Buy and sell a house within a year

SSD is payable on all residential properties and residential lands that are acquired on or after 20 Feb 2010 and disposed of within the holding period.

Determining SSD Liability

Whether the disposal is subject to SSD and the amount payable will depend on:
A. The type of property sold or disposed
B. The date of purchase or acquisition
C. The date of sale or disposal
D. Rates applicable

A. The Type of Property Sold or Disposed of

The property is a residential property.

B. The Date of Purchase or Acquisition

1. If a residential property is acquired on or after 20 Feb 2010, SSD is payable if the residential property is disposed of within the holding period.

   In most instances, the date of purchase/ acquisition of a property refers to:

1. Date of Acceptance of the Option to Purchase* or
2. Date of Sale and Purchase Agreement or
3. Date of Agreement for Lease (for new HDB flat) or
4. Date of Transfer where the above (a), (b) and (c) are not applicable

*Excludes an option to Purchase that is subject to the execution/ signing of the Sale and Purchase Agreement



2. In some instances, the date of purchase/ acquisition of an interest in a property depends on the manner which it was acquired:



Manner of Acquisition of that interest in the property	Date of Acquisition of that interest in the property
Transfer pursuant to divorce where it fulfills Stamp Duties (Matrimonial Proceedings) Remission Rules (MP rules)	1. Date of the Marriage (that has ended); or 2. Date the interest was acquired by the transferor prior to the transfer; whichever is later.
Transfer pursuant to inheritance	Date the interest was acquired by the deceased
Transfer of HDB Flat within Family where it fulfills  Stamp Duties (Transfer of HDB Flat Within Family) Remission Rule	Earliest date of acquisition of the flat by any of the existing owners, and who continually holds an interest in the flat from the time of acquisition to disposal



3. For a property where the zoning of the land or the permitted use changes:
• If the vacant land or entire building with land which you are disposing of has been re-zoned from non-residential purposes to "Residential", "Residential/ Institution", "White", "Commercial & Residential" or "Residential with Commercial at first storey", the date of acquisition of the property is the date of the rezoning.
• If the building units or part of an entire building which you are disposing of has its permitted use being changed from non-residential purposes to residential/ mixed-residential purposes, the date of acquisition of the property is the date of the change of use.


4. For Selective En bloc Redevelopment Scheme (SERS) replacement flat, the date of purchase refers to the date of the executed Agreement for Lease. While sellers may have fulfilled the Minimum Occupation Period for SERS replacement flat, sellers may still be subject to SSD if the sale is within the SSD holding period, which commences from the date of Agreement for Lease. Please see FAQ below.

C. The Date of Sale or Disposal

In most instances, the date of sale/ disposal of a property refers to:

1. Date of Acceptance of the Option to Purchase* by the buyer to the seller's offer to sell or
2. Date of Sale and Purchase Agreement or
3. Date of Transfer where (a) and (b) are not applicable

*Excludes an option to Purchase that is subject to the execution/ signing of the Sale and Purchase Agreement

D. Rates Applicable

The rates of SSD payable on residential property acquired on and after 20 Feb 2010 and disposed of within certain duration, are summarized in the table below:

SSD payable to be rounded down to the nearest dollar.

Rates and Computation

SSD is computed by applying the requisite SSD rate on the higher of the selling price or the market value of the residential property as at the date of sale or disposal.

Where parts of the residential property were acquired by the vendor at different times, the holding period for each part acquired will be computed from the respective acquisition date.

Where the sale or disposal comprises only a partial interest in the residential property, SSD payable will be based on the higher of the selling price or market value of the partial interest.

Exemptions from SSD for Residential Properties under the Stamp Duties Act

SSD for residential properties is exempt for sellers / transferors under the following scenarios. No application to Commissioner of Stamp Duties is required for the sellers / transferors.

1. Licensed housing developers who are governed under the Housing Developers (Control and Licensing) Act need not pay SSD when selling residential properties developed by them.
2. Public authorities (e.g. HDB and JTC) in exercising their functions and duties need not pay SSD when selling residential properties.
3. Residential property owners need not pay SSD when their properties are acquired by the Government under the Land Acquisitions Act.
4. Individuals who own residential properties need not pay SSD if they have been adjudged a bankrupt and are required to dispose of their residential properties as a result of bankruptcy.
5. Companies that own residential properties need not pay SSD when disposing of their residential properties upon involuntary winding up.
6. Foreigners need not pay SSD when they have to sell their residential properties as required under the Residential Property Act.
7. For HDB flat sellers or transferors who bought or acquired their flats on or after 30 Aug 2010 and their flats have been identified for Selective Enbloc Redevelopment Scheme (SERS) but sell their flats in the open market before HDB claims them.
8. HDB flat sellers or transferors who return their flats to HDB as a result of re-possession by HDB or under the SERS.
9. A person who owns an HDB flat and inherits another HDB flat, is required under the HDB’s regulations to dispose of either the inherited HDB flat or the existing HDB flat. This exemption applies to disposal of flats on or after 18 Dec 2015.
10. A person who owns a non-HDB flat and inherits an HDB flat, is required under the HDB’s regulations to dispose of the inherited HDB flat. This exemption applies to disposal of flats on or after 18 Dec 2015.
11. A person who owns an HDB flat marries a person who owns another HDB flat and the couple is required under the HDB regulations to dispose of either one of the HDB flats. This exemption applies to disposal of flats on or after 18 Dec 2015.

Remission of SSD for Residential Properties under the Remission Rules

Non-licensed developers may be eligible for remission of SSD when selling residential properties developed by them only if they are registered companies or businesses, and are lawfully carrying on the business of housing development.

You can e-Stamp via the  e-Stamping portal to obtain the remission certificate.

Administration

1. Payment of SSD can be done via the  e-Stamping Portal.
2. For details on payment modes, you may wish to refer to  How to Pay Stamp Duty.
3. Law firms representing the sellers are required to fill in a  Seller's Stamp Duty for Residential Properties Declaration Form. The completion of this form is mandatory.
4. The completed form need not be submitted to IRAS. However, law firms are advised to retain the original declaration forms for at least 5 years from the date of sale/ disposal of the property as IRAS may request for it for audit purposes.

FAQs

SSD must be paid within 14 days from the date of the executed sale contract, otherwise, a penalty will be imposed for late stamping and payment. There is no deferment of stamp duty payment.

However, for properties undergoing collective sale, requests may be considered favorably for the waiver of the penalty incurred up to the later of the following dates, whichever is applicable:

(1) Date that the Strata Titles Board grants the Collective Sale Order;

(2) 30 days from the date of decision made by the High Court with no further objection; or

(3) Date of decision made by the Court of Appeal.

Such requests are subject to the following conditions:

(1) The collective sale contract is stamped and

(2) The waiver request is submitted to the Commissioner of Stamp Duties where both conditions are fulfilled within 14 days from the date of the executed contract.

To submit the request for waiver, please perform the following steps:

(1) Log on to e-Stamping Portal

(2) Select "Requests"

(3) Select "Apply for Assessment/ Appeal/ Remission"

(4) Provide the document reference number which was generated upon stamping

(5) Select "E-appeal" as the nature of request. Please be informed that requests to waive penalties incurred up to the date that the collective sale is legally completed or the date that you receive the sale proceeds will not be acceded to.