This is a tax imposed on documents or specific instruments which have legal effect. It is not a tax on transactions, but on documents brought into being for the purpose of recording transactions.

The Stamp duty is governed by the Stamp Duty Act, 2005 (Act 689) as amended.

The duty is imposed on a wide range of instruments listed in the first schedule of the Act which can be classified into:

  • Inspection Cases: These are documents that transfer interest in land namely; conveyance, gifts, assignment of lease, etc.
  • Non-inspection Cases: Examples are leases, sub-leases, mining leases, etc.
  • Financial Documents Examples are Mortgages, Liens, Promissory Notes, Performance Bonds, Guarantees, Agreements, Debentures, etc.
  • Light Documents: Examples include; Power of Attorney, Share Transfers, Certificates, Declarations, Vesting Assent, Probate, etc.

Stamping is the making of an impression on a legal document. Under the Stamp Duty Act, all security documents are required to be duly and properly stamped to render them admissible in evidence and enforceable in the courts of Ghana. An unstamped or insufficiently stamped document will therefore not be admitted into evidence in court and a person cannot rely on it to make his/her case.

The payment of proper Stamp duty on instruments makes them legal. Such instruments get evidential value and can be admitted as evidence in a court of law.

The amount of Stamp duty payable on the instrument are based on the rates provided under the provisions of the Stamp Duty Act, 2005 (Act 689) which are:

  • Ad valorem tax which ranges between 0.25% - 1% of the value of instruments/Document
  • Fixed amounts which ranges between GH₵0.05 and GH₵25

According to Section 48 of the Stamp Duty Act, The Commissioner – General may allow a person to submit particulars or extracts of an instrument which may assist in the assessment of duty to be sent by electronic means. The Commissioner – General on receipt of the particulars or extracts shall assess the duty payable and issue a stamp for the purpose of the instrument on payment of the duty. Where a person has provided the Commissioner General with an electronic address, the Commissioner General may serve an assessment made through that address and therefore the addressee is considered as served.

For the purposes above, the Commissioner – General may authorise an imprint to indicate the payment of appropriate duty.