Stamp Duty for Foreign Buyers
What foreign buyers and Malaysian permanent residents actually pay in stamp duty on a residential property purchase in Malaysia, under the current law.
Foreign buyers (non-citizens, excluding PRs): flat 8%
Effective 1 January 2026, non-citizens (other than Malaysian permanent residents) pay a flat 8% stamp duty on the instrument of transfer for residential property, under Item 32(ab) of the Stamp Act 1949 as inserted by the Finance Act 2025 (Act 874), section 29(b). This replaced the previous flat 4% rate — a doubling, not a new tax.
Source: Finance Act 2025 (Act 874), amending the Stamp Act 1949 — administered by LHDN (Inland Revenue Board of Malaysia).
Malaysian citizens and permanent residents: tiered 1–4%
Malaysian citizens and PRs continue to pay stamp duty on a progressive scale, applied to each band of the purchase price (or market value, whichever is higher):
- 1% on the first RM100,000
- 2% on the next RM400,000 (RM100,001–RM500,000)
- 3% on the next RM500,000 (RM500,001–RM1,000,000)
- 4% on any amount above RM1,000,000
Source: Stamp Act 1949, First Schedule, as administered by LHDN.
How it is assessed
Stamp duty is assessed by LHDN on whichever is higher: the actual purchase price, or the market value determined on adjudication. It is due on the Memorandum of Transfer (MOT), separate from any legal fees.
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