Trinidad and Tobago

Registering Property in

Trinidad and Tobago

Listed below is a detailed summary of the steps, time and cost involved in registering property, assuming a standardized case of an entrepreneur who wants to purchase land and a building that is already registered and free of title dispute.

The information appearing on this page was collected as part of the Doing Business project, which measures and compares regulations relevant to the life cycle of a small- to medium-sized domestic business in 183 economies. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2011.

  • Standard Property Transfer

  • Property Value: TTD 4,543,995.24
  • City: Port of Spain

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No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs
1 Conduct title search at Land Registry

A search clerk conducts the title search at the Land Registry by examining the certificate of title and verifying the endorsements.

Agency: Land Registry Department 		4-14 days TDD 200-500
2 Obtain Clearance Certificate from the Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA)

The vendor requests the clearance certificate from WASA (the application form is obtained online at http://www.wasa.gov.tt/Forms/Clearance%20Certificate%20Form.pdf). At this point, the purchaser’s attorney would also request up-to-date receipts from the vendor, showing that all land and building taxes have been paid.

Agency: Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA) 		42 days TDD 862.5 (for commercial property) for WASA Clearance Certificate
3 Send memorandum of transfer to the Board of Inland Revenue for assessment of Stamp Duty

The assessment of stamp duty is determined by the type of property. The amount due is written on the document and then paid to the Board of Inland Revenue in procedure #5.

Agency: Inland Revenue 		1-7 days no additional charge
4 After closing, swear affidavits of witnesses

One of the witnesses to the execution of the memorandum of transfer signs before the Commissioner of Affidavits.

Agency: Commissioner of Affidavits 		1 day TDD 2.50 per affidavit + TDD 0.50 exhibit fee
5 Present memorandum of transfer to be stamped at the Board of Inland Revenue

The amount of stamp duty is a percentage of the value of the property. Stamp duty rate may be found at : http://www.ird.gov.tt/uploadedfiles/List%20of%20Stamp%20Duty%20Rates.pdf

Agency: Inland Revenue 		1 day Stamp Duty paid according to the following scale for non-residential properties: Property value: Stamp Duty: Less than TTD 300,000 2% Between TTD 300,000 – 400,000
6 Submit memorandum of transfer for registration and endorsement with the Land Registry

The memorandum of transfer and the original duplicate certificate of title are submitted to the Land Registry. The instrument is given a unique barcode number upon registration. The volume and folio number where the transaction can be found are provided the day after registration. It takes about 3 months for the transaction to be fully endorsed, and for the duplicate certificate of title to be returned to the purchaser. The original will stay with the Registry.
Documentation Requirements:
- Memorandum of Transfer
- Original Duplicate of Certificate of Title


Agency: Land Registry Department 		90 days TDD 50 (Registration fee) + TDD 2 per page (copy of title deed)
7 Registry prepares return of ownership form showing change in ownership for the purpose of property taxes

Following registration of the transfer, the purchaser’s attorney requests the registry to prepare the return of ownership form. Once complete, the form is sent back to the purchaser for filing with the District Revenue Office. Usually, the certificate of title must be endorsed before the Registry will prepare the return of ownership form.

Agency: Land Registry Department 		14 days no cost
8 Purchaser files the return of ownership form with the District Revenue Office

For properties in the city center of Port-of-Spain, the fee for filing the return of ownership form is $57.50. However, in this case, it is assumed that the property falls outside the parameters of the city center. It may take 4-6 weeks for the return of ownership form to return to the new owner from the District Revenue Office.

Agency: District Revenue Office 		1 day no cost
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