Estate duty has been removed for deaths on and after 15 Feb 2008.
For deaths before 15 Feb 2008.
When clearance is not required
You can claim the items kept in the boxes subject to the bank's/financial institution's/Certis CISCO's policy and condition.
You should give to the bank/financial institution/Certis CISCO a declaration of the value of the contents to the best of your knowledge
The surviving co-owner can sign a Statutory Declaration (SD) at HDB to transfer the flat to his or her name.
The surviving co-owner must declare to the best of his or her knowledge and belief that:
- The HDB flat was the only immovable property of the deceased and;
- The total value of the deceased's other assets is not more than $600,000 at the date of death.
If the surviving co-owner passed away without making the above declaration, the executor/administrator of his or her estate can make the above declaration for the first death.
You can contact HDB at +65 6490 1111.
When clearance is required
Most death cases would require a court order authorising the person named therein to administer the estate of the deceased. This court order, in general is called the Grant of Representation.
If there is a valid Will, it is called the Grant of Probate. The person named therein is called an executor. If there is no Will, it is called the Grant of Letters of Administration. The person named therein is called an administrator.
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What to do? |
Who to approach? |
| Step 1 |
Apply for Grant of Representation from High Court or Subordinate Courts, Singapore |
A lawyer from any private law firm; or
Legal Aid Bureau
To find out whether you qualify for Legal Aid, please contact:
Legal Aid Bureau
45 Maxwell Road
The URA Centre, East Wing
#08-12
Singapore 069118
Tel : 1800-325 1424
Administrator/Executor may also apply on their own The procedures can be found at the Subordinate Courts website.
|
| Step 2 |
For most non-taxable cases which :
a) satisfy certain conditions and;
b) the date of death occurred on or after 1 Jan 2002 but before 15 Feb 2008
Submit Forms SC to the Subodinate Courts and proceed to Step 5.
When Forms SC is NOT applicable, proceed to Step 3.
|
The lawyer; or
Subordinate Courts, Singapore
|
| Step 3 |
Submit:
a) Estate Duty Return, Form ED;
b) Observations Form;
c) Schedule of Immovable Property (if appliable) and;
d) All other relevant supporting documents
to Commissioner of Estate Duties.
|
Commissioner of Estate Duties
55 Newton Road
Revenue House
Singapore 307987
Tel : +65 6351 3380
|
| Step 4 |
Pay the estate duty and interest as assessed by the Commissioner of Estate Duties.
After full payment is settled, the Commissioner of Estate Duties will issue a Schedule of Assets to the Courts.
The Schedule of Assets will be annexed to the Grant of Representation.
|
Commissioner of Estate Duties |
| Step 5 |
The executor will extract the Grant of Probate and distribute the assets according to the deceased's Will.
If the deceased did not make a Will, the administrator will extract the Grant of Letters of Administration and distribute the assets according to the Intestate Succession Act.
The lawyer will assist the executor/administrator to extract the Grant of Representation.
|
The lawyer; or
Subordinate Courts, Singapore; or
High Court, Singapore
|
For estates with simple asset structure at the time of death, the grant of representation may not be required but estate duty clearance is still required under certain circumstances.
Examples of such circumstances:
- Deceased transferred all his or her assets as gifts to someone else and the total market value exceeds the exemption threshold of $600,000 as at his or her death.
- Deceased passed away on or after 28 February 1996, where he or she only had bank accounts and dwelling house, both held in joint names with others. The total market value of the bank accounts exceeds $600,000 or the value of his or her share in the dwelling house exceeds $9 million as at his or her death.
- The market value of contents in the safe deposit boxes exceeds $10,000 with the same bank. Take an inventory of the contents in the safe deposit box and submit the inventory list to the Commissioner. Inventory taking is a must - regardless of whether the box is held in joint names or not. The market values of the contents as at the date of death, including any items removed by the surviving joint account holder, have to be declared.
The above examples are not exhaustive. There may be other cases where estate duty clearance is required even though the Grant of Representation is not obtained in Singapore.
The executor/administrator or joint owner may submit the following forms :
To : Commissioner of Estate Duties
55 Newton Road
Revenue House
Singapore 307987
Tel : +65 6351 3380