The 35-year-old batsman has been with the Sydney Thunder since the competition started in 2011 but will make the move to Queensland, where he's played his first-class cricket since 2012.

He'll captain the Heat when not on international duty, with Jimmy Peirson to fill in when he's not available.

Khawaja said he'd expected to play his entire BBL career with the Thunder but the appeal of playing at home was too much to turn down.

"I've said it for a long time, that Brisbane is home, Queensland is home, and to be here, captain of Queensland, and now joining the Heat - it is really exciting," he said.

"It wasn't an easy decision, it was a very tough one, but the timing just feels right. I like to say I used to be an honorary Queensland and now I am one.

"I have been loosely tied with the Heat through my Queensland roles for several years, and so I am looking forward to the challenge of trying something new by joining them now."

Khawaja is the Thunder's all-time leading run-scorer with 1818 at a tidy average of 34.3, having made two BBL 100s and 10 50s.

Australian Associated Press