Stamp Duty Calculator

The scale

The commercial rate scale that applies at Harrison Food Building

Five bands apply, revised with effect from 15 February 2023: 1% on the first S$180,000, 2% on the next S$180,000, 3% on the next S$640,000, 4% on the next S$500,000, and 5% on everything above S$1,500,000. The top marginal rate is 5%.

Because the scale is marginal rather than a cliff edge, the effective rate is always below the headline rate. At the indicative entry quantum of S$2,800,000 the duty works out at S$109,600, an effective rate of about 3.9% against a 5% top band. The table above shows every band, including any that the price has not yet reached, so the structure stays visible rather than reading as a single flat lookup. Verify the current scale with IRAS before commitment.

On exit

Seller's Stamp Duty on a Harrison Food Building unit

Industrial property carries Seller's Stamp Duty on a disposal within three years of acquisition, for properties acquired on or after 12 January 2013. The rate is 15% where the unit is sold within one year, 10% where it is sold in the second year, and 5% in the third year. Beyond three years no Seller's Stamp Duty is payable. It is charged on the higher of the selling price or the market value, and it is the seller's obligation, not the buyer's.

This is worth planning around at purchase: a food-factory fit-out is a multi-year investment in any case, and a three-year minimum hold sits comfortably inside that horizon. Where a unit is bought through a company and parts of the interest were acquired at different times, each part runs its own holding period. Confirm your position with IRAS.

No Additional Buyer's Stamp Duty arises on a purchase here, whoever the buyer is — an individual, a Singapore-incorporated company, or a foreign entity. That is a structural feature of the asset class rather than a concession, and it is one reason corporate and overseas buyers look at this segment.

GST

GST at 9% and recovery on a Harrison Food Building purchase

GST at 9% applies to the purchase price where the seller is GST-registered, which is the normal position on a developer sale. On a building under construction it is charged instalment by instalment as each stage falls due, not once at the end — including on the 20% payable across the eight-week option and Sale & Purchase period. Banks do not finance GST, so it is payable in cash at each stage. The purchase calculator shows the instalment-by-instalment position.

Whether the buyer can recover that GST as input tax cannot be determined from the outside; it turns on the entity making the purchase. An operating company — GST-registered and already carrying on taxable business activities — may generally claim it as input tax as it is incurred through construction. A non-operating company — newly incorporated, or an investment-holding vehicle not yet carrying on taxable activities — would not usually begin claiming during construction; claims may instead start once the property reaches TOP and operating activities commence. Both are guidelines only, and are subject to the rules set by IRAS.

Exclusions

What the Harrison Food Building stamp duty calculator does not cover

Legal and conveyancing fees, valuation fees, bank charges and mortgage duty on the loan all sit outside these figures, as does lease duty on a subsequent letting of the unit. The calculator also assumes the price you enter is the higher of price and market value; where IRAS assesses a market value above the transacted price, duty is computed on that higher figure instead.

Questions

Harrison Food Building stamp duty FAQ

Is stamp duty calculated on the price before or after GST?

Before GST. Buyer's Stamp Duty is assessed on the purchase price or market value of the unit, whichever is higher, and GST is charged separately on the purchase price at 9%. At S$2,800,000 the duty is S$109,600 and the GST is S$252,000, giving a GST-inclusive price of S$3,052,000.

Does a company or a foreign buyer pay extra stamp duty here?

No. Additional Buyer's Stamp Duty does not arise on a purchase at Harrison Food Building, whether the buyer is an individual, a Singapore-incorporated company or a foreign entity. Buyer's Stamp Duty on the commercial scale is the only duty on acquisition.

How long do I need to hold the unit to avoid Seller's Stamp Duty?

More than three years. Seller's Stamp Duty applies at 15%, 10% and 5% on a disposal in the first, second and third year respectively, and falls away entirely once the unit has been held beyond three years. It is charged on the higher of the selling price or market value and is paid by the seller.