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ABSD · Foreigners & SPRs · 2026

ABSD Singapore 2026: complete FAQ for foreigners and SPRs

By Winfred Quek · CEA R073319H · 10-minute read · Last reviewed July 2026

Facts verified: July 2026 · Source: IRAS ABSD page

If you are a foreigner or Singapore Permanent Resident researching what ABSD Singapore 2026 will cost you on a property purchase, this page answers the questions I hear most often. The rules for non-citizens are specific, the numbers are large, and the mistakes are expensive. Read this before you sign anything.

The key facts: Singapore's Additional Buyer's Stamp Duty applies to almost every residential purchase by a non-citizen, the 60% foreigner rate that came into effect in April 2023 is still in force as of July 2026, and there are a small number of legitimate paths to reduce or recover the duty depending on your nationality, marital status, and purchase structure.

What is ABSD and who has to pay it in Singapore?

Additional Buyer's Stamp Duty (ABSD) is a tax on top of the standard Buyer's Stamp Duty (BSD) that Singapore applies to residential property purchases. It was introduced in 2011 and has been raised multiple times since, most significantly in April 2023 when the foreign buyer rate jumped from 30% to 60%.

ABSD is paid by the buyer, not the seller. It is calculated on the purchase price or the market value of the property, whichever is higher. It is due within 14 days of exercising the Option to Purchase (OTP) or signing the Sale and Purchase Agreement. ABSD cannot be rolled into your mortgage; it must be paid in cash.

Who must pay it:

• Singapore Citizens buying a second or subsequent residential property
• Singapore Permanent Residents buying any residential property
• Foreigners (non-Singapore Citizens, non-PRs) buying any residential property, with narrow FTA exceptions
• Companies, trusts, and other entities buying any residential property

ABSD applies to private condominiums, landed houses, apartments, HDB resale flats (where foreigners are not eligible to buy at all), and executive condominiums after the 10-year privatisation period. It does not apply to commercial or industrial property.

What are the ABSD Singapore 2026 rates for foreigners, SPRs, and Singapore Citizens?

The rates below are the current ABSD Singapore 2026 rates. They have been unchanged since the April 2023 revision.

Source: IRAS Additional Buyer's Stamp Duty. Always confirm the applicable rate before signing.

ABSD is applied to the full purchase price, not a portion of it. A foreigner buying a S$2M condo pays 60% of S$2M, which is S$1.2M in ABSD alone, before BSD. Use the ABSD calculator to model your specific numbers.

Did the 60% foreigner ABSD rate change in 2026? Is it still in effect?

Yes, the 60% foreigner rate is still in effect as of July 2026. It was introduced on 27 April 2023 by the Ministry of Finance and IRAS as part of a coordinated set of cooling measures. No changes to this rate have been announced since.

The 2023 hike was the single largest ABSD increase in the policy's history, doubling the foreign rate from 30% to 60% in one move. The stated intent was to moderate demand from foreign buyers in a market where Singaporeans and PRs were already facing affordability pressure. The data since 2023 shows foreign buyer volumes dropped significantly, which suggests the measure has achieved its stated objective. That makes a near-term reversal unlikely from a policy perspective.

If you are planning a Singapore property purchase as a foreigner and are waiting for the rate to fall, there is no current signal from the government that a reduction is coming. The more productive question is whether you qualify for an FTA exemption, or whether your purchase structure can be optimised within the existing rules.

Which nationalities are exempt from the 60% foreigner ABSD rate under Free Trade Agreements?

Under Singapore's Free Trade Agreements, nationals of certain countries receive Singapore Citizen equivalent ABSD treatment. As of 2026, this applies to citizens of:

• United States of America
• Switzerland
• Iceland
• Liechtenstein
• Norway

A qualifying national from one of these countries pays 0% ABSD on their first Singapore residential property, 20% on the second, and 30% on the third and subsequent. That is a saving of 60 percentage points on a first purchase compared to the standard foreign rate.

The exemption comes from Singapore's bilateral FTAs and multilateral agreements (the US exemption flows from the US Singapore FTA; the European countries are covered under the EFTA Singapore FTA). These are treaty obligations, not temporary concessions.

If you hold dual citizenship, you should confirm the applicable treatment with IRAS directly or via a conveyancing lawyer before signing. The interaction of dual citizenship with FTA ABSD treatment is fact-specific.

How is ABSD calculated and when is it due?

ABSD is calculated as a flat percentage of the higher of the purchase price or the market value assessed by IRAS. If you negotiate a price below market value, IRAS will apply ABSD to the market value, not the discounted transaction price. This matters for distressed sales and intra-family transfers.

The payment timeline:

• If you exercise an Option to Purchase (OTP): ABSD is due within 14 days of exercising the OTP.
• If you sign a Sale and Purchase Agreement directly (common for new launches): ABSD is due within the timeframe specified in the S&P Agreement, typically 14 days from the date of the agreement.
• For sub-sales and other transfer instruments: within 14 days of the instrument date.

ABSD is a cash cost. It cannot be financed through your bank mortgage, and it cannot be paid using CPF funds (CPF housing withdrawal is for BSD and downpayment only). For a foreign buyer purchasing a S$3M condominium, the ABSD alone is S$1.8M, due in cash within 14 days. This is the single most important planning consideration for foreign buyers: the cash requirement at signing is substantially larger than the downpayment alone.

Run your total upfront cash requirement through the ABSD calculator before committing to a purchase. The number that matters is BSD plus ABSD plus the minimum cash downpayment, not just the deposit.

What is developer ABSD remission for new launches and how does it work?

Developers of new residential projects must pay ABSD on their land acquisitions, but they can claim a full remission of that ABSD if they complete construction and sell all units within 5 years of acquiring the land. This is the developer ABSD remission scheme.

This has no direct bearing on what a buyer pays. As an individual buyer of a new launch unit, your ABSD is based on your own buyer profile (foreigner, SPR, or SC), not the developer's land acquisition costs. The developer remission is a supply-side measure designed to keep residential development commercially viable; it does not transfer to purchasers.

The indirect effect is that developer pricing can sometimes be calibrated to the additional cost burden they carry if they fail to sell within 5 years, which creates genuine pressure on developers to price competitively in slower markets. But this is a developer economics consideration, not a buyer ABSD reduction mechanism.

Should an SPR buy a property alone or jointly with a Singapore Citizen spouse?

This question comes up constantly for SC/SPR couples and the answer depends on your specific situation, your existing property holdings, and your longer-term portfolio plans. I cannot give you a direct recommendation here, but I can lay out the structural logic so you understand what the key variables are.

The key difference between sole SPR purchase and joint SC/SPR purchase:

The strategic question is whether you want to optimise for the immediate purchase (lower ABSD now) or for future flexibility (keeping each spouse's ABSD count lower for subsequent purchases). These goals sometimes point in opposite directions.

For a personalised assessment of your specific situation, speak with a property advisor who can model both paths against your actual numbers. Book a 30-minute consult with Winfred Quek (CEA R073319H, Crestbrick) to run the numbers on your specific SC/SPR ownership structure.

What is the ABSD spousal remission scheme for SC/SPR couples buying a matrimonial home?

When a married couple buys a new matrimonial home while already owning an existing one, the purchase technically triggers ABSD at the second-property rate. The spousal remission scheme allows couples where at least one spouse is a Singapore Citizen to claim a full refund of that ABSD, provided they sell the existing property within 6 months of the new property's completion or TOP date.

The conditions are strict:

1. At least one spouse must be a Singapore Citizen at the time of purchase.
2. Both spouses must be named on the title of the new matrimonial home. A sole-name purchase does not qualify.
3. All existing residential properties must be sold within 6 months of the trigger date (legal completion for resale; TOP for new launch).
4. Neither spouse can hold any interest in any other residential property after disposal.

The ABSD is paid upfront at stamping and refunded by IRAS after successful disposal and submission. There is no escrow arrangement. On a S$1.5M purchase with 20% ABSD, that is S$300,000 tied up in cash until the existing property is sold and the IRAS remission claim is processed.

For a full breakdown of the remission process, cash flow implications, and failure modes, see the detailed ABSD remission guide for married couples.

What is the step-by-step process to claim ABSD remission after selling the existing property?

The remission claim process runs through the IRAS myStampDuty portal. Here is the sequence:

The most common reason remission claims are rejected is that the 6-month deadline was missed. The second most common is that the new property was held in one spouse's sole name. Both are avoidable with proper planning before signing.

For a more detailed walkthrough, see the ABSD remission claim process guide.

What are the most common ABSD mistakes made by foreigners and SPRs in Singapore?

These are the errors I see most frequently when buyers come to me after the fact:

• Buying before obtaining PR. If you are on an Employment Pass planning to convert to PR, your ABSD rate as a foreigner is 60%. If you buy first and obtain PR after, you pay the 60% foreigner rate permanently on that transaction. The rate does not get retrospectively revised when your status changes. If PR is on the horizon, the sequencing decision between obtaining status and buying property is worth careful thought.
• Joint purchase with SC spouse without understanding the ABSD implications. Some SPRs assume that buying jointly with an SC spouse automatically gives them the SC rate. It does for a first-property joint purchase (SC 0% rate applies if it is the first property for both). But if the SC spouse already owns a property, the joint purchase attracts SC second-property ABSD. Knowing which scenario applies before the OTP is signed is essential.
• Assuming FTA treatment applies automatically. If you are a qualifying FTA national, you must still be aware that the benefit requires a personal-name purchase. Buyers who default to using a company structure because their accountant or home-country advisor recommended it for other reasons inadvertently pay 65% entity ABSD instead of 0%.
• Not having the cash ready. The 14-day ABSD payment deadline from OTP exercise is absolute. Foreign buyers who plan to remit funds from overseas need to account for international transfer timelines, bank processing delays, and currency conversion. A week is not always enough lead time. Plan for ABSD payment to arrive before OTP exercise, not after.
• Buying the new property before finalising the remission conditions. Couples who structure a transaction for matrimonial remission but put the new property in one spouse's name, or who retain a small share in an older property that was not properly discharged, forfeit the remission entirely. Confirm title structure and property count with your conveyancer before signing, not after.
• Treating ABSD as a reason not to buy when the asset's long-term returns absorb it. At 60%, foreign ABSD is punishing. But for some buyers in the right situation, a Singapore property's appreciation, rental yield, and portfolio role still justifies the all-in cost. The math has to be done honestly, not emotionally. If the 10-year numbers work at post-ABSD cost, ABSD is a price of entry, not a deal-breaker.

Are there any announced or expected ABSD changes in 2026?

As of July 2026, no changes to ABSD rates have been announced by the Ministry of Finance, IRAS, or the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). The rates in the table above are current.

Singapore reviews property cooling measures periodically in response to market conditions. The 2023 hike was driven by elevated transaction volumes and rising prices in a low-rate environment. Since then, transaction volumes have moderated and the SG property market has seen steadier, slower price growth rather than the rapid appreciation of 2021 to 2022. Whether this prompts any relaxation of cooling measures is speculative.

The government has historically been reluctant to signal rate changes in advance. Policy shifts, when they come, tend to be announced with immediate effect. Buyers should plan around current rates rather than anticipated future changes. If you are weighing a purchase now versus later on the basis of potential ABSD reduction, be aware that this is a bet on policy, not a calculation you can make with any confidence.

Track the ABSD Singapore 2026 hub page and the ABSD explained guide for updates if any policy changes are announced.

Get a personalised ABSD assessment before you commit

ABSD for foreigners and SPRs involves more moving parts than a rate table can capture. Your total cash exposure at signing, the interaction between your current property holdings and your intended purchase, whether you qualify for FTA treatment, and how your ownership structure affects future ABSD on any subsequent purchase are all decisions that compound.

The calculation is not complicated once you have the right inputs. The problem is that most buyers get the inputs wrong because they are working from a generic guide rather than from their specific situation.

Related guides on ABSD Singapore 2026

• ABSD Singapore 2026: every rate, every remission, every legal angle
• ABSD remission for married couples 2026: timeline, conditions, refund amount
• How to claim ABSD remission from IRAS: step by step 2026
• ABSD FTA exemptions: which nationalities pay SC rates in Singapore
• The HDB upgrader guide: timeline, ABSD, and financing

Winfred Quek is an Associate Marketing Consultant at Crestbrick Pte Ltd, advising Singapore upgraders, investors, and family offices. CEA R073319H. The information on this page is general and does not constitute financial, investment, or mortgage advice. Always verify applicable ABSD rates with IRAS or your conveyancing lawyer before transacting.

Run the numbers on your purchase using the ABSD calculator.