Key Takeaways
- Stamp duty in Gibraltar applies to dutiable instruments such as property transfers, share transfers, leases and mortgages, with rates varying by transaction.
- Non-resident buyers and investors may access reliefs and exemptions, including provisions for first and second-time buyers, spousal transfers and forced sales.
- Payment and assessment follow defined procedures, with duty stamped through the electronic Land Registry at set points in a transaction.
- Companies and property investors should account for recent and proposed changes, including the off-plan special stamp duty, when planning transactions.
Introduction to Stamp Duty in Gibraltar
Stamp duty in Gibraltar is a real charge, not a nominal one. It applies to the transfer or sale of any Gibraltar real estate, and to transfers of shares in a company that owns such real estate, with the duty assessed on the market value of the underlying property. The governing law is the Stamp Duties Act 2005, amended several times since.
Although the territory levies no VAT, no capital gains tax, and abolished estate duty in 1997, stamp duty stands as one of its principal transactional taxes. This article explains how the duty works: the instruments it captures, the rates and reliefs, how payment runs through the electronic Land Registry, and the changes enacted and proposed since 2023.
The material is most relevant to foreign investors and corporate buyers acquiring property here, directly or through a company, and to advisers pricing a transaction before completion.
Legal Basis: The Stamp Duties Act 2005 and Its Amendments
The charge derives from the Stamp Duties Act 2005, as amended by the Stamp Duties (Amendment) Act 2010 and later instruments. It reaches only transactions involving real estate situated in the territory; assets and instruments with no property nexus fall outside it.
Duty is imposed on the instruments listed in Schedule 1 of the Act, levied on behalf of the Government. The legislation defines a "conveyance on sale" broadly, capturing any instrument, decree, or court order that vests dutiable property in a purchaser or someone acting for them.
Gifts are not a way around the charge. A voluntary disposition between living persons is treated as if it were a conveyance on sale, with the market value of the real property substituted for a sale price.
Two amendments matter for any current calculation. The Stamp Duties (Amendment) Act [No. 37 of 2024] was passed into law on 23 December 2024 and came into operation that day, raising rates and formalising the first-time buyer exemption increase. Separately, the Land Registry Portal and Electronic Stamping Act 2023 created the electronic processing system through which all new deeds pass from 1 August 2023.
Company Incorporation in Gibraltar
Set up your company in Gibraltar with Expanship handling registration end to end.
Dutiable Instruments and Transactions (Property Transfers, Share Transfers, Leases and Mortgages)
The duty attaches to instruments, not merely to economic outcomes. A direct transfer or sale of local real estate is the obvious case, but several other arrangements are equally caught.
- Share transfers in property-owning companies: transferring shares in a company that owns Gibraltar real estate triggers duty, assessed on the market value of the underlying property rather than the share consideration.
- Gifts and voluntary dispositions: charged as conveyances on sale, using market value as the base.
- Leases: an agreement to let land for a term of up to 35 years, or for an indefinite term, is charged as though it were an actual lease for that term and consideration; where the consideration is produce or goods, their value is treated as consideration for ad valorem duty.
- Mortgages: charges secured on local real estate carry their own duty, separate from conveyance rates.
Where one transaction involves several instruments, the parties may nominate the principal instrument and pay ad valorem duty on that one. This avoids duplicate charging across documents that together effect a single deal.
Buying property through a company that owns it does not escape duty. The charge is measured against the market value of the underlying real estate, so an indirect acquisition is taxed much like a direct one.
Current Stamp Duty Rates on Real Estate Transfers
The rates below took effect on 23 December 2024 under the 2024 Amendment Act. They apply to buyers who do not qualify for first- or second-time buyer relief, and to non-residential property. Duty is assessed on market value, so structuring a transaction at an undervalue does not reduce the liability.
| Property value | Duty |
|---|---|
| £200,000 or less | 0% |
| £200,001 – £350,000 | 2% on the first £250,000; 5.5% on the balance |
| £350,001 – £800,000 | 3% on the first £350,000; 3.5% on the balance |
| £800,001 or more | 3% on the first £350,000; 3.5% on the next £450,000; 4.5% above £800,000 |
The headline structural change in 2024 was the new 4.5% top slice on amounts exceeding £800,000. For high-value acquisitions, this materially raises the cost of completion compared with the position before that date.
Ongoing Compliance in Gibraltar
Keep your Gibraltar entity compliant with filings, returns, and statutory obligations.
Stamp Duty on Mortgages and Charges
Mortgage duty is charged on the loan, not the property. Where the mortgage amount is below £200,000, the rate is 0.13%; above that figure, it rises to 0.20%. This sits on top of any conveyance duty due on the same purchase.
A distinct rate applies to one narrow class of asset. From 1 July 2021, the purchase of a berth at Small Boats Marina carries a special 5% stamp duty.
Public data does not confirm whether discharge of a charge or a second-charge mortgage attracts separate duty. The general principle is that Schedule 1 of the Act sets out the dutiable instruments, and you should verify the treatment of subordinate charges directly with the Commissioners of Stamp Duties before relying on a calculation.
First and Second-Time Buyer Relief and the £300,000 Threshold
Relief exists for first- and second-time buyers, but it is reserved for individuals. No duty is payable on the first £300,000 of the purchase cost, whatever the total price, provided the property is valued below £800,000.
The £300,000 threshold replaced the earlier £260,000 figure with effect from 11 July 2023, the date of the Chief Minister's budget speech. The 2024 Amendment Act later legislated the change, with the exemption increase deemed to operate retroactively from that date. Land Property Services applied the higher threshold administratively from the budget speech, ahead of the formal amendment.
For qualifying buyers, the resulting bands run as follows:
- 0% on the first £300,000
- 5.5% between £300,001 and £350,000
- 3.5% on amounts above £350,000
Corporate entities are explicitly excluded from this relief. A company buying property, whether directly or through shares, is taxed at the full non-qualifying rates with no benefit of the £300,000 allowance.
Gibraltar Incorporation Pricing
See transparent pricing to incorporate and maintain a company in Gibraltar.
Exemptions and Special Rates (Spousal Transfers, Affordable Housing, Forced Sales)
Some transfers carry no duty at all. Transfers between spouses are charged at nil, and the exemption extends to former spouses following the dissolution of a marriage.
Government-developed affordable housing has its own regime. No duty is payable on the initial purchase price of property on such estates, but a special 7.5% rate applies to a resale within the first ten years from the original purchase.
That 7.5% charge does not bite on a forced sale. Divorce cases and a meritorious upgrade to a larger, newer government affordable home both fall outside it.
Two further measures sit on the table but are not yet law. The 2024 Budget announced that the 7.5% duty would not apply to the sale of an affordable home following an open-market acquisition, though no amendment or administrative confirmation has followed. The June 2025 Budget announced a review into a possible exemption for genuine inter vivos family reorganisations, with the Minister for Financial Services and the Commissioners tasked with designing safeguards against abuse.
Several reliefs described in budget speeches have not been written into the Stamp Duties Act. Until an amendment is in force, the existing rates apply, and you should confirm the live position before completing.
How and When Stamp Duty Is Assessed and Paid (Electronic Land Registry Stamping)
Budget for the duty as cash at completion. It is paid upfront and is typically not financed within mortgage packages, so the full amount must be available separately from the loan.
Since 1 August 2023, all new deeds are processed and registered through the electronic Land Registry Portal created by the Land Registry Portal and Electronic Stamping Act 2023. Registration keeps a public record of property transactions under the Land Titles Act 2011, but unlike the UK system it serves record-keeping purposes only and confers no priority rights comparable to those of the UK Land Registry.
Registry fees rose alongside the portal. From 1 August 2023, the cost of registering a document increased from £175 to £250 per deed, and the search fee rose from £10 to £30 per search.
On the statutory deadline for stamping after execution, public data is not specific. The Act requires instruments to be duly stamped; for the exact timeframe, confirm directly with the Commissioners of Stamp Duties.
Recent and Proposed Changes: The Off-Plan Special Stamp Duty and 2024 Amendments
The clearest recent development is the 2024 Amendment Act, enacted on 23 December 2024. It raised the overall rate schedule, introduced the 4.5% top bracket above £800,000, and formalised the £300,000 first- and second-time buyer threshold.
A second change is moving through the pipeline. In July 2024 the Government announced that purchase agreements and assignments of off-plan purchases would become registrable instruments, with a 0.5% special stamp duty payable by the assignor on assignment. A bill to implement this was published on 27 March 2025.
That off-plan duty is not yet in force. It will not apply until the Act is formally amended, and sales on subsidised estates are confirmed to be excluded.
A review rather than a measure, the June 2025 Budget proposal on inter vivos family reorganisations remains under evaluation. The PwC Gibraltar Tax Budget summary records the position as one of assessment, not enactment.
Practical Implications for Companies and Property Investors
For corporate buyers, the duty is a fixed cost of entry that cannot be engineered away. Acquiring property indirectly through shares is charged on the underlying market value, and companies receive none of the first- or second-time buyer relief, so every corporate purchase meets the full non-qualifying rates.
High-value deals carry the heaviest burden after December 2024. The 4.5% top slice above £800,000 lifts the effective blended rate on premium property, a figure to build into any acquisition model.
Investors pursuing off-plan assignment strategies should price in the proposed 0.5% duty on assignment. It is published in a bill but not enacted, and subsidised estates are carved out.
Two structural points shape the wider picture. Most modern property is held on long leaseholds of 150 years less seven days, which affects both the transfer mechanics and future exit costs. With no capital gains tax and estate duty abolished in 1997, stamp duty at acquisition is effectively the primary one-time government charge on a property investment, payable upfront and rarely financed within a mortgage. The PwC summary of other taxes sets out how this fits the broader corporate tax position.
Conclusion
For a foreign investor or company weighing a Gibraltar property or share acquisition, the off-plan special stamp duty is the sharpest variable to price in before committing to a structure, because it can alter the cost basis of a transaction that is not yet complete. The reliefs and exemptions that exist are real, but they are conditional, and whether a given buyer or entity qualifies will determine whether Gibraltar's stamp duty position looks attractive or merely manageable.
The one concrete step this reader should take next is to confirm, against the specific instrument and counterparty in their planned transaction, which rate and which relief category actually applies, before contracts are exchanged.
How Expanship Can Help Your Business in Gibraltar
Expanship advises foreign owners on the stamp duty exposure of a planned acquisition, whether the property is bought directly or through a company holding it, and helps structure and complete the transaction through the electronic Land Registry. The same team supports the wider needs of a foreign-owned entity established in the territory.
- Company formation and incorporation
- Registered agent and registered office services
- Tax registration and filing with the relevant authorities
- Ongoing compliance and statutory maintenance
- Accounting and bookkeeping
- Introductions to local banking partners
To discuss a property purchase or an incorporation, contact Expanship Gibraltar for tailored guidance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Stamp duty is payable on the transfer or sale of any local real estate, and on transfers of shares in a company that owns such real estate. The duty is assessed on the market value of the property, so the contract price will not reduce the liability if it falls below market value.
For buyers without first- or second-time buyer relief, no duty applies up to £200,000, then graduated rates run through the bands up to £800,000. Above £800,000, a 4.5% top slice applies to the excess, alongside 3% on the first £350,000 and 3.5% on the next £450,000. These rates took effect on 23 December 2024.
No. Corporate entities are explicitly excluded from first- and second-time buyer relief. Every corporate acquisition is taxed at the full non-qualifying rates, with no benefit of the £300,000 allowance available to individuals.
Transfers between spouses are charged at nil. The exemption also covers transfers between former spouses following the dissolution of a marriage, so a divorce-related transfer does not trigger duty.
Yes. Mortgage duty is charged on the loan amount: 0.13% where the mortgage is below £200,000 and 0.20% where it exceeds that figure. This is an additional charge on the borrowing, distinct from the duty on the conveyance itself.
Not yet. A bill published on 27 March 2025 would impose a 0.5% special duty on assignments of off-plan purchase agreements, payable by the assignor, with subsidised estates excluded. It will not apply until the Stamp Duties Act 2005 is formally amended.
Legal Disclaimer
The information provided in this article is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, tax, or professional advice. While we strive to ensure the accuracy and timeliness of the content, laws and regulations are subject to change, and the application of laws can vary widely based on specific facts and circumstances.
Readers should not act upon this information without seeking professional counsel tailored to their individual situation. Expanship and its authors disclaim any liability for actions taken or not taken based on the content of this article.
For specific advice regarding your business setup, compliance requirements, or any legal matters, please consult with qualified legal and tax professionals in the relevant jurisdiction.
