Earn card rewards by paying your stamp duty through CardUp!
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Buying a property is an exciting process - the excitement of picking out a neighbourhood, the delight of visiting showrooms or checking out new units on the market, and the eventual joy of owning a place you can call home.
Purchasing property though, comes with many additional costs outside of the purchase price - with stamp duty being one of these costs. Introduced as a tax on documents relating to the purchase or lease of a property, stamp duty is made payable directly to the tax authorities, and is placed on all property transactions, be they residential, commercial or industrial.
Stamp duty comes in many different forms too – the compulsory Buyer’s Stamp Duty (BSD) which averages around 2 - 3% when buying a property, and the Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty (ABSD) when buying your second property onwards. Renting a property also comes with stamp duty, which is calculated based upon the Average Annual Rent (AAR) value. Here’s a more in-depth read into how these different forms of stamp duty are calculated.
As you have realised, the payment amount can add up to quite a bit, especially if you are a foreigner or if you are purchasing a second property. But what if we told you that there’s a way you can save on these payments?
Paying stamp duty with your credit cards
There are a number of different ways stamp duty can be paid, such as through your CPF Ordinary Account, internet banking, NETS, or cheque submissions to the approved Serviced Bureaus. While using your CPF is a popular payment option for stamp duty, there are also some cases where it makes more sense to leave more funds in your CPF accounts, and use other payment means instead.
Credit cards, on the other hand, are traditionally not accepted, but this is now changed with CardUp’s introduction of Stamp Duty as a new payment type.
CardUp is an online credit card enablement platform which enables you to shift your cash, cheque and bank transfer payments to your credit cards, even if your recipients do not accept cards. This lets you enjoy the benefits of paying with your credit cards, such as to earn rewards on this spend, as well as the convenience of making these payments online anytime, anywhere.
Stamp duty is one of these payments, and here’s an example of how much you could be saving when you make this payment with your credit card using CardUp.
How much can you earn on your Stamp Duty payments with CardUp?
For example, if you’re a Singaporean purchasing a residential property that costs $1,200,000. Your stamp duty will come up to:
1% on the first $180,000 = $1,800
2% on the next $180,000 = $3,600
3% on the next $640,000 = $19,200
4% on the remaining $200,000 = $8,000
Total stamp duty payable = $32,600
If you put this spend on your favourite air miles card, for example the BOC Elite Miles World Mastercard, you will get to enjoy:
This lets you enjoy a business class return flight to Bali at a 33% discount - perfect for that luxurious getaway!
For even larger payments, you get to enjoy even bigger savings with CardUp:
For example, if you’re a Singaporean purchasing your second residential property that costs $1,200,000, your buyer’s stamp duty and additional buyer’s stamp duty will add up to:
BSD (as calculated above) = $32,600
12% on the total residential property cost = $144,000
Total stamp duty payment = $176,600
This lets you enjoy even greater rewards:
This lets you enjoy a first class return flight to Paris, France at just a small fraction of the price - about $3,974 in CardUp fees that you are paying for this transaction.
How do you pay stamp duty on CardUp?
Here how you can get started:
1. Sign up for a free account and log in
2. Schedule a payment, and select 'Taxes & Stamp Duty' / 'Taxes & GST' as the payment type
3. Click on the Stamp Duty toggle to make your payment. The payee information is automatically filled in. Fill in the payment amount as per the outstanding amount shown in your Payment Slip, as generated on the IRAS e-Stamping portal. You are also required to enter the 14-digit payment slip number to assist the tax authorities with reconciliation.
4. Lastly, you are also required to upload an up-to-date copy of this Payment Slip to help our team assist with the verification of the payment.
5. Review and confirm your payment, and you’re all good to go!
With this new payment type introduced on our platforms, you will be able to rack up even more miles faster. Know of someone who is required to pay their stamp duty payments soon? Refer them to CardUp and earn with each new user you bring onto CardUp!
