Prepare the following documents to transfer the land title of a vacant lot into your name.
1.) Original copy of OCT (Original Transfer Certificate) or TCT (Transfer Certificate of Title). You must require the seller to give you the original copy of OCT/TCT before paying the agreed amount in full.
Important Note: Make sure that the seller’s name is the same one indicated at OCT/TCT as the real owner of the property in the OCT/TCT. If not, you may request that the seller transfer it first in his name. If that is not possible, then it is time for you to have second thoughts about whether you will buy the property. Because it will be a very long process and give you so many headaches in the next few days or years. So, I advise you not to proceed if it is not in his name. OK? 🙂
2.) Certified True Copy of OCT/TCT. You can make a request for this copy from the Registry of Deeds. When requesting, the office will require you to submit a photocopy(xerox copy) of the TCT and may require you to bring a photocopy of your valid ID, so get at least one valid ID.
Amount Paid: PHP 273.35
After paying, you will receive a slip (claim stub) stating what day you can return to the Registry of Deeds to claim your requested copy.
3.) Deed of Absolute Sale
- Be sure that both parties have their signatures on all pages. If the seller and buyer are married, ensure both spouses have signed all pages. You will also need at least two persons as witnesses to sign the Deed of Absolute Sale.
- The seller (spouses if married) and the buyer should have a valid government identification card and TIN (Tax Identification Number). If you don’t have TIN numbers yet, you must go to BIR (Bureau of Internal Revenue) first to apply for TIN. Bring a valid ID (with your birthdate) or Birth certificate when applying for TIN.
- Pay 1% of the agreed selling price for the Notarial fee. A notarized Deed of Absolute Sale should be validated with the seal. For example, if the selling price you agreed to is PHP 180,000.00, you will pay PHP 1,800.00 for the notarial fee. You may ask for a discount of course. Before leaving the attorney’s office, please check if the seal is clear.
Amount Paid: PHP 1,800.00
- Acknowledgment Receipt – a legal proof that the seller received the agreed amount of the property.
4. Go to Municipal Hall to get the following certifications:
- At the Assessor’s Office, request the Certified True Copy of the Tax Declaration of Real Property. Amount Paid: PHP 50.00
- At the same office of the Assessor’s Office, request a Certificate of No Improvement. Amount Paid: PHP 50.00
- Go to the Treasury Office. Make a request for a Tax Clearance Certificate.
Treasury Office – Municipality of Los Baños This is a certification that the Real Property Tax has no past dues. This is an essential document to secure from the seller that they had paid in full the tax dues of the same year the property was posted for sale. You can request the seller’s original real property tax receipt beforehand for the present year. Amount Paid: PHP 50.00
5. Go to the BIR (Bureau of Internal Revenue) – to get the CAR (Certificate Authorizing Registration)
Below are the documents you need to prepare before entering the BIR Office.
- TIN (Tax Identification Numbers) of the seller (husband and wife if married)
- TIN (Tax Identification Numbers) of the buyer (husband and wife if married)
- Deed of Absolute Sale (original copy) – notarized
- Acknowledgement Receipt (original copy) – notarized
- Certified True Copy of TCT – this is the document you obtained from the Registry of Deeds
- Certified True Copy of Tax Declaration of Real Property – from the Municipal Assessor’s Office
- Certificate of No Improvement – from the Municipal Assessor’s Office
Here are the steps to follow at the BIR office.
When the above list of documents is ready and organized, you can get a number from the guard and wait for your number to be called. Tell the guard that you need to get assessed on how much you need to pay for Capital Gains Tax and Documentary Stamp Tax Dec/Return. The guard will guide you to the OD (Officer of the Day).
- When it is your turn, present all the documents listed above to the OD. The OD will prepare the ONETT (One-Time Transactions) Computation Sheet for you. He will ask you to go to another window to have your Form 1706 (Capital Gains Tax) and Form 2000-OT (Documentary Stamp) encoded to their database and wait for them to be printed.
BIR Receiving Desk of Onett In my experience, the data encoder also asked for my email address, so have your email address ready. When you get your printed forms of CGT and Doc Stamp, return them to the first window, where you get assessed and have them validated. The OD will give you the list of banks where you can pay the tax dues.
- PAY YOUR TAX DUES at the nearest bank. The bank staff or teller will guide you in filling in the payment slips for Form 1706 (Capital Gains Tax) and Form 2000-OT (Documentary Stamp).
Deposit Slip of China Bank to pay Doc Stamp 
Deposit Slip of China Bank to pay Capital Gains Tax - Be sure that the forms have been validated by the bank teller.
Bank Teller Validated Payment Receipt – CGT - Return to BIR and present the documents listed above and the bank receipts. After carefully examining the documents you presented to the examiner, he will give you a claim stub with the date you should return to the BIR office to claim your CAR (Certificate Authorizing Registration). Usually, it takes 15 working days to process. So keep your claim slip and bring it to the BIR office when claiming. You may want to make a phone call first to know the registration status before proceeding to the BIR office to ensure that the CAR is ready for release.
BIR – Certificate Authorizing Registration (CAR)
6. Go to the Registry of Deeds – submit all documents you already accomplished in the previous steps. The Registry of Deeds will ask you to submit all original copies, including the Original Title. After the examiner carefully examines your documents, wait for the Assessment Form and Payment Order so you can pay the cashier for the Registration Fees. Below is a sample Official Receipt from the Registry of Deeds.
After paying the registration fees, you need to return to the examiner to start processing the registration request. I was initially told to return to their office after 15 working days to follow up if the title was ready. But sadly, it has already been more than 15 working days of waiting, with consistent follow-ups and checking the LRA online tracking System.
I used the Action Agad Center Hotline to follow up on the registration status by sending a text message and my complaint.
After 60 days of waiting, I finally got our new title at the Registry of Deeds. You need to bring your government ID and photocopy it before claiming the new title at the Release window. I paid another fee for the document stamp. Sorry, I just can’t remember how much I paid, but I am sure it cost less than a hundred pesos.
7. Go to the Municipal Office. To get your own new Tax Declaration of Property in your own name. Bring all the documents that you have. At the Assessor Office, they will ask you to photocopy the new title, CAR (Certificate Authorizing Registration), certificate of no improvement, and your tax clearance certificate. This request costs P100.00.
To summarize the cost, the total is approximately P32,000 (Thirty-Two Thousand Pesos) to get a new TCT under our name. This includes the registration and certifications fees, taxes, other miscellaneous expenses like fare (gasoline) going to the different government offices, photocopies of documents, and snacks 🙂
Please note that the cost difference varies in many cases, depending on the selling price of the lot you purchased.
Buying Property in Philippines 
