Stamp Duties Amendment Act 2005
STAMP DUTIES AMENDMENT ACT 2005

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BERMUDA

2005 : 6

STAMP DUTIES AMENDMENT ACT 2005

Date of Assent: 24 March 2005

Operative date: 1 April 2005

WHEREAS it is expedient to amend the Stamp Duties Act 1976:

Be it enacted by The Queen's Most Excellent Majesty, by and
with the advice and consent of the Senate and the House of Assembly of
Bermuda, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

Short title
1 This Act, which amends the Stamp Duties Act 1976 (the
"principal Act"), may be cited as the Stamp Duties Amendment Act 2005.

Interpretation
2 In this Act, "Head" means a Head in the Schedule to the
principal Act.

Amends section 1 of principal Act
3 Section 1 of the principal Act is amended by inserting in the
appropriate alphabetical order the following definitions 

"Bermudian status" has the meaning which is assigned to that
expression under section 4 of the Bermuda Immigration and
Protection Act 1956;

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"primary family homestead" means the property designated
under section 47A as a primary family homestead;

"Registrar" means the Registrar of the Supreme Court;

"residential property" means real property in Bermuda which
consists of a house or a condominium or other unit which is
used wholly or mainly as a private dwelling.

Amends section 47 of principal Act
4 Section 47 of the principal Act is amended by inserting next after
subsection (1) the following subsection —

"(1A) A certified copy of the primary family homestead certificate
(if any) issued by the Tax Commissioner under section 47A(6)(c)
shall be submitted to the Supreme Court on an application for
probate or letters of administration."

Inserts sections 47A to 47D in principal Act
5 The principal Act is amended by inserting next after section 47
the following sections

"Designation of primary family homestead by owner
47A (1) Stamp duty shall not be charged in respect of the value
of any residential property passing on a death (occurring on or
after 1 April 2005) of an individual to whom this section applies
if his property is designated under this section as his primary
family homestead.

(2) This section applies to an individual who owns, or
otherwise has an interest in, residential property which is
situated in Bermuda and who has Bermudian status.

(3) An individual to whom this section applies (hereinafter
the "individual") may make an application to the Tax
Commissioner to designate his residential property as his
primary family homestead.

(4) An application to the Tax Commissioner shall be in
writing in such form as the Tax Commissioner may determine
and contain the following information 

(a) the applicant's name, current address and date of
birth;

(b) the name of the owner or owners of the residential
property in respect of which the application is made;

(c) a description of the applicant's interest in the
property and of any other person's interest therein;

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(d) the date when the applicant's interest was acquired;

(e) a description of the property sufficient to identify the
property; and

(f) every assessment number relating to the property.

(5) An application under subsection (2) shall be submitted
together with such information as the Tax Commissioner shall
reasonably require to make a decision including, in particular 

(a) documentary proof of ownership; and

(b) documentary proof of Bermudian status of the
applicant.

(6) On receipt of an application under this section, the Tax
Commissioner 

(a) shall consider the application and approve it if the
Tax Commissioner is satisfied that the applicant
owns, or otherwise has an interest in, the property
which is the subject of the application;

(b) shall give notice to the applicant in writing of the
decision in respect of the application; and

(c) where she approves the application, shall issue a
certificate in the prescribed form certifying the
designation of the property as the primary family
homestead.

(7) Only one designation may be held at any time by an
individual under this section; such designation may be changed
by application in writing to the Tax Commissioner for this
purpose.

Designation of primary family homestead by estate
representative
47B (1) Subject to subsection (2), where an individual dies
without designating a residential property as his primary family
homestead, his estate representative may, at any time before he
submits an affidavit of value under section 47, designate the
deceased individual's property as the primary family homestead
under section 47A.

(2) For the purposes of subsection (1), where the deceased
individual's estate consists of more than one residential
property, the estate representative 

(a) shall designate the residential property where the estate
owner resided at the time of his death as the primary

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family homestead, provided that property forms part of
the estate; or

(b) shall designate the property of least value as the primary
family homestead, where the estate owner did not reside
in any of his residential properties at the time of his
death.

Record of primary family homesteads
47C (1) The Tax Commissioner shall cause to be compiled and
maintained a record, in such form as the Tax Commissioner may
determine, of properties which have been designated as the
primary family homestead under section 47A.

(2) The record shall be kept in the Tax Commissioner's
Office and shall be available for inspection by the Registrar and
estate representative.

Appeals
47D (1) Any person aggrieved by a decision of the Tax
Commissioner under section 47A may, within fourteen days after
receiving notice from the Tax Commissioner of the decision,
appeal to the Supreme Court against that decision specifying the
grounds thereof.

(2) On an appeal under this section, the Court may make
such order as it sees fit."

Amends section 48 of principal Act
6 Section 48 of the principal Act is amended in subsection (1) by
inserting the following paragraph next after paragraph (a)

"(ab)the value of the property which is designated under section
47A as the primary family homestead:

Provided that, no person may claim in his affidavit of
value a deduction under this paragraph if he has
claimed a deduction for the value of that sum or
property under paragraph (b), (c) or (d)."

Amends principal Act
7 (1) The sections specified in the left-hand column of Schedule 1
are amended in the manner respectively specified in the right-hand
column of that Schedule.

(2) The Heads which are specified in the left-hand column of
Schedule 2 are amended in the manner respectively specified in the
right-hand column of that Schedule.

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(3) The paragraphs of Head 31 which are specified in the left-
hand column of Schedule 3 are amended in the manner respectively
specified in the right-hand column of that Schedule.

Commencement
8 (1) Subject to this section, this Act comes into operation on 1
April 2005.

(2) Nothing in this Act affects an instrument if on or before 1
April 2005 the instrument had been received by the Tax
Commissioner —

(a) in complete and final form (save for stamping) for the
purpose of stamping; or

(b) accompanied by a request in writing for his opinion on
the instrument under section 22 of the Stamp Duties Act
1976.

SCHEDULE 1 (section 7(1))

Section
35(4)

delete "$5" and substitute "$25".

Section
38(2), (4)
and (5):

delete "$5" and substitute "$25".

Section
41:

delete "$5" and substitute "$25".

SCHEDULE 2 (section 7(2))

Head 1: delete "$5" and substitute "$25".

Head 3: delete "$20" and substitute "$25".

Head 4: delete "$10" and substitute "$25".

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Head 7: delete "$50" and substitute "$100".

Head 11: delete "$20" wherever it occurs and substitute "$25".

Head 16: delete "$100" and substitute "$200".

Head 22: delete "$10" wherever it occurs and substitute "$25".

Head 23: delete "$50" and substitute "$200".

Head 27(i): delete "$10" and substitute "$25".

Head 32: delete "$15" and substitute "$25".

Head 33: delete "$10" and substitute "$100".

Head 39: delete "$50" and substitute "$200".

SCHEDULE 3 (section 7(3))

Head 31 (Mortgages)

paragraph
(i):

(1) delete "¼ per centum of the principal sum secured" and
substitute "the following 

"(1) being a mortgage of immovable property 

(a) ¼ per centum of the principal sum secured, where
the sum secured is $400,000 or less;

(b) ½ per centum of the principal sum secured,
where the sum secured is more than $400,000;

(2) being a mortgage of movable property 

(a) ¼ per centum of the principal sum secured, where
the sum secured is $100,000 or less;

(b) ½ per centum of the principal sum secured,
where the sum secured is more than $100,000;

(3) ¼ per centum of the principal sum secured, where the
instrument is a bond, debenture (except a marketable
security otherwise specially charged with duty) or warrant
of attorney."

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paragraph
(ii):

delete the full stop at the end of the paragraph and
substitute "under paragraph (i) of this Head."

paragraph
(iii):

delete "1/20th per centum of the principal sum secured"
and substitute the following

"(1) being an equitable mortgage of immovable property

(a) ¼ per centum of the principal sum secured, where
the sum secured is $400,000 or less;

(b) ½ per centum of the principal sum secured,
where the sum secured is more than $400,000;

(2) being an equitable mortgage of movable property 

(a) ¼ per centum of the principal sum secured, where
the sum secured is $100,000 or less;

(b) ½ per centum of the principal sum secured, where
the sum secured is more than $100,000."

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