RPGT: The Tax You Pay When Selling Property in Malaysia

Sell a Malaysian property for more than you paid and the profit may attract Real Property Gains Tax (RPGT). How much - if anything - you pay depends almost entirely on how long you held the property and which exemptions you use. Here is the full picture for individual sellers.

The rates: it is all about the holding period

For Malaysian citizens and permanent residents, RPGT on the chargeable gain is:

The holding period runs from the date of your purchase agreement to the date of your sale agreement. Non-citizens pay 30% within the first five years and 10% from year six, and companies never reach 0% either - the year-six exemption is a benefit specifically for citizens and PRs.

What is actually taxed

RPGT applies to the chargeable gain, not the sale price - and you can deduct genuine costs on both ends:

• the original purchase price, plus the stamp duty and legal fees you paid when buying;
• capital improvements - renovations and extensions (keep the receipts);
• selling costs - agent commission, legal fees, valuation and advertising.

The exemptions that do the heavy lifting

• Every individual disposal: RM10,000 or 10% of the chargeable gain, whichever is higher, is exempt automatically.
• Once in a lifetime: a citizen or PR can fully exempt the gain on one private residence. Once claimed it is gone for good, so if you can, save it for the property with the biggest gain.
• Family transfers: gifts between husband and wife, parent and child, or grandparent and grandchild (with a citizen giver) are treated as "no gain, no loss" - no RPGT on the transfer; the recipient inherits the original purchase price as their cost.

A worked example

You bought an apartment in January 2023 for RM400,000, paying about RM12,000 in stamp duty and legal fees, and later spent RM30,000 on renovation. You sell in 2026 - the fourth year, so the 20% tier - for RM520,000, paying RM12,000 in agent and legal fees.

• Chargeable gain: 520,000 - 400,000 - 12,000 - 30,000 - 12,000 = RM66,000
• Automatic exemption: the higher of RM10,000 or 10% (RM6,600) = RM10,000
• RPGT: RM56,000 x 20% = RM11,200

Had the sale waited until the sixth year, the rate - and the bill - would have been zero. When a sale is not urgent, checking the calendar before signing can be worth tens of thousands of ringgit.

How it is paid: the 3% retention and CKHT forms

You do not pay RPGT over the counter. When you sell, the buyer's solicitor retains 3% of the sale price (7% if you are not a citizen or PR) and remits it to LHDN as a deposit against your bill. Both sides then file CKHT forms - CKHT 1A for you as seller, together with exemption claims and cost receipts - within 60 days of the sale agreement, on paper or through MyTax. LHDN assesses the actual tax, then refunds the excess retention or bills the shortfall. Missing the 60-day window attracts penalties, so lawyers usually handle the filing - confirm it is in their scope of work.

Note that a disposal from year six onwards must still be reported, even though the rate for citizens is 0%. Estimate your own numbers with our RPGT calculator before you list the property.