Gujarat proposes stricter penalties under Stamp Amendment Bill 2025

Gandhinagar : The Gujarat government has introduced the Gujarat Stamp Amendment Bill 2025 in the Gujarat Legislative Assembly, significantly increasing penalties for failure to deposit stamp duty or providing false information regarding duty payments. The amendment aims to enhance compliance and streamline revenue collection under Section 62-A (3) of the Gujarat Stamp Act, 1958, along with Section 9-A.

Under the revised provisions, the penalty for non-payment of stamp duty has been drastically increased from the earlier ₹200 to a maximum of ₹1 lakh, with a minimum fine of ₹10,000. Additionally, under Sections 1, 2, and 3 of 62-A, penalties in certain cases have been raised from ₹200 to ₹50,000.

A new provision introduces a progressive penalty system for repeat offenders. A person found guilty under Section 62-A will face:₹500 fine for the first offence, ₹1,000 fine for the second offence, and ₹2,000 fine and up to two years of imprisonment for the third and subsequent offences

This amendment has sparked discussions on whether stamp officers will now have the authority to impose jail sentences on violators.

The bill also proposes an amendment to Article 36, increasing the fine for foreclosure-related cases to ₹5,000. However, in a significant relief measure, the transfer of property to a deceased person’s heir (son or daughter) will now require only a ₹200 stamp, exempting them from additional duty payments.

Another crucial change addresses pre-1999 property transactions. Previously, missing stamp duty could be cleared by paying ₹250 plus the missing duty amount. Under the new amendment, property owners will now have to pay double the missing duty amount. Additionally, a 3% penalty per year will be imposed for missing duty payments, with a maximum penalty capped at six times the missing stamp duty.

The bill introduces revisions for rental agreements, increasing stamp duty as follows:

₹500 stamp duty for residential rental agreements of 11 months and 39 days

₹1,000 stamp duty for commercial rental agreements

For rental agreements not recorded for five or more years, a ₹10,000 stamp duty will be levied, with an additional 2% penalty per year for delays.

The amendment clarifies that no penalties will be imposed on the period between the submission of a document to the Collector and the issuance of an official order.