Abolition of Stamp Duty Deferred ... Again

The New South Wales State Budget was handed down on 12 June 2012.

Among other changes to State taxes and grants, the:

• Abolition of stamp duty on unquoted marketable securities (that was supposed to take effect from 1 July 2012) was deferred until 1 July 2013

• Abolition of stamp duty on mortgages (that was supposed to take effect from 1 July 2012) has been deferred until 1 July 2013.

• Abolition of transfer duty on non land business assets (that was supposed to take effect from 1 July 2012) was deferred until 1 July 2013. 

The effect of these changes is that if you, or your clients, are considering entering into transactions under which unquoted securities or business assets are being acquired or a mortgage is being granted, stamp duty will (in the case of securities and mortgages) or may (in the case of business assets – depending on what they are) continue to be payable until at least 1 July 2013.

There is no guarantee, of course, that the abolishment of stamp duty on the transfer of unquoted securities, mortgages or non land business assets will not be deferred beyond 1 July 2013 but only time will tell!