--- title: "Share and Unit Valuation Melbourne | Fixed Fee" url: https://businessvaluationsmelbourne.com.au/services/share-unit-valuation/ description: "Private company share and unit trust valuations for Melbourne owners and accountants. Signed, independent, fixed fees from $1,495 + GST." updated: 2026-11-10 --- # Shares in a private company or units in a trust? An independent market value from $1,495 + GST. Business Valuations Melbourne values private company shares and trust units from $1,495 + GST, with a small-business report in 2 business days. Delivery time starts once payment and all required information have been received. Get a fixed fee Annual turnover $1,495 + GST Signed report in 2 business days. Delivery time starts once payment and all required information have been received. Fee From $1,495 + GST Signed by The valuer responsible Independent Fee never depends on the value Our valuers have valued businesses since 2014 Get a fixed feeCall 03 8375 4177 - The fee is fixed before we start, and it is never tied to the answer. - No referral fees from brokers or advisers. - The working file behind your report is retained for ten years. ## What you get ### What a share or unit valuation sets out A share or unit valuation gives the market value of a holding in a private company or unit trust, for a gift, transfer, buy-back, estate or exit. Business Valuations Melbourne values the business first, then all the shares or units after net debt and surplus assets, then the holding itself on its class, rights and size, in one signed report. Your accountant, tax adviser or lawyer decides how the rules apply. [See a sample report (52 pages, PDF)](https://businessvaluationsmelbourne.com.au/business-valuations-melbourne-sample-valuation-report.pdf) ### Illustrative From business value to equity | Business value | | 2,000,000 | | Less: net debt | | (450,000) | | Add: surplus assets | | 50,000 | | All the shares | | 1,600,000 | Each step shown with its figures. In this example - Business value: 2,000,000. - Net debt: 450,000, taken off. - All the shares: 1,600,000, after 50,000 of surplus assets. Illustrative only. The figures are constructed for this example and are not a client's. ### The holding valued | The report states | | Number and class | | Percentage, and control | | Rights and transfer limits | | How they affect the value | Valued on its class, its rights and its size. What the report sets out - Class: each valued on its own rights. - Size: control, or a small parcel. - Limits: the constitution, an agreement or the trust deed. ### The market value rules | Situation | The rule | | Given away | Giver treated as receiving market value | | Not at arm's length | Market value can replace the price | | Buy-back below market value | Seller treated as receiving market value | The tax law can look to market value instead of the price. The rules - Gift: s 116-30(1), ITAA 1997. - Not at arm's length: s 116-30(2). - Buy-back: s 159GZZZQ, ITAA 1936. We are not a registered tax agent: your accountant decides how the rules apply. ### Valuation dates | Situation | Valued as at | | Gift or transfer | Time of the CGT event | | Buy-back | Time of the buy-back | | Estate | Often the date of death | | A past date | What was known or reasonably foreseeable | Market value is fixed at a moment. The dates - Gift or transfer: your accountant confirms the date. - Buy-back: as if it were never proposed. - Past date: what was known or reasonably foreseeable then. ## Why independent The evidence sets the value, not any owner. Our fee is fixed in writing before we start. Every report is independently reviewed by a suitably qualified business valuer. | | A price the owners agree | Our valuation | | Market value definition? | Not on record | Stated in the report | | Method and reasons? | Not on record | Set out in full | | Independence statement? | None | In every signed report | ### What the report sets out Read the detail The ATO's guide says a valuation for tax is usually judged on the process followed rather than on who prepared it. When the ATO reviews one, it generally has a valuer look at how well the process was documented, the market value definition used, the method chosen, and the assumptions and information relied on. Our report sets out each of those for the holding valued. A price the owners agree among themselves, with no report behind it, has none of them on record. The method and the evidence set the figure: we do not shape a value to suit any owner, and we decline any request for a target value. The ATO's page on market valuations asks that a valuer's instructions state that the fee does not depend on the outcome. Ours is fixed in writing before we start. Every report is signed by the valuer responsible and carries an independence statement. - The holding: the entity, the number and class of shares or units, and their rights - The valuation date, and the market value definition used - The value of the business, the step to the equity, and the value of the holding - The method, with the reasons for it - The evidence, assumptions and information relied on - A supportable range as well as the concluded value - An independence statement and the signature of the valuer responsible - The working file kept for ten years ## How it works Four steps to your signed report. - ### Send the form We reply within one business day. You do not need any documents to start. - ### A short call We confirm the package, the fixed fee and the delivery date. - ### Pay and upload Before you engage, we tell you exactly which documents we need. - ### Your signed report 2 business days for a small business. Delivery time starts once payment and all required information have been received. ## What it costs A fixed fee by turnover. Fixed fees by annual turnover | Annual turnover | Fee | | Under $2 million | $1,495 + GST | | $2 million to $3 million | $2,495 + GST | | $3 million to $10 million | $3,495 + GST | | Over $10 million | Quoted in writing | Get a fixed fee → Business Valuations Melbourne's fees are set by the annual turnover of the business: $1,495 + GST under $2 million, $2,495 + GST from $2 million to $3 million, $3,495 + GST from $3 million to $10 million, and a written quote above $10 million. A small-business report arrives in 2 business days and a medium or large report in 3 business days; above $10 million we agree the delivery date before work begins. Delivery time starts once payment and all required information have been received. Defined add-ons | +$495 | Retrospective valuation date per historical date | | +$795 | Each additional entity per entity | Read the detail Each extra entity is +$795 and each past valuation date is +$495, both agreed at engagement. Everyone pays the same published fee, and it never moves with the value we reach. A signed business valuation report from Business Valuations Melbourne is $1,495 + GST for a business with annual turnover under $2 million, delivered in 2 business days; $2,495 + GST for turnover between $2 million and $3 million, delivered in 3 business days; $3,495 + GST for turnover between $3 million and $10 million, delivered in 3 business days; and above $10 million the fee is quoted in writing before work starts, with the delivery date agreed before commencement. Delivery time starts once payment and all required information have been received. ## When shares or units need a market value Family gifts, buy-backs, estates, and owners joining or leaving. Read the detail - Giving shares or units to family - Moving shares or units to your own company, a family trust or a parent company - A sale between related parties at an untested price - A private company buying back a shareholder's shares - Shares or units passing through an estate, or in succession planning - A shareholder or unit holder leaving, or a new one buying in Shares in a private company and units in a private unit trust have no quoted price. When they change hands without an arm's length price, or the law asks for their market value, an independent valuation is how the figure is supported. The ATO lists transferring shares between related parties, such as family members, among the times a market valuation may be needed. Your accountant, tax adviser or lawyer decides which rules apply; we provide the value. ## The detail behind the numbers Equity ### From the value of the business to the value of the shares A piece of the equity, not a slice of the business. Read the detail A share or unit is a piece of the equity, not a slice of the business. So we start with the value of the whole business, take off net debt (borrowings less any cash the business does not need) and add surplus assets the business does not use, such as investments. That gives the value of all the shares or units on issue. Only then do we value the holding itself, on its class, its rights and its size. The report shows each step with its figures. Rights ### Class, rights and control Each class, and each holding, valued on its own rights. Read the detail A company can set the rights and restrictions attached to its shares (section 254B of the Corporations Act 2001), and some private companies and unit trusts have more than one class. Classes can differ in votes, in dividends or distributions, and in what they get on a winding up. Each class, and each holding, is valued on its own rights. A holding that controls the company is a different thing from a small parcel with no say over distributions, management or a sale, so the two can be worth different amounts per share in the same entity. Limits in the constitution, a shareholders' agreement or the trust deed, such as who the shares can be sold to, are part of what is valued, so we read them before we start. Unless a tax provision says otherwise, market value has its ordinary meaning, which the ATO's guide explains as the price a willing but not anxious buyer and seller, both fully informed, would agree. The guide sets no percentage for a minority holding or for control, so the report states the holding, its percentage and its rights, and explains how they are reflected in the value. Gifts ### Gifts and transfers to related parties The tax law can look to market value instead. Read the detail Where shares or units are given away, or sold to a related party at something other than market value, the tax law can look to market value instead. For CGT, section 116-30 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 treats you as receiving the market value of an asset you give away, and where you sell to someone you did not deal with at arm's length for more or less than market value, it can substitute market value. On the other side, the receiver can start with a cost base equal to market value (section 112-20). Transfers to your own company, a family trust or a parent company are covered in more depth at [Related-Party Transfer Valuation Melbourne](https://businessvaluationsmelbourne.com.au/services/related-party-transfer-valuation/). Your accountant decides how the rules apply, including any roll-over; we provide the value. Buy-backs ### Off-market share buy-backs Either way the market value matters. Read the detail When a company buys back its own shares and they are not listed, the buy-back is an off-market purchase under Division 16K of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 (section 159GZZZK). For an unlisted company, the part of the price not debited to the share capital account is taken to be a dividend (section 159GZZZP). If the price is below the shares' market value, section 159GZZZQ treats the seller as receiving market value instead, subject to the rest of that section. That market value is worked out as if the buy-back did not happen and was never proposed; the ATO's practice statement PS LA 2007/9 explains that this keeps the buy-back itself out of the value. And where part of the price is a dividend and the price is above market value, the excess cannot be franked (section 202-45 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997). Either way the market value matters. We value the shares on that basis at the buy-back date; your accountant works out the tax. Estates ### Estates, succession and owners leaving The value at the date of death can still matter. Read the detail When shares or units pass through a deceased estate, a capital gain or loss on death is generally disregarded (section 128-10). The value at the date of death can still matter: for shares or units acquired before 20 September 1985, a beneficiary's cost base starts at their market value on the day the person died (section 128-15). Estates have their own page: [Estate and Succession Business Valuation Melbourne](https://businessvaluationsmelbourne.com.au/services/estate-and-succession-valuation/). Passing shares to the next generation during life is often a gift or related-party transfer, and the same market value rules can apply. When an owner leaves, the others or the company often buy the interest at a price the constitution, a shareholders' agreement or the trust deed may set. Buyouts between owners have their own page: [Partner and Shareholder Buyout Valuation Melbourne](https://businessvaluationsmelbourne.com.au/services/partnership-buyout-valuation/). Dates ### The valuation date The date matters as much as the figure. Read the detail Market value is fixed at a moment, so the date matters as much as the figure. For a gift or transfer it is the time of the CGT event, which your accountant confirms; for a buy-back, the time of the buy-back; for an estate, often the date of death. Where the date has passed, we value on what was known, or reasonably foreseeable, at that date, as the ATO's guide expects. Each past valuation date is +$495, agreed at engagement. We never value at a future date: the guide says a prospective assessment will not be considered reasonable or acceptable for tax. Documents ### Documents we need We tell you exactly what is needed before you engage. Read the detail We tell you exactly what is needed before you engage. For a share or unit valuation it is usually: - Financial statements for the last three years, and year-to-date management accounts - The share or unit register, showing the classes on issue - The constitution and any shareholders' agreement, or the trust deed and any amending deeds - Which holding is to be valued, and the date - Any recent sales, issues or buy-backs of shares or units, with their prices - Related-party loans and transactions - Your accountant's note of what the value is for, if they are instructing us Victoria ### Victoria: share transfers and landholder duty Share transfers are duty-free; landholder duty is the exception. Read the detail In Victoria, a transfer of shares or units has not attracted duty since 1 July 2002 (Duties Act 2000 s 7(3A)). The exception that catches Melbourne family groups is landholder duty. It can apply when someone acquires a significant interest in a company or unit trust holding Victorian land worth $1 million or more: 50% of a private company, 20% of a private unit trust, or 90% of a listed company. The SRO expects the acquisition statement, and the duty, within 30 days. That duty is worked out on the land, not on the shares, so a property valuer values the land, and we value the shares or units and the rest of the entity. Whether duty applies, and how much, is for your lawyer, your accountant or the SRO. ## What it costs One fee covers one entity valued at one date. Read the detail One fee covers one entity valued at one date. Where more than one entity is valued, such as a company and a unit trust, each extra entity is +$795; a value at a past date, such as a date of death, is +$495 per date. ## Common questions. ### Is a share worth its percentage of the business's value? Not necessarily. We value all the shares after net debt and surplus assets, then the holding on its class, rights and size. ### Does a minority discount apply? That depends on the holding and its rights. The ATO's guide sets no percentage for a minority holding or for control; the report explains how the rights affect the value. ### Do I need a valuation to give shares to family? Often. For CGT, giving shares or units away is treated as receiving their market value (section 116-30). Your accountant decides how the rules apply. ### Is there stamp duty on a share transfer in Victoria? Not on the transfer itself since 1 July 2002, but landholder duty can apply if the company or trust holds Victorian land worth $1 million or more and a significant interest changes hands. Your lawyer or the SRO confirms it. ### Can you value units in a unit trust? Yes, the same way as shares, on the rights the trust deed gives the units. ### How much does a share or unit valuation cost? $1,495 to $3,495 + GST by annual turnover up to $10 million, quoted in writing above that. Each extra entity is +$795; each past date +$495. ## Related services [Related-party transfers · Melbourne Related-Party Transfer Valuation Melbourne](https://businessvaluationsmelbourne.com.au/services/related-party-transfer-valuation/)[Partner and shareholder buyouts · Melbourne Partner and Shareholder Buyout Valuation Melbourne](https://businessvaluationsmelbourne.com.au/services/partnership-buyout-valuation/)[Estates · Succession · Melbourne Estate and Succession Business Valuation Melbourne](https://businessvaluationsmelbourne.com.au/services/estate-and-succession-valuation/) Sources - [Market valuation for tax purposes (guide)](https://www.ato.gov.au/law/view/document?docid=SGM/market_val), Australian Taxation Office - [Market valuation of assets](https://www.ato.gov.au/individuals-and-families/investments-and-assets/capital-gains-tax/market-valuation-of-assets), Australian Taxation Office - [Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 s 116-30: market value substitution rule](https://www.ato.gov.au/law/view/document?docid=PAC/19970038/116-30), ATO legal database - [Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 s 159GZZZQ: buy-backs, consideration](https://www.ato.gov.au/law/view/document?docid=PAC/19360027/159GZZZQ), ATO legal database - [PS LA 2007/9: share buy-backs](https://www.ato.gov.au/law/view/document?docid=PSR/PS20079/NAT/ATO/00001), Australian Taxation Office - [Income Tax Assessment Act 1997](https://www.legislation.gov.au/C2004A05138/latest/text), Federal Register of Legislation - [Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 (Division 16K)](https://www.legislation.gov.au/C1936A00027/latest/text), Federal Register of Legislation - [Corporations Act 2001 (ss 232, 233, 254B, 1337B)](https://www.legislation.gov.au/C2004A00818/latest/text), Federal Register of Legislation - [Duties Act 2000 (Vic), authorised version (ss 7(3A), 10, 20, 71, 79, 83, 86)](https://www.legislation.vic.gov.au/in-force/acts/duties-act-2000/141), Victorian Legislation - [Understanding landholder duty](https://www.sro.vic.gov.au/buying-property/landholder-duty/understanding-landholder-duty), State Revenue Office Victoria Talk to a valuer ## Tell us what you need valued. A fifteen-minute call confirms the package, the fixed fee and the delivery date, before you commit to anything. 03 8375 4177 Mon to Fri, 9am to 5:30pm Melbourne time Send the form and we reply within one business day. No documents needed to start. Last reviewed 10 November 2026 by Business Valuations Melbourne, Level 7, 55 Collins Street, Melbourne. Fixed fee from $1,495 + GST, confirmed in writing before we start. Call 03 8375 4177Get a fixed fee --- Business Valuations Melbourne · Level 7, 55 Collins Street, Melbourne VIC 3000 · 03 8375 4177 · https://businessvaluationsmelbourne.com.au/start/