How Are Land Titles Transferred in the

Philippines?
Remember, ownership is not complete until the buyer registers the land title under his or her name.

Here’s how land titles are transferred in the Philippines.

Note: This article is an updated version of the one published last March 11, 2015.

Disclaimer: Although much effort has been made in the creation of this guide, Lamudi Philippines and

OMI Land Title Services advise homebuyers to always consult with professionals, such as real estate

brokers and lawyers.

Most people know that buying a property is not a simple task, but very few appreciate how much more

complicated the process of transferring land titles from the seller’s name to the buyer’s name is. The

importance of land title transfer should not be underestimated. Remember, this is where you, as a buyer,

will start claiming the property as your own. The issuance of a new land title under your name will be your

proof of ownership; otherwise, you might be facing technical, legal, and financial problems later on,

because of an improper land title transfer or the absence of it.

Where Does It Start?

The process of buying a property does not end with paying the seller and executing a Deed of Sale. What

is important for you to remember is that once the Deed of Sale has been signed and notarized, deadlines

for tax payments are already in effect. Should you fail to meet these deadlines, the penalties and

surcharges that you will incur will certainly make a dent on your pocket. Sometimes, if payment has been

delayed for several years, this amount might be even greater than the value of the property at the time it

was bought.

Ideally, even before the property is purchased, you should already plan a land title transfer. This is just to

make sure that even if you are not be able to do it yourself, you have someone doing it for you whom you

can trust. Remember, ownership is not complete until you register the title under your name.

These are the steps for transferring a land title:

1. File and secure the documentary
requirements at the Bureau of Internal
Revenue Regional District Office (BIR RDO)

These are the documents you need to have on hand:

 Original copy of the notarized Deed of Absolute Sale (DAS), plus two photocopies

 Owner’s duplicate copy of the Transfer Certificate of Title (TCT) or the Condominium
Certificate of Title (CCT) in case of sale of condominium units, plus two photocopies
 Certified True Copies of the latest Tax Declaration for land and improvement of the real
property plus two photocopies. If the property sold is a vacant lot or no improvements have
been made on it, a Sworn Declaration of No Improvement by at least one of the transferees
or Certificate of No Improvement issued by the city or municipal assessor
 Tax Identification Numbers (TIN) of the Seller and Buyer

In some cases, additional requirements may need to be submitted, including the following:
  Special Power of Attorney (SPA), if the person signing on the document is not the owner as it
appears on the TCT or CCT
 Certification of the Philippine Consulate if the SPA is executed abroad
 Location plan or vicinity map if zonal value cannot readily be determined from the documents
submitted
 Such other requirements as may be required by law, rulings, regulations, or other issuances
 For documents required in case of mortgage, judicial or extra-judicial settlement of estate,
judicial and extra-judicial foreclosure of mortgage, consolidation of ownership, execution
sale, and condominium project, please refer to Documentary Requirements for the
Registration of Real Property with the Register of Deeds

2. Secure assessment of transfer taxes at the

BIR and Authorized Agent Bank (AAB) or
Municipal or City Treasurer’s Office
After filing your documentary requirements, a BIR representative will calculate your Capital Gains Tax

(CGT) and Documentary Stamp Tax (DST), after which they will ask you to sign three copies each of the

BIR Form 1706 (CGT) and BIR Form 2000 (DST). These will have to be filed at AAB. For areas where

there are no AABs, they will be filed with the Authorized City or Municipal Treasurer.

3. File documents at the BIR for the issuance

of Certificate Authorizing Registration (CAR)
or BIR Clearance

You will receive a claim slip with the claim date of the CAR, which will be released along with the following

documents:

 Original copy of the Deed of Absolute Sale stamped as received by the BIR
 Owner’s Duplicate Copy of the TCT or the CCT
  Original copies of the BIR Form 1706 (CGT) and Form 2000 (DST) stamped as received by
the BIR
 Copies of the Tax Declaration for land and improvement

According to BIR Memorandum Order No. 15-03, BIR RDOs should release CARs for all One Time

Transaction (ONETT) within five days of submitting all documentary requirements.

4. Pay the Transfer Taxes and secure the Tax

Clearance at the Local Treasurer’s Office

Aside from paying the Transfer Tax, you also need to produce the following documents for the issuance

of the Tax Clearance:

 Original and one photocopy of the Deed of Absolute Sale

 Photocopy of the Tax Declaration

  Official Receipt of Payment of Real Property Tax and Special Education Fund Tax for the
current year

5. File documents at the Registry of Deeds for

the issuance of new land title

The new Owner’s Duplicate copy of the TCT and CCT in your name will be released once you have

presented all of the following documents:

 Original Copy of the Deed of Absolute Sale stamped as received by the BIR, plus three
photocopies
 Seller’s Owner’s Duplicate Copy of the TCT or CCT
 Original Copy of the CAR
 Original Copy of the Tax Clearance
 Original Copies of Official Receipts of Payments of CGT, DST, Tax Clearance Certificate,
and Transfer Fee
  Original Copies of the Current Tax Declaration for land and improvement issued by the local
assessor’s office
 If the seller or buyer is a corporation, submit the following requirements: (a) Secretary’s
Certificate authorizing the sale of the real property; and (b) Certified True Copy of the Articles
of Incorporation and By Laws of the seller or buyer corporation

6. File documents at the Municipal or

Provincial Assessor’s Office for the issuance
of new Tax Declaration

For the release of the new Tax Declaration, you need to present the following documents:

 Photocopy of the Deed of Absolute Sale

 Photocopy of the TCT or the CCT
 Photocopy of the CAR
  Photocopy of the Transfer Tax Receipt
 Photocopy of the latest Tax Receipt or Tax Clearance

Some local assessor’s offices, such as that of Makati City, require these additional documents: (a)

Subdivision Plan, if lot is subdivided; and (b) Full-color photos of the house, lot, or condominium unit

It is important to note that the last step is often missed out. Transferring ownership of a Tax Declaration

should always be done after Land Title Transfer as the name on the Land Title should coincide with the

name indicated on the Tax Declaration.

These steps will require you to go back and forth between multiple government agencies. In addition, the

whole procedure could take several months to complete, more so if there are problems with the property’s

existing documents or records. The process might also require constant follow-ups with the government

agencies, and sometimes it is necessary to personally visit the respective agencies to follow up and

speed up the process.

If accomplishing these tasks personally is not possible for you, then it would be wise to look for someone,

a duly registered company preferably, who has expertise in this matter. Remember, you must transfer

ownership immediately after buying a property to avoid encountering problems later on and paying a

huge penalty for late transfer.

THE PROPER AND COMPLETE PROCESS

I. Preparation

1. Prepare the necessary documents for execution of Deed of Sale:

o Deed of Absolute Sale (or other variants, as appropriate in

your case)
 o Acknowledgment of Payment (from buyer to seller)

o Affidavit of non-tenancy and/or no pending case (as

appropriate)

o Affidavit of land holdings by the buyer (as applicable)

2. Signing of documents.

Both parties should sign the following:

o Deed of Absolute Sale

o Acknowledgment Receipt of Payment by the buyer to seller

The seller should sign the:

o Affidavit of non-tenancy and/or no pending case

The buyer should sign the:

o Affidavit of land holdings

3. Secure the following documents to be needed later:

o 2 government-issued ID’s of both the seller and the buyer

o Tax Identification Number (TIN) of each party

o Original Owner’s duplicate of Title

o Marriage contract, if applicable

o Previous Certificate Authorizing Registration (CAR)

o Tax declaration

o Receipt(s) of Real Property Tax (RPT) payments

 o Special Power of Attorney (SPA), if dealing with an
attorney-in-fact (an authorized representative)

4. Notarization of documents – all documents signed by the parties should be

notarized.

II. Secure payment computations and certified copies of the

following documents.

1. Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR):

o Secure computation of fees for Documentary Stamp Tax

(DST) and for

o Capital Gains Tax (CGT)

Notes: Go to ONETT for DST and CGT computation; ask for the specific
payee to be named in the manager’s check (if paying in check); and take note
of their accredited banks, so you’ll know where to submit the payments.

2. City (or Municipal) Treasurer’s Office:

o Secure computation of Transfer Tax

o Secure Tax Clearance

Notes: Ask for computation of the Transfer Tax; ask for the specific payee to
be named in the manager’s check for payment (if paying in check).

3. City (or Municipal) Assessor’s Office:

o Secure Certified True Copy of the Tax Declaration

4. Registry of Deeds:

o Secure computation of Registration Fee

 o Secure Certified True Copy of the existing Transfer
Certificate of Title (TCT) or Condominium Certificate of Title
(CCT), as appropriate

Notes: Ask for computation of the Registration Fee; ask for the specific payee
to be named in the manager’s check for payment (if paying in check).

III. Preparation of payments.

Now that you know the exact fees that you will have to pay, you should
prepare these amounts. These fees are preferrably paid using
manager’s checks. But you can also pay them in cash.

Take note of the following deadlines for the settlement of these fees.

1. BIR:

o CGT – 30 days after the date of notarization of the Deed of

Sale

o DST – 5th day of the following month from notarization of

the Deed of Sale

2. City Treasurer’s Office:

o Transfer Tax – 60 days from date of execution of Deed of

Sale or the Acknowledgment of Payment

3. Registry of Deeds:

o Registration Fee – 1 year from the date of release of CAR

from BIR + 6 months extension if approved by BIR upon
due submission of request

IV. Process payments to BIR.

1. Present the following requirements to ONETT to obtain the official

Computation Sheet:
 o Certified True Copy of the Title (TCT or CCT)

o Certified True Copy of the Tax Declaration

o IDs of the buyer(s) and the seller(s)

o TIN of the buyer(s) and the seller(s)

o Filled-out online DST & CGT BIR Forms

o Deed of Sale

o Acknowledgment of Payment

2. Pay the DST & CGT at the Accredited Agent Bank (AAB) of the BIR-RDO
(Revenue District Office)

o Fill out the bank form for the BIR payments

o Present the verified DST & CGT BIR returns together with
the MCs (or cash payment) and the bank form

o Don’t forget the transaction slip!

3. Then go back to BIR to file the above listed documents together with the
transaction slip for the processing of the new CAR

V. Process payment to the City Treasurer.

1. Present the following requirements to the Officer in Charge (OIC):

o Deed of Sale

o IDs of the buyer(s) and the Seller(s)

2. Submit manager’s check or cash payment to the designated cashier.

 3. Bring the receipt to the OIC together with the above mentioned documents to
process the Transfer Tax Clearance.

VI. Process payment to the Registry of Deeds.

1. Fill out an application form for transfer of Title and present the following
requirements to the Examiner of the Day:

o CAR from the BIR

o Deed of Sale

o Transfer Tax Clearance

2. Submit the manager’s check or cash payment to the cashier for the
registration. Then attach the receipt to the application form together with the
documents stated above.

VII. Follow up with the Registry of Deeds.

1. Contact the assigned examiner for the progress of your application for new
Title.

2. Once the new title has been released, file a copy with the City Assessors’
Office.

VIII. New Tax Declaration.

1. Finally, when the new Title under the buyer’s name is already released,
present it to the Assessors’ Office for the issuance of the new Tax
Declaration.

2. Congratulations! You’ve now completed the proper transfer of Title.