Punjab cuts stamp duty to 1% in major property relief move

LAHORE: Giving major relief to property owners, stamp duty has been reduced from 3 percent to 1 percent.

The Punjab government has decided to provide major relief to owners of immovable properties, under which a proposal has been approved to reduce the stamp duty rate from 3 percent to just 1 percent across the province.

A meeting of the Punjab Assembly Standing Committee on Revenue was held under the chairmanship of Chairman Muhammad Ahmed Khan Leghari, in which the stamp ordinance was approved.

Now the stamp duty rate will be the same (1 percent) in urban and rural areas. Earlier, 1 percent duty was prevalent in urban areas and 3 percent in rural areas, which will now eliminate the problems arising from this.

Under the approved ordinance, necessary amendments will be made to the act, which also proposes to include “transferable contract”.

The Governor of Punjab has already approved this amendment ordinance on April 10. The main objective of this new law is to make the stamp duty system transparent, simple and uniform across the province.

After the report of the standing committee, this ordinance will be presented in the Punjab Assembly for formal approval.

This decision is expected to boost the property market and significantly reduce the cost of property transfer for ordinary citizens.