Transfer Ownership of Inherited Land in the Philippines

Step 1 – Filling out of BIR Form 1904 (Application for Registration)

All parties involved must provide their TIN (Tax Identification Number) including those who are deceased. In the
case of a deceased family member, these are the things to consider:

 Write the name of the deceased in the space provided for the name of the taxpayer
 The local address must match the one indicated in the death certificate of the deceased
 In cases where the place of death was abroad and the deceased has no official residence in the country, a
foreign address must be indicated and should match what’s written on the death certificate
 A photocopy of the Certified True Copy of the deceased death certificate must be attached

Step 2 – Preparing of required documents for submission to the BIR

There will be a checklist provided to the applicant by the BIR of all the required documents. These are the
documents to take note:

 Photocopy of the death certificate of the deceased (the original needs to be presented)
 TIN of Estate
 Deposit Slip/OR (Official Receipt) and a return that’s duly validated as proof of the payment
 Either of the following:

1. A sworn declaration of all the properties in the estate

2. Affidavit of Self Adjudication
3. Deed of Extrajudicial Settlement of the Estate (if the estate’s settled extrajudicially)
4. Court Order (for judicial settlements)

Step 3 – Filling out of BIR Form 1801 (Estate Tax Return)

There will be an Officer of the Day who will assist in the form fill-up as they are in charge of tax computations
according to the submitted documents.

Step 4 – Payment of computed estate tax

There are several payment centers for the estate tax as per RMO (Revenue Memorandum Order) No. 15-2003:
  Agent bank authorized by BIR
 Revenue Collection Officer
 Duly authorized city or municipal Treasurer in the RDO (Revenue District Office); for the deceased
family member, it must be the location of the residence during the time of death
 For those who died abroad, the tax must be settled in any authorized agent bank (AAB) under the RDO
No. 39 of South Quezon City

Step 5 – Submission of all required documents and the proof of payment to the RDO

After submitting the requirements, a claim stub with a reference number will be provided.

Step 6 – Releasing of CAR (Certificate of Authorizing Registration)

Once the processing is completed, a document containing the Certificate Authorizing Registration will be given. For
one-time CAR transactions, it can take up to 5 days starting from the day the tax returns were received including the
complete set of required documents.

Step 7 – Proceed to Land Registration

It is only upon the release of the CAR that the land title is transferable.

These are the documents that must be presented to the Register of Deeds:

 Deed of Extrajudicial Settlement of Estate

 Deed of Sale (if a 3rd party bought the property)
 Owner’s duplicate of the Certificate of Title
 Affidavit of Publication from newspaper indicating that the extrajudicial settlement was published for 3
consecutive weeks, 1 per week
 BIR Certificate to Register (after estate tax and documentary stamps were paid)
 Transfer Tax Receipt/Clearance
 Real Estate Tax Clearance
 Certified copy of Tax Declaration
 How to Transfer a Land Title from a Deceased Parent

Extrajudicial settlement of the estate

In order to have the land title transferred, it needs to be settled first in what is legally called theextrajudicial
settlement of the estate. The estate is the property involved. The process involves drafting a contract which clearly
indicates how the property will be distributed among the heirs. This process is also known as out of court
settlement because as the term suggests, the heirs will no longer have to go to court to distribute the properties which
the deceased parent/s left.

Following Rule 74, Section 1 of the Rules of Court, the heirs need to secure and execute a Deed of Extrajudicial
Settlement of Estate and Adjudication of Estate with the help of a lawyer. However, all heirs must get into an
agreement, including those who are not interested in the property. The deed should specify the following
information:

 The absence of a will

 Proof that the deceased parent/s has no debts left
 Name and relationship to the deceased; Heirs should be of legal age, otherwise, minors should have a
legal representative
 Affidavit of self-adjudication, and deed of extrajudicial settlement of estate and adjudication of the estate
(should be signed by all the heirs and afterward notarized before a Notary Public)
 Description of the property to be divided among the heirs
 Bond fixed by the court, should there be personal property involved

After a certain number of weeks, the heirs will have to obtain the certification and publication in the newspaper and
have it affirmed and verified by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR). They will release a certificate to the heirs
which should be submitted to the Registry of Deeds or Land Registration Authority.

How to transfer ownership of a property to the heirs

1. Fill out an application for registration from BIR (Form 1904). All heirs (both living and deceased) must
have a valid Tax Identification Number (TIN). Some things to remember:

 The name of the deceased parent/s should be written on the taxpayer’s name field
 The address of the deceased should indicate the same address as what is on the death certificate
 Fill out the foreign address field if the deceased died abroad and has no official residence in the
Philippines
 Include a photocopy of the Certified True Copy of the death certificate on the form
2. Make sure all mandatory documents are complete as this will be submitted to the BIR:

 Photocopy of the death certificate (bring the original copy too for verification)
 Proof of payment (official receipt or deposit slip and duly validated return)
 TIN of Estate
 Affidavit of Self Adjudication
 Sworn declaration of all properties of the estate
 Deed of Extrajudicial Settlement of the Estate (if the estate has been extrajudicially settled)
 Court Order (if the estate has been settled judicially)

3. Accomplish an estate tax return form from BIR (Form 1801). Ask assistance from the Officer of the Day
at the BIR, because they are also the one who will compute the taxes based on the documents submitted.
4. Pay the estate tax to the BIR before the notarized deed can be registered. It is important to settle the file
transfer immediately so that the estate tax will not get accumulated. You can pay through the following:

 Revenue Collection Officer;

 Authorized agent bank (AAB) by the BIR;
 Duly authorized Treasurer of the city/municipality in the Revenue District Office where the residence of
the deceased at the time of death is located;
 If the person outside of the country and cannot be represented locally, you can settle through an AAB
under RDO No. 39 South Quezon City

5. Submit all the required documents, as well as the proof of payment to the BIR’s Revenue District Office
(RDO). A claim stub with a reference number will be given if all requirements have been submitted. As
soon as the processing is done, a Certificate Authorizing Registration (CAR) will be released. For all one-
time transactions, the CAR will be released within 5 business days from the date of receipt of tax returns
with complete required documents.
6. As soon as you have the CAR, you may now proceed with the transfer of registration of the land title.
According to the Land Registration Authority (LRA), one must bring the following documents which are
required for registration of an inherited property:

 Deed of Sale (if the property has been sold to a third party)
 Deed of Extrajudicial Settlement of Estate
 Owner’s Duplicate Copy of Title
 BIR CAR/tax clearance certificate
 Tax Declaration (Certified Copy)
 Realty Tax Clearance
 Transfer Tax Receipt/Clearance
  Affidavit of Publication of Settlement

Here are a few more things worth noting:

 If one of the heirs is deceased and had children, they have the right to inherit the property.
 Should one of the heirs do not cooperate, inform the court. Call the attention of those who do not
cooperate and allow the court to decide on how the property will be distributed or disposed of, according
to the law.
 If the estate tax remains to be unpaid in 10 years, there is a service charge of 25% of the tax amount, plus
an additional 20% interest every year. If you don’t pay it immediately, the total charges and interest will
accumulate until such time that the amount becomes more than the current market value of the property.
 How to Transfer Land Titles in the Philippines

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

Before making your way to the office, make sure you have secured the complete list of all necessary documents.
Bring hard copies of the required documents below:

 (1) Original copy and (2) photocopies of the notarized Deed of Absolute Sale (DAS)
 (1) Owner’s duplicate copy and (2) photocopies of the Transfer Certificate of Title (TCT) OR the
Condominium Certificate of Title (CCT) in case of sale of condominium units
 (1) Certified True Copies and (2) photocopies of the latest Tax Declaration for land and improvement of
the real property. *NOTE: 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 is required
 Tax Identification Numbers (TIN) of the Seller and Buyer

Take note that there are additional requirements for certain cases. It’s best to double check to minimize numerous
back and fourths:

 If the person signing on the document is not the owner as it appears on the TCT or CCT: Special
Power of Attorney (SPA)
 If the SPA is executed abroad: Certification of the Philippine Consulate
 If zonal value cannot readily be determined from the documents submitted: Location plan or vicinity
map
 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: Refer to the required documents filed under the Registration of Real Property
with the Register of Deeds
 Other requirements as may be required by law, rulings, regulations, or other issuances

2. Secure assessment of transfer taxes at the BIR and Authorized Agent Bank
(AAB) OR Municipal ORCity Treasurer’s Office

After filing the required documents, a BIR representative will calculate your Capital Gains Tax (CGT) and
Documentary Stamp Tax (DST). Afterwards, they will ask you to sign three (3) copies each of the ff:

 BIR Form 1706 (CGT)

  BIR Form 2000 (DST)

These will then be filed at the 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 (5) days of submitting all required documents.

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 secure the following documents for the issuance of the Tax
Clearance:

 (1) Original copy and (1) photocopy of the Deed of Absolute Sale
 (1) 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:

 (1) Original Copy and (3) photocopies of the Deed of Absolute Sale, stamped as received by the BIR
 Seller’s Owner’s Duplicate Copy of the TCT or CCT
 (1) Original Copy of the CAR
 (1) 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:
o Secretary’s Certificate authorizing the sale of the real property
o 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, present a photocopy of the following documents:

 Deed of Absolute Sale

 TCT OR CCT
 CAR
 Transfer Tax Receipt
 Latest Tax Receipt OR Tax Clearance

For some local assessors’ offices (ex. Makati City), additional documents are required:

1. Subdivision Plan, if lot is subdivided

2. Full-color photos of the house, lot, or condominium unit

Do not forget to accomplish this last step, as this is often missed out. Remember – 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.