Documentary Stamp Tax on a Deed of Donation of Real Property

Donating real property does not exempt the transfer from documentary stamp tax (DST) — a deed of donation still carries DST at 1.5% of the property’s fair market value, filed on BIR Form 2000-OT, in addition to the separate 6% donor’s tax on the same gift. The absence of a purchase price changes what the tax is computed on, not whether it applies: DST taxes the deed of conveyance itself, while donor’s tax taxes the value transferred to the donee, and a parent donating a lot to a child owes both.

Why a gift still triggers documentary stamp tax #

Documentary stamp tax is an excise tax on the document that conveys real property, not on the money that changes hands, so a deed of donation is taxed the same way a deed of sale is — as a conveyance. Section 196 of the National Internal Revenue Code (NIRC), the provision governing DST on real property conveyances, reads:

“On all conveyances, deeds, instruments, or writings, other than grants, patents or original certificates of adjudication issued by the Government, whereby any land, tenement, or other realty sold shall be granted, assigned, transferred or otherwise conveyed to the purchaser, or purchasers, or to any other person or persons designated by such purchaser or purchasers, there shall be collected a documentary stamp tax, at the rates herein below prescribed, based on the consideration contracted to be paid for such realty or on its fair market value determined in accordance with Section 6(E) of this Code, whichever is higher.”

Section 196’s own wording centers on realty “sold,” which is why some tax commentary has debated whether a purely gratuitous transfer falls outside it. In administrative practice, that debate is settled: the BIR’s own guidelines for BIR Form 2000-OT list conveyances that are “sold, transferred, or donated” together as covered realty transactions, and tax practitioners consistently report DST assessed on donation deeds at the Section 196 rate. A notarized deed of donation is, functionally, still an instrument that “assigns, transfers, or otherwise conveys” real property to a designated person — the operative language Section 196 was written to reach — so the BIR treats it as within the same conveyance base and rate, not as a separate untaxed category.

The rate and the tax base when there’s no price #

DST on a donated real property is P15.00 for every P1,000 of fair market value — the same 1.5% rate that applies to a sale — computed on fair market value because a donation has no consideration to compare it against. Fair market value follows the same “whichever is higher” test used for a sale: the BIR zonal value set for the property’s location and classification, or the assessed value on the local tax declaration, whichever of those two figures is itself higher. Since a gift by definition has no selling price to test against that fair market value, the fair-market-value figure becomes the tax base outright, rather than being compared against a stated consideration as it would be on a deed of sale.

Worked example: a parent donates a residential lot to a child #

A parent executes a deed of donation transferring a residential lot to their adult child. The BIR zonal value for the lot is P4,000,000, and the local assessor’s fair market value on the tax declaration is P3,600,000 — so zonal value is the higher figure and becomes the tax base for both DST and donor’s tax.

That P60,000 is filed and paid on BIR Form 2000-OT — a separate obligation from the donor’s tax also triggered by this same gift. Donor’s tax under NIRC Section 99, as amended by the TRAIN Law (Republic Act No. 10963) and implemented by Revenue Regulations No. 12-2018, is a flat 6% on net gifts exceeding the ₱250,000 annual exemption. On this same ₱4,000,000 transfer, assuming no other gifts that year, the computation is (₱4,000,000 − ₱250,000) × 6% = ₱225,000 donor’s tax, filed on BIR Form 1800 within 30 days of the donation. For the full donor’s tax computation, exemptions, and filing mechanics, see What Is BIR Form 1800? Donor’s Tax Return Rates, Deadlines, and Filing Requirements — this post focuses on the DST side of the same transaction rather than re-deriving that computation.

DST and donor’s tax are not alternatives — both apply #

DST and donor’s tax tax two different things about the same donation, so neither one substitutes for the other: DST is an excise on the deed of conveyance, while donor’s tax is a tax on the value the donee receives. A donor who pays the ₱225,000 donor’s tax on the lot above still owes the separate ₱60,000 DST on the deed itself — the BIR does not treat one payment as covering both, and the local Registry of Deeds will typically require proof of both before transferring title into the donee’s name, alongside any local transfer tax the city or municipality imposes.

This dual liability is easy to overlook precisely because deeds of donation are colloquially thought of as “free” transfers between family members. Unlike a sale, where DST and capital gains tax are both widely understood costs of the transaction, a donation’s DST bill can come as a surprise to a family that budgeted only for the 6% donor’s tax.

Filing: BIR Form 2000-OT, five days after month-end #

DST on a deed of donation of real property is filed on BIR Form 2000-OT — the same one-time-transaction form used for a sale — within five days after the close of the month the deed was made, signed, or notarized. A deed of donation notarized on August 20, 2026, for example, carries a DST deadline of September 5, 2026. Liability under Section 173 of the NIRC attaches to any party to the document, so either the donor or the donee can be assessed if the return goes unfiled; in practice, the deed of donation itself commonly specifies which party shoulders DST, transfer tax, and donor’s tax, since the NIRC does not fix that allocation by default. Filing DST late does not excuse or extend the separate 30-day deadline for the donor’s tax return on BIR Form 1800 — the two clocks run independently from the same donation date.

How this differs from a donated-for-less-than-value sale #

A deed of donation is a distinct instrument from a deed of sale priced below fair market value, even though both can result in a family member paying nothing or very little for a property. A deed of sale — even a “sale” priced at a token ₱1 to a relative — still runs through the sale-side DST computation covered in Documentary Stamp Tax on a Deed of Sale of Real Property: Rate and Filing, and a price set well below fair market value can additionally expose the shortfall to donor’s tax as a deemed gift under NIRC Section 100. Choosing a deed of donation instead of an artificially low-priced deed of sale does not avoid DST — it simply computes the same 1.5% rate on fair market value from the outset rather than through a deemed-gift adjustment after the fact. For the broader DST framework covering both instruments and other document types, see Documentary Stamp Tax: What It Is and When BIR Form 2000 Applies.

Frequently asked questions #

Do you have to pay documentary stamp tax when donating real property? #

Yes. A deed of donation transferring real property is a conveyance and carries documentary stamp tax the same way a deed of sale does, even though no money changes hands. The absence of a purchase price does not exempt the transfer — it only changes what the tax is computed on.

What DST rate applies to a deed of donation of real property? #

The rate is the same one that applies to a sale of real property under Section 196 of the National Internal Revenue Code (NIRC): P15.00 for every P1,000, or a fractional part of it, of the tax base — equivalent to 1.5%.

If there’s no selling price on a deed of donation, what does DST get computed on? #

On the property’s fair market value, since a donation has no consideration to compare it against. Fair market value means whichever is higher between the BIR zonal value for the property’s location and classification and the assessed value on the local tax declaration.

Is documentary stamp tax the same as donor’s tax? #

No. They are two separate taxes on the same donation. DST under Section 196 taxes the deed of conveyance itself, at 1.5% of fair market value, filed on BIR Form 2000-OT within five days after month-end. Donor’s tax under Section 99 taxes the value of the gift the donee receives, at a flat 6% of net gifts over P250,000 per calendar year, filed on BIR Form 1800 within 30 days of the donation. Paying one does not excuse the other.

Which BIR form is used to file DST on a deed of donation? #

BIR Form 2000-OT, the Documentary Stamp Tax Declaration/Return for one-time transactions — the same form used for DST on a real property sale. It is filed and paid within five days after the close of the month the deed of donation was notarized.

Who pays the DST on a donated property — the donor or the donee? #

The NIRC makes any party to the taxable document liable, so either the donor or the donee can be assessed if the return goes unfiled. In practice, the deed of donation itself commonly specifies who shoulders DST, transfer tax, and donor’s tax, since the law does not fix this allocation.

Summary #

A deed of donation of real property is not exempt from documentary stamp tax just because it’s a gift — DST still applies at 1.5% (₱15.00 per ₱1,000) of the property’s fair market value, filed on BIR Form 2000-OT within five days after the deed is notarized. That obligation sits alongside, not instead of, the separate 6% donor’s tax on the same transfer under BIR Form 1800. Budget for both before signing a deed of donation, and see What Is BIR Form 1800? Donor’s Tax Return Rates, Deadlines, and Filing Requirements and Documentary Stamp Tax on a Deed of Sale of Real Property: Rate and Filing for the two closely related filings this post sits between.