S.L. 364.6 ст. 3Value of property. Cap. 364.

(1) (a) The value of any property subject to duty under the Duty on Documents and Transfers Act, transferred inter vivos or transmitted shall be the value of such property on causa mortis, the date of the said transfer inter vivos or on the date of death of the person from whom the transfer originates, as the case causa mortis may be, (hereinafter referred to as "the relevant date") and such value shall be established in accordance with the following provisions:

Provided that where a notice of a promise of sale is given according to article 3(6) of the Duty on Documents and Transfers Act, and the promise of sale is made for a period not exceeding one

(1) year, or three (3) years in the case of a property consisting of a unit in a project acquired on plan, the relevant date shall be the date of the promise of sale:

Provided further that where improvements are made between the date of the promise of sale and the date of transfer, the relevant date shall be the date of transfer;

(b) The provisions of this sub-rule shall apply from the 15th October 2019.

(2) The value of the full ownership of any property on the relevant date shall be the average price which such property would fetch if sold on the open market on that date, in the state it is in as on that date, including any improvements existing on that date, whether made or paid for by the transferor, the transferee or any other person: Provided that in the case of a transfer by a gratuitous title by a person to his spouse, descendants and ascendants in the direct line and their relative spouses, or in the absence of descendants to his brothers or sisters and their descendants, who acquire such property for the purpose of establishing therein or constructing thereon their sole, ordinary residence, the value thereof shall be deemed to be eighty of the market value of the property per centum so transferred on the date of transfer.

(3) The value of the usufruct of any property on the relevant date shall be established as follows:

(a) where the duration of the usufruct is for the life of the usufructuary or for any other indefinite period, the value of the usufruct shall be the percentage of the value of the full ownership set out in the Schedule reckoned according to the age of the usufructuary on that date: so however that where a usufruct devolves on several persons jointly or successively, or jointly and successively, and the provisions of the Act apply, the value of the usufruct shall be determined according to the age of the youngest of such persons on the relevant date;

(b) subject to the provisions of paragraph (c), where the duration of the usufruct is limited to a definite period, the value of the usufruct shall be one and a half per cent of the value of the full ownership of the property multiplied by the number of years, or the remaining number of years, (in all cases a fraction of a year being taken as one whole year), of the duration of such usufruct;

(c) the provisions referred to in paragraph (b) are:

(i) where, having regard to the age of the person, or if the usufruct devolves jointly or successively, or jointly and successively, on more than one person, the age of the youngest of such persons, upon whom the usufruct devolves on the relevant date, the value of such usufruct established in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (a) is less than the value established in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (b), the value of the usufruct shall be that established in accordance with the provisions of the said paragraph (a);

(ii) where it is provided that the usufruct is to terminate on the death of a stated person even if such death happens before the expiration of the definite period, the value of the usufruct shall also be that established in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (a) or of paragraph (b), whichever value is the less, having regard to the age of the said person on the relevant date;

(iii) in no case shall the value of the usufruct established in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (b) hereof exceed the value of the full ownership of the property;

(d) where a usufruct devolves on several persons jointly or successively, or jointly and successively, and the provisions of the Act apply -

(i) where the usufruct devolves jointly, or jointly and successively to the same persons, each person shall be deemed to have received a portion of the value of the usufruct calculated in terms of the said provisions as is equal to the proportion obtained by taking as denominator the sum of the percentages appearing in the Second Schedule as are appropriate to the age of each beneficiary on the relevant date, and as numerator the percentage appropriate to the said person;

(ii) where the usufruct devolves successively, the first beneficiary thereof shall be deemed to be the sole beneficiary: Provided that if any other beneficiary is of a younger age than the first beneficiary on the relevant date, both the beneficiaries and any other beneficiary who is younger than him, shall be treated as beneficiaries, and the portion of the value of the usufruct received by the first beneficiary shall be the value attributable to him under the Schedule, and the portion of the value of the usufruct received by any other beneficiary shall be deemed to be that portion of the value of the usufruct as is equivalent to the value attributable to him under the said Schedule, less any part so attributable to any other beneficiary of an older age also benefiting from the said usufruct.

(4) The value of the on the relevant date shall nuda proprietas be the difference between the value of the full ownership of the property on that date and the value on the same date of the usufruct encumbering it established in accordance with the provisions of sub-rule (3).

(5) The value of the of any property on the dominium utile relevant date shall be established as follows:

(a) where the is perpetual, or where its dominium utile remaining period is not less than fifty years, the value of the shall be the difference between dominium utile the value of the full ownership of the property established in accordance with the provisions of sub-rule (2) and the value of the dominium directum established in accordance with the provisions of sub-rule(7)(a);

(b) where the remaining period of the dominium utile is less than fifty years, the value of the dominium utile shall be such portion of the value of the dominium utile of the same property, established as if it were perpetual in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (a), as takes fairly and adequately into account the duration of the remaining period and all other relevant circumstances.

(6) The value of the dominium directum of any property on the relevant date shall be established as follows:

(a) where the dominium utile of the property is perpetual, or where its remaining period is not less than fifty years, the value of the of that dominium directum property shall be:

(i) in respect of a transfer causa mortis, the value resulting from the capitalization of the annual ground rent at the rate of eight per cent;

(ii) in respect of any document whereby a schedule of redemption of ground rent is filed in Court, the value resulting from the capitalisation of the annual ground rent as established in any law governing such redemption; and

(iii) in any other case, the value or the amount of the consideration, whichever is the higher, which the annual ground rent would fetch if redeemed or transferred on the open market;

(b) where the remaining period of the dominium utile of the property is less than fifty years, the value of the of that property shall be the dominium directum difference between the value of the full ownership of that property and the value of its on the dominium utile same date established in accordance with the provisions of sub-rule (5)(b).

(7) (a) Where the consideration for a transfer or the value upon which the duty is to be assessed consists of a periodical payment in perpetuity, or for a period of twenty years or more, or for an indefinite period, an ad duty shall be charged on the total amount valorem payable during the period of twenty years.

(b) Where the periodical payment is to continue for a definite period of less than twenty years, an ad valorem duty shall be charged on the total amount payable during such period.

(c) Where the periodical payment is to continue during any life or lives, an duty shall be charged ad valorem on the total amount payable during the period of twelve years.

(d) Where a document is chargeable with duty ad valorem in respect of an amount expressed in foreign currency, the duty shall be calculated on such amount converted into Maltese currency at the rate of exchange current on the day of the date of the document.