Stamp duty
A duty once charged on signed documents, including property sale contracts. Abolished from 1 January 2026; contracts signed up to 31 December 2025 still carry it.
Updated 12 Oct 2026How it works
Stamp duty was charged under the Stamp Duty Laws, dating from 1963, on many signed documents, including property sale contracts and leases. For a contract with a stated value, the rates were:
| Contract value | Rate |
|---|---|
| Up to €5,000 | Nil |
| €5,001–€170,000 | 0.15% |
| Over €170,000 | 0.20% |
| Maximum per contract | €20,000 |
The duty was due within 30 days of signing. On a €250,000 purchase it came to €407.50.
Law 239(I)/2025, published on 31 December 2025 as part of the tax reform, repealed the Stamp Duty Laws of 1963 to 2025 from 1 January 2026. The Tax Department confirmed this in January 2026, as KPMG reports. Documents signed from that date carry no stamp duty. Documents signed, even by only one party, up to 31 December 2025 remain subject to the duty under the old rules and must still be stamped. Since 1 April 2026, such documents are submitted first through the Tax Department's Tax For All (TFA) system.
Why it matters when you buy
For a sale contract signed in 2026 there is nothing to pay and no stamping step, for example before the contract is deposited at the Land Registry. If your contract was signed in 2025 or earlier, check that it was stamped: an unstamped contract remained valid between the parties, but it could not be used as evidence in court and could be refused by public authorities. Late stamping carries penalties.
Other purchase costs, such as VAT or transfer fees, did not change with the repeal.