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Stamp duty exemption on the purchase of residential property

Stamp duty exemption on the purchase of residential property under the National Home Ownership Campaign 2021

Under the Supplementary Strategic Programme to Empower the People and Economy (PEMERKASA Plus) announced on 31 May 2021, the Government proposed to extend the waiver of stamp duty on the instruments of transfer and loan agreements for the purchase of residential property priced from RM300,001 to RM2.5 million as part of the Home Ownership Campaign (HOC). The stamp duty exemption will be extended to 31 December 2021 (previously 31 May 2021) (see Special Tax Alert No. 4/2021).

To legislate this proposal, the following Exemption Orders were gazetted on 12 July 2021:

  • Stamp Duty (Exemption) (No. 4) Order 2021 [P.U.(A) 301]
  • Stamp Duty (Exemption) (No. 5) Order 2021 [P.U.(A) 302]

The Exemption Orders will only apply if:

(a) The sale and purchase agreement (SPA) for the purchase of the residential property is between an individual and a property developer.

(b) The purchase price in the SPA is a price after a discount of at least 10% from the original price offered by the property developer, except for a residential property which is subject to controlled pricing.

(c) The SPA is executed between 1 June 2021 and 31 December 2021 and is stamped at any branch of the IRB.

A HOC 2021 Certification issued by the Real Estate and Housing Developers’ Association (REHDA) Malaysia, Sabah Housing and Real Estate Developers’ Association (SHAREDA) or Sarawak Housing and Real Estate Developers’ Association (SHEDA) will need to be submitted by the individuals to the IRB in order to obtain the exemptions.

The following definitions have also been provided in the Exemption Orders:

a. Residential property

A house, a condominium unit, an apartment or a flat, purchased or obtained solely to be used as a dwelling house and includes a service apartment and a small office home office (SOHO) for which the property developer has obtained approval for a Developer’s License and Advertising and Sales Permit under the Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Act 1966, Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Enactment 1978, Sabah or Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Ordinance 2013, Sarawak

b. Individual

Purchaser of a residential property who is a Malaysian citizen or co-purchasers of a residential property who are Malaysian citizens

c. Property developer

Property developer registered with REHDA Malaysia, SHAREDA or SHEDA

The Exemption Orders are deemed to have come into operation on 1 June 2021.

Stamp Duty (Exemption) (No. 4) Order 2021 

The Order provides that any loan agreement to finance the purchase of a residential property valued from RM300,001 to RM2.5 million under the HOC 2021, will be exempted from stamp duty.

Stamp Duty (Exemption) (No. 5) Order 2021 

The Order provides that all instruments of transfer for the purchase of a residential property valued from RM300,001 to RM2.5 million (based on market value) under the HOC 2021, will be exempted from stamp duty in respect of up to RM1 million of the market value of the residential property. Stamp duty of 3% is to be charged on the value of the residential property in excess of RM1 million.

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