Everything You Need To Know About Singapore’s New ABSD (Trust)

According to the latest 2022 rules, ABSD (Trust) remission may be payable upfront if you fulfill the applicable Stamp Duties’ remission conditions as an individual beneficiary.

For instance, you can get up to 35% or a part of it as a refund if you fulfill certain conditions for remission during property transactions.

You can submit an application for remission with the e-Stamping portal by visiting the “Requests” page on the official website.

Furthermore, your application for remission must list all applicable remissions if you submit multiple requests.

However, you have to submit your remission application within 6 months after you execute your trust instrument.

When you apply for ABSD remission for different trusts like a living trust, you have to fulfill various conditions before seeking remission.

Here are the conditions you have to meet to get ABSD remission on trusts.

• An identifiable individual beneficiary must hold residential property in trust to apply for ABSD remission.
• A trust must clear the IRAS dues before applying for remission.
• You must submit the remission application within 6 months after executing the trust instrument.

When you purchase a property or indulge in subsequent purchases for additional properties, you may have to pay ABSD to enjoy the benefits of ownership.

These ABSD rates differ for everyone, where foreign buyers have to pay an additional non-remittable ABSD rate (an additional 5% non-remittable ABSD) for property purchases.

However, you can apply for ABSD remission, depending on your residency status and property count.

For instance, if you are a Singapore permanent resident turning your property into living trusts, you can enjoy remission benefits under the buyer Singapore permanent residents’ template.

In short, you must receive your residency status from the ICA or Immigration and Checkpoint Authority to get lower ABSD liability.

Likewise, property count is also a crucial condition for remission, which helps in deciding beneficiary ownership and if an individual beneficiary owner is eligible for ABSD remission.

A living trust is a legal document issued by a grantor or trustor to put a property on trust.

A living trust comprises two individuals (grantor and trustee) where the grantor signs a legal document to designate the trustee for property management.

The trustee can have a personal connection with the grantor and can enjoy permanent or temporary access to the property, subject to conditions stated in the living trust.

After Singapore’s finance ministry announced the new Additional Buyer Stamp Duty or ABSD treatment for trusts norms, property owners will have to pay the revised 35% rate for putting a unit on trust or transfer on sale of residential properties.

However, you can claim ABSD remission if you meet certain conditions.

For instance, a Singapore citizen purchasing his 2nd property will have to pay a total buyer’s stamp duty of 21% (4% buyer stamp duty + 17% ABSD).

Furthermore, a Singapore citizen will have to pay 29% total BSD (4% BSD + 25% ABSD) if he purchases his 3rd property.

Likewise, Singapore permanent residents and foreigners will have to pay 30% of ABSD on top of their property purchase price if they purchase their 3rd or more properties.

On the other hand, the total BSD rate for entities or non-individual buyers can be up to 39% (4% BSD + 35% ABSD), depending on the upfront subject conditions.

In short, a non-housing developer will have to select the right property for investment and cope with the new ABSD norms to make it an attractive option.

An identifiable beneficial owner is the beneficiary declared in the legal document (trust) for a new unit or property in remainder.

The beneficial owner gains permanent or temporary access to the subject property, depending on the conditions stated on the trust document.

Additional Conveyance Duty (Trust)

Although additional conveyance duties (ACD) were evident for transfers of equity interests, ACD had some uncertainties with its treatment for transfers.

For instance, a significant owner (with or without an identifiable beneficial owner) will have to pay ACD while executing transfers.

Furthermore, IRAS has issued specific guidelines to determine whether an owner has reached the ACD threshold.

These guidelines will account for Property Holding Entities equity interests transferred on or after 10th May 2022.

However, the ACD norms will not cover an earlier transfer made before 10th May 2022.

Before the new ABSD norms kicked in on 9th May 2022, you didn’t have to pay ABSD while transferring a property into a trust with no beneficial owner.

However, due to a change in the financial situation and the demand for property in the broader property market, government authorities issued the new ABSD and ACD norms.

For instance, if you declare that you’ve purchased a property on trust for your minor child, who will become the beneficiary after attaining 21 years, you may not get ABSD remission.

However, you can submit a request with the IRAS, stating that your child will become the beneficial owner of the property to fulfill the refund conditions.

Likewise, a trust declaring a will triggers a testamentary trust, which can cover both residential and private properties.

Unfortunately, a testamentary trust is not applicable for ABSD trust remissions.

Renunciation Of Residential Property Held On Trust

After the new ABSD and ACD norms for trusts hit the Singapore property market, you may have witnessed several reports of rejections of residential properties held on trust.

The primary goal of these new rules is to stabilize the complex multi-layer ownership structure associated with living trusts.

In short, the new rule makes the process of transferring properties into trust more convenient and straightforward.

Here are the conditions which came into effect after the new norms came into effect.

• Beneficial ownership cannot be varied or revoked
• Beneficiaries have to be identifiable for infected devices or trusts
• You cannot initiate a property transfer for an unborn child
• The beneficiary should be the present or future owner of the transferred property

Living trusts in Singapore, including discretionary trusts, come under the new ABSD norms where you have to pay 35% upfront costs.

These norms apply to Singapore residential properties and involve various entities, including trustees for housing developers and trusts for housing developers.

The new norms also come with various conditions that are applicable for properties, including partnership property and subsidized property.

In short, the new ABSD rules will promote a sustainable and stable business of housing development, where trust instrument chargeable, duty in relation, advance legacy, and collection slip will play an integral part.

Furthermore, remission for development will enhance the property market and attract new developers to offer better products in the market.

You can visit the e-Stamping portal or consult a financial planner to know more about the new ABSD norms.