payments and to support responsible financial management. This also serves as an incentive for ratepayers experiencing financial difficulty to enter and maintain a suitable payment plan.

If you're having trouble keeping up with payments, we encourage you to contact us early to discuss available support options.

For more information, please visit our Need more time to pay?.

Prompt payment discount

Properties classified under the Residential (Owner-Occupied) general rating category are eligible for a prompt payment discount of $120 per year (or $30 per quarter) when all rates and charges are paid in full by the quarterly due date.

The discount will appear on your rates notice only if your property has been charged the Residential 1 general rate for that quarter.

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