Malaysia Property Stamp Duty: MOT, Loan Agreement & Exemptions
Buying a property in Malaysia triggers two separate stamp duties, not one: duty on the Memorandum of Transfer (MOT) that moves the title into your name, and duty on the loan agreement if you finance the purchase. They are calculated on different bases and are easy to confuse. Here is how each works, what exemptions exist, and a full worked example using the exact rates this site's calculator applies.
1. Transfer (MOT) stamp duty — the big one
The Memorandum of Transfer is the instrument that legally transfers ownership. Its stamp duty is ad valorem — charged on tiered bands of the purchase price (or market value, whichever is higher), so each band only taxes the portion of the price that falls inside it:
| Portion of price (RM) | Rate | Duty on the band (RM) |
|---|---|---|
| First 100,000 | 1% | 1,000 |
| 100,001 – 500,000 | 2% | 8,000 |
| 500,001 – 1,000,000 | 3% | 15,000 |
| Above 1,000,000 | 4% | — |
2. Loan agreement stamp duty — a separate 0.5%
If you take a mortgage, the loan (facility) agreement is stamped at a flat 0.5% of the loan amount — not the property price. On a RM540,000 loan that is RM2,700. This is entirely separate from the MOT duty above, and buyers routinely forget to budget for it.
Legal fees for the sale and purchase agreement and the loan documentation are separate again — they are professional charges, not stamp duty, and follow the regulated solicitors' remuneration scale.
3. First-home and other exemptions
Malaysian first-time buyers have, across recent Budgets, received full or partial exemptions on both MOT and loan agreement stamp duty for homes up to a set price ceiling (commonly RM500,000 for a full exemption, with partial relief on higher bands). These schemes are announced Budget-by-Budget and carry conditions — Malaysian citizen, never previously owned a residential property, purchase within the qualifying window. Because the ceilings and percentages change every year, always confirm the current scheme on the LHDN or Ministry of Finance announcement before assuming you qualify. Transfers between family members (love and affection) also attract reduced rates.
Worked example: a RM600,000 home with a 90% loan
MOT duty: 1% on the first RM100,000 (RM1,000) + 2% on the next RM400,000 (RM8,000) + 3% on the remaining RM100,000 (RM3,000) = RM12,000.
Loan duty: a 90% margin means a RM540,000 loan, stamped at 0.5% = RM2,700.
Total stamp duty on the purchase is about RM14,700, before any first-home exemption and excluding legal fees and disbursements. Reproduce the MOT figure instantly with the calculator below, then layer in your loan amount.
Important caveats
These are the standard ad valorem rates for a normal sub-sale or new purchase and are a planning estimate only. Duty is charged on the higher of price or market value, exemptions change at each Budget, and commercial or leasehold transactions can differ. Confirm against LHDN and your conveyancing solicitor before committing funds.
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Last reviewed: 2026-07-05