What tax applies when you sell a home in Singapore?
IRAS charges seller's stamp duty (SSD) if you sell a home within its holding period. For a home bought from 4 July 2025 onwards, the holding period is 4 years, and the rates are 16%, 12%, 8% and 4% for a sale in the first, second, third and fourth year. For a home bought from 11 March 2017 to 3 July 2025, the period is 3 years, at 12%, 8% and 4%. SSD is charged on the sale price or, if it is higher, the market value, and you must pay it within 14 days of the sale contract, unless you are a seller IRAS exempts, such as a foreigner who must sell under the Residential Property Act. IRAS says gains from selling a property in Singapore are generally not taxable, as they are capital gains, but they may be taxed if you buy and sell with a profit-seeking motive or are deemed to be trading in properties.
Seller's stamp duty and the holding period
IRAS says SSD is payable on residential properties and residential land acquired on or after 20 February 2010 and sold or otherwise disposed of within the holding period.
On 3 July 2025, the Government announced two changes for residential properties purchased on and after 4 July 2025. The holding period would rise from three to four years, and each tier's rate would rise by four percentage points. There was no transition period.
For a home bought from 4 July 2025 onwards, IRAS's table sets the rate at 16% for a sale within 1 year, 12% after more than 1 and up to 2 years, 8% after more than 2 and up to 3 years, and 4% after more than 3 and up to 4 years. After more than 4 years, no SSD is payable. For a home bought between 11 March 2017 and 3 July 2025 (all inclusive), the rates are 12%, 8% and 4%, and no SSD is payable after more than 3 years.
The duty is worked out on the sale price or, if it is higher, the market value on the date of sale. In IRAS's example, a home bought on 7 July 2025 and sold on 9 May 2026 for S$1,800,000 attracts SSD of 16%, or S$288,000. A sale on or after 7 July 2029 would attract none.
How the dates are counted
IRAS says that in most cases, both the date of purchase and the date of sale are the date an Option to Purchase is accepted. Otherwise, it is the date of the sale and purchase agreement. An option that is subject to the signing of an agreement does not count. For a flat bought new from HDB, the purchase date is the date of the Agreement for Lease. The steps of an option are set out in how buying a private home works, from the option to completion.
According to IRAS, some transfers keep an earlier date. An inherited home is dated from when the deceased acquired it. A share transferred on divorce under the remission rules is dated from the later of the marriage and the transferring spouse's acquisition. In IRAS's example, though, a share given by a spouse as a gift counts from the date of the gift.
Paying SSD, and who is exempt
IRAS says you must pay SSD within 14 days from the date of the executed sale contract, and the payment cannot be deferred.
IRAS's page on late payment of stamp duty sets the penalty for a delay of up to 3 months at S$10 or an amount equal to the duty, whichever is greater. For a delay beyond 3 months, it is S$25 or 4 times the duty, whichever is greater. A disclosure that qualifies under IRAS's Voluntary Disclosure Programme can reduce the penalty to 5% a year, calculated daily.
Your law firm must complete IRAS's SSD declaration form. The form need not be sent to IRAS, but IRAS advises law firms to keep it for at least 5 years.
IRAS lists sellers who need not pay SSD, with no application needed. Among them are owners whose homes are acquired by the Government, individuals adjudged bankrupt who must sell as a result, foreigners who must sell under the Residential Property Act, and some HDB flat owners required to sell under HDB's rules.
Is the gain taxed?
IRAS says gains from selling a property in Singapore are generally not taxable, as they are capital gains. They may be taxable if you buy and sell property with a profit-seeking motive, or are deemed to be trading in properties. IRAS's page on selling adds that the gains will be taxed if your main income comes from trading in properties.
IRAS names some of the criteria it uses to decide whether a person is trading in properties: how often they buy and sell, their reasons for buying and selling, their financial means to hold a property for the long term, and the holding period. Taxable gains are declared under 'Other Income' in the Income Tax Return.
Property tax in the year of the sale
IRAS says property tax is payable yearly in advance, so you must pay the full year's tax before selling. What the buyer repays you is a private arrangement, usually worked out by your lawyer, and IRAS does not apportion it.
If you are eligible for the owner-occupier rates but have not applied, you must apply at least 6 weeks before the transfer. IRAS does not accept an application once you have stopped being the owner. How the yearly tax is set is explained in how much property tax a home owner pays.
Where a consultancy fits in
A property consultancy can help you find the dates that set your holding period and weigh the timing of a sale. Whether a gain is taxable turns on IRAS's own criteria, and the SSD declaration is your law firm's work.