FIRS to tenants: Pay 6 percent stamp duty to landlords and property managers

Landlords and property agents have been directed by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) to charge six percent Stamp Duty on all tenancy and lease agreements.

WITHIN NIGERIA gathered that the landlords/ property agents will send the collections to FIRS so that they do not run foul of the Stamp Duty Act.”

This directive was contained in a statement released by the tax agency on Wednesday by the Director, Communications and Liaison Department Abdullahi Ahmad.

The statement read;

“Property-related transactions like tenancy or lease agreement fall under the Ad Valorem category of the stamp duty which attracts six per cent duty payable in percentage of the total value or sum of the tenancy or lease.

According  to him, the burden of payment of the six per cent  “lies on the beneficiary of the tenancy or lease agreement, whom the Stamp Duty Act identified as the tenant or renter.”

He added that “the responsibility of collection and remittance fall on the landlord or agent in charge of the property for lease or rent. The  party making the payment shall have the obligation to account for the applicable stamp duties.”

Some other Stamp Duty types and their rates, according to the statement , are; Appraisement or Valuation of Property , .5 per cent; Certificate of Occupancy and  Partnership, N1,000 flat rate; Gift of Land, 1.5 per cent and Legal Mortgage, 0.375 per cent.

Others are Legal Mortgage (Upstamping), 0.375 per cent; Deed of Conveyance or Transfer on Sale of Property,  1.5 per cent; Memorandum of Understanding (Related to Land, Sales, Joint Venture, Surrender, Subdivision Agreements, 1.5 per cent; Power of Attorney (Irrevocable/Land Related), 1.5 per cent   and  Sales Agreement, 1.5 per cent.

Stamp Duties payment is enabled by the Stamp Duties Act (SDA) 1939, as amended by numerous Acts and various resolutions contained in the Laws of the Federation of Nigeria. The SDA also provides a list of documents in its schedule and the duty payable on each.

The Finance Act 2019 states that: “the Federal Inland Revenue Service shall be the only competent authority to impose, charge and collect duties upon instruments specified in the Schedule to this Act if such instrument relates to matters executed between a company and an individual, group or body of individuals.”

The total Stamp Duty collection for 2019 was N18 billion.