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RES learning guide

Stamp duties

BSD, ABSD and SSD are separate duties with different triggers, rates and timing. Learn which duty the facts engage before doing arithmetic.

Built for the RES examination syllabus that applies from 1 January 2027. CEA has published a revised syllabus for examinations from that date. Examinations held in 2026 and earlier use the RES Examination Syllabus 2017 instead. The remaining 2026 papers are sat on 31 October 2026 and 1 November 2026; if that is your sitting, treat this as revision of the law rather than as a rehearsal of your blueprint, because the two syllabuses examine the same statutes under a different structure.

What changed between the two syllabuses · CEA's own statement of which syllabus applies

A reliable way to study this topic

  1. 1. Classify the factsName the transaction, person, document and date before recalling a rule.
  2. 2. Find the authorityRead the exact provision or regulator rule. Note what it does not cover.
  3. 3. Apply, then calculateUse the facts in the order the rule requires. Keep assumptions visible.
  4. 4. Test the edgesAsk what changes if the date, status, property type or client changes.

Apply it: Stamp duties questions

Every Freehold question shows why the right answer is right — and cites its source.

A licensed housing developer sells a completed residential unit it developed, six months after the temporary occupation permit was issued. What is its seller's stamp duty position?

  1. Duty is payable at 16%, the disposal falling in the first year of holding
  2. Duty is exempt for a licensed housing developer selling property it developed
  3. Duty is payable but may be remitted on application to the Commissioner
  4. Duty is payable at half the prevailing rate under a developer concession
Show answer & explanation

Duty is exempt for a licensed housing developer selling property it developed — Developers governed by the housing developers legislation sit in the statutory exemption list, so no application to the Commissioner is needed at all.

Source: IRAS — Seller's Stamp Duty (SSD) for Residential Property Exemptions from SSD for residential properties under the Stamp Duties Act · checked 2026-08-06

For seller's stamp duty purposes, what is normally taken as the date of disposal of a residential property?

  1. The date of legal completion, when the balance of the price is paid over
  2. The date the buyer's caveat is lodged against the property with the authority
  3. The date the buyer accepts the seller's offer by exercising the option to purchase
  4. The date the transfer instrument is registered and legal title passes across
Show answer & explanation

The date the buyer accepts the seller's offer by exercising the option to purchase — The holding period closes when the contract is made rather than when it completes, so a long completion does not push a sale outside the duty window.

Source: IRAS — Seller's Stamp Duty (SSD) for Residential Property C. The date of sale or disposal · checked 2026-08-06

A tenancy of a private residential unit reserves rent of S$900 a year and no premium. What stamp duty arises on the tenancy agreement?

  1. Duty at 0.4% of the total rent payable over the whole of the term
  2. A fixed duty of S$10 on the instrument, whatever rent it reserves
  3. None, the average annual rent not exceeding S$1,000
  4. Duty at 0.4% multiplied by four times the average annual rent
Show answer & explanation

None, the average annual rent not exceeding S$1,000 — The First Schedule exempts a lease where the average rent and other consideration calculated for a whole year stays at or below that figure.

Source: Stamp Duties Act 1929 First Schedule, Article 8, Exemption 1 · checked 2026-08-06

Primary sources used here

Open the source and confirm the current text before relying on a changing rate or limit.

Continue with a related RES guide

HDB transactions

Treat eligibility, occupation, resale and agency duties as separate questions. A case study often supplies one fact for each.

Property financing

Separate the security, the loan terms and the buyer's affordability rules. Do not turn an administrative limit into a timeless number.

Agency duties and conflicts

Identify the client, the consent required and the interest that must be disclosed before choosing an answer.

AML, PF and TF controls

Apply the risk-based process in order: identify, assess, verify, monitor and report. Do not collapse distinct duties into one slogan.

All learning guides · Unit 4: Property Transactions · Practise by unit or paper

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