Stämpelskatt
Stämpelskatt is the Swedish duty the state charges when a fastighet (a Swedish property unit) changes owner or when a new inteckning (mortgage registration) is taken out on it. The duty is calculated as a percentage of a set base and is paid to Lantmäteriet as part of the lagfart or pantbrev application.
The rules are set out in lag (1984:404) om stämpelskatt vid inskrivningsmyndigheter. When a fastighet is bought, the rate is 1.5% for private individuals, bostadsrättsföreningar and municipalities, and 4.25% for legal persons such as limited companies and handelsbolag. The higher rate for legal persons was raised from 3% to 4.25% on 01/01/2011. A purchase agreed before the turn of the year in 2011 kept the old rate even if lagfart was applied for after the year end.
The base for the calculation is not necessarily the purchase price. The act requires the duty to be calculated on the higher of the purchase price and the taxeringsvärde for the year before lagfart is granted, rounded down to the nearest thousand kronor. If the purchase price is below the taxeringsvärde, for example in sales within the family or below market value, the buyer still pays on the taxeringsvärde. This floor value does not exist in the Norwegian system.
Inheritance, division of property on separation and outright gifts are exempt from stämpelskatt: you pay only the fixed expeditionsavgift of SEK 825 for the lagfart itself. The line between a gift and a purchase is drawn at 85% of the previous year's taxeringsvärde. If the recipient pays, or takes over debt, for an amount below that limit, the transfer counts as a gift and no stämpelskatt applies. When the consideration reaches 85% or more, Lantmäteriet treats the whole transfer as a purchase, and full stämpelskatt applies to the consideration. This limit is a common planning detail in family transfers and generational handovers in Swedish commercial property.
A separate, lower rate of 2% applies when a new inteckning is taken out on the fastighet, that is, when a new pantbrev is issued. Because a pantbrev follows the fastighet and can be reused by the next owner, many buyers avoid this cost in full or in part by taking over the seller's existing pantbrev instead of applying for new ones.
Formally, both parties are jointly liable for payment, but in practice it is the buyer who pays the stämpelskatt on the purchase, since it is the buyer who applies for lagfart. If the buyer does not pay, Lantmäteriet can claim the amount from the seller instead.
The Norwegian counterpart is dokumentavgiften, which is 2.5% of the sale value and is paid on tinglysning of the skjøte. Two differences make the comparison less than straightforward. Norway has a single rate whatever type of buyer is involved, while Sweden draws a sharp line between private individuals and legal persons. It is precisely this difference that makes Swedish commercial property very often sell as a limited company rather than as a direct sale of the fastighet: the buyer takes over the shares in the company that owns the fastighet, and so avoids both lagfart and stämpelskatt, since ownership of the fastighet itself never formally changes hands. Norway also has no floor value corresponding to the taxeringsvärde; dokumentavgift is always calculated on the sale value alone.
From Placepoint's dictionary: Stämpelskatt
More information: Lag (1984:404) om stämpelskatt vid inskrivningsmyndigheter, Lantmäteriet: Stämpelskatt och avgifter
English: Stamp duty on a property transfer or a new mortgage registration.
Frequently asked questions
What is stämpelskatt?
Stämpelskatt is the duty the state charges when a fastighet changes owner or when a new inteckning is taken out on it, paid to Lantmäteriet as part of the lagfart or pantbrev application.
How much is stämpelskatt in Sweden?
1.5% for private individuals buying a fastighet, and 4.25% for legal persons such as limited companies. For a new inteckning (pantbrev) the rate is 2%.
What is stämpelskatt calculated on?
The higher of the purchase price and the taxeringsvärde for the year before lagfart is granted, not the purchase price alone.
Why is Swedish commercial property often sold as a limited company?
Because selling the shares in the company that owns the fastighet does not trigger a new lagfart or stämpelskatt, since the fastighet does not formally change owner.
Do I have to pay stämpelskatt when I inherit or am given a fastighet?
No, inheritance, division of property on separation and outright gifts are exempt. The line is drawn at 85% of the previous year's taxeringsvärde: if the recipient pays more than that, the transfer counts as a purchase and full stämpelskatt applies.
What is the difference between stämpelskatt and Norwegian dokumentavgift?
Norway has a single rate, 2.5%, whatever type of buyer is involved, while Sweden distinguishes between private individuals (1.5%) and legal persons (4.25%) and has a floor value in the taxeringsvärde that Norway lacks.