Ask The Experts

What’s the difference between Property Tax and Stamp Duty?

Q: What’s the difference between Property Tax and Stamp Duty?  

A: According to the Ministry of Finance of Trinidad and Tobago, “Stamp Duty is a tax that you must pay when carrying out certain transactions that require legal documents.  Deeds of Conveyance, Deeds of Gift, Deeds of Mortgage, Release of Mortgage Loan, Release of Life Insurance Policies, Transfer of Shares, Deeds of Lease, Deed Polls, Bonds, and any other deeds, require “stamping”, which means you must pay duty.” While Property Tax is a payment levied for owning a property payable on an annual basis.

The Property Tax is 3% of the (ATV) Annual Taxable Value for Residential properties and 5% of the Annual Taxable Value for Commercial properties.

The Annual Taxable Value is 90% of the Annual Rental Value of the property.

The Annual Rental Value is pre-determined by the Board of Inland Revenue.