Reset tax on transfer of property
The Hindu - Opinion · Published 12 November 2026 · Last updated
Stamp duty and registration fees form a vital part of States' own-source tax revenue, but high rates risk driving property transactions underground and necessitating scientific guideline values.
Key points
- In 2024-25, Stamp duty and Registration Fees (SDR) constituted 11.7% of States' own-source tax revenue in India.
- Tamil Nadu collected 11.3% of its own tax revenue through SDRs in 2024-25.
- Maharashtra and Karnataka collected 14.8% and 12.3% of their own tax revenues through SDRs respectively in 2024-25.
- The Tamil Nadu government recently constituted the Revenue Augmentation Committee to strengthen own-tax and non-tax revenues.
- SDRs are taxes imposed on the legal transfer of ownership of immovable property, thereby increasing the property's total effective cost.
- The State government fixes a guideline value and restricts registration of legal transfers below it to counteract the irony that property values are a function of SDR.
Background
- State governments historically relied on stamp duties and registration fees as steady contributors to own-source tax revenue under constitutional fiscal powers.
- States like Maharashtra and Karnataka developed higher reliance on SDR collections over successive fiscal cycles compared to peers like Tamil Nadu.
Prelims facts and Mains angle for this issue are in the full SWAदेSH note.
Original report: The Hindu - Opinion