5 Points You Need To Know About Stamp Duty
1. Stamp Duty is a tax on dutiable documents relating to any immovable property (“property”) in Singapore and any stock or shares.
2. Late Payment Of Stamp Duty
If you do not meet the deadline, you may have to pay a penalty.
A penalty of up to 4 times may be imposed on documents that are unstamped, stamped late or insufficiently stamped.
It is an offence to use a document for which Stamp Duty payment has not been made.
3. Dutiable documents include the following:
a. Lease / Tenancy Agreements for Properties
These are documents signed when you rent a property. Stamp Duty is calculated on the actual rent or market rent, whichever is higher.
b. Transfer Documents for Properties
There are three types of duties payable on the sale, purchase, acquisition or disposal of properties in Singapore:
* Buyer’s Stamp Duty (BSD)
* Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty (ABSD)
* Seller’s Stamp Duty (SSD)
BSD is payable on the purchase or acquisition of properties.
If you buy or acquire residential properties (including residential land) on or after 8 Dec 2011, ABSD may also be applicable.
If you buy or acquire residential properties and industrial properties on or after 20 Feb 2010 and 12 Jan 2013 respectively, SSD is payable if the properties are sold within the holding period.
4. If a document relates to more than one matter, Stamp Duty will be charged for each matter.
Eg : Two sets of Stamp Duty will be charged on a document for sale & lease-back of a property
Stamp Duty on the following documents:
a. Assignment of intangible assets such as Goodwill, Trademark and Patents
b. Assignment of book debts / receivables (e.g. sale proceeds)
c. Charter-party
d. Declaration to change from Joint Tenancy to Tenancy in Common in Equal Shares
e. Declaration to hold as Joint Tenants (by Tenants in Common In Equal Shares)
f. Deed of Appointment of Trustees – where it does not involve vesting of interest
g. Fixed and nominal duty documents (dated on and after 19 Feb 2011).
5. Exemptions
Under Section 36 of the Stamp Duties Act, the following documents are exempt from Stamp Duty :
a. Any document signed by, on behalf of or in favour of the government (not applicable to statutory boards and government-owned companies) and where the government is liable to pay the Stamp Duty on the document
b. Any document relating to the sale, transfer, lease or mortgage of properties situated outside Singapore
c. Any document relating to the transfer of shares in a company incorporated outside Singapore (foreign company) and where the transfer document is lodged for registration in a share register kept outside Singapore
d. Any document signed by, on behalf of or in favour of a co-operative society registered under the Co-operative Societies Act and relating solely to the business of the co-operative society, where the co-operative society is liable to pay the Stamp Duty on the document
e. Any document whereby any security is assigned, transferred or negotiated through the Monetary Authority of Singapore under the Exchange Control Act (Cap 99)
f. Any instrument made by the Collector of Land Revenue under Land Acquisition Act
g. Any transfer lodged under Section 125 or 126 of the Land Titles (Strata) Act (This is applicable to a transfer relating to the application for the issue of subsidiary strata certificates of titles)
h. Any document made in favour of the estate of any bankrupt or of the Official Assignee
i. A lease or an agreement for lease executed on or after 1 June 2012 for the renting of a flat directly from HDB under the Public Rental Scheme
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