BENGALURU: The Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FKCCI) has urged the govt to roll back the recent hike in stamp duty to ease the burden on the industry.
The govt had in Feb this year increased the stamp duty on non-registrable documents by 200-500%. According to FKCCI, real estate and small-scale industries are reeling under increased stamp duty costs.
The govt measure entailed a substantial revision in stamp duty rates for non-registrable documents like those needed in adoption, renting, leasing and transfer of property, divorce, transfer of shares, power of attorney, articles of association and memorandum of association of companies, affidavits and deposit of title deeds in case of pledge or mortgage.
FKCCI’s recent letter to the stamps and registration department said the hike has resulted in transactions slowing down and delays in payments.
Sources said representatives of the federation will soon meet the authorities on its request for a rollback of the hike.
FKCCI president MG Balakrishna said, “Because of this increase, macro and micro industries have been suffering. Stamp duty charges have gone up fivefold. But if the rates are this high, it would be tough for the upcoming industries as well, especially when the property prices have also gone up.”
He said industry organisations had not been consulted before the hike was effected. “It would be helpful if a few people from the industry were involved in these discussions to get more clarity on the ground picture,” he added.
Karnataka Small Scale Industries Association (Kassia) secretary Nagaraj S said, “The hike has seriously affected the small-scale industries as they require many legal documents like land agreements. Due to this, there has been a delay in payments.”
Even homebuyers and builders expressed their concerns over the duty hike. Dhananjaya Padmanabhachar of Karnataka Home Buyers Forum, said, “The stamp duty increase will have a very negative impact on homebuyers. They will have to think twice before investing in properties due to the surge in taxes. Any decrease can help middle-class buyers.”
Silverline Group chairman and managing director Farook Mahmood said, “Most homebuyers compromise a few things like interiors to make up for the rise in the stamp duty.”
