Section 2
In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires—
“banker” means—
(a)
any person licensed under the Financial Services Act 2013
[Act 758] to carry on a banking business in Malaysia;
(b)
any person licensed under the Islamic Financial Services
Act 2013 [Act 759] to carry on an Islamic banking business in Malaysia; or
12 Laws of Malaysia ACT 378
(c)
a development financial institution prescribed under the Development Financial Institutions Act 2002 [Act 618];
“bond” means—
(a)
any instrument whereby a person obliges himself to pay money to another on condition that the obligation shall be void if a specified act is performed or is not performed, as the case may be;
(b)
any instrument, attested by a witness and not payable to order or bearer, whereby a person obliges himself to pay money to another;
“charge” means any instrument whereby, for the purpose of securing the payment of any definite and certain sum of money advanced or lent at the time or previously due or foreborne to be paid or for the repayment of money to be thereafter lent, advanced or paid, or which may become due upon any account current, together with any sum already advanced or due, or without, as the case may be, or for the performance of any contract or engagement, one person creates a right over or charge upon any specified property; and includes any instrument which purports to create or in which any person agrees to create any such right or charge;
“cheque” means a bill of exchange drawn on a specified banker and not expressed to be payable otherwise than on demand;
“Collector” includes the Collector of Stamp Duties and every Deputy
Collector of Stamp Duties appointed under section 3;
“continuation clause” in a policy of sea insurance made for time means an agreement to the following or the like effect, namely, that in the event of the ship being at sea or the voyage otherwise not completed on the expiration of the policy, the subject matter of the insurance shall be held covered until the arrival of the ship, or for a reasonable time thereafter not exceeding thirty days;
“contract note” means the note sent by a dealer or agent to his principal, or by any person who by way of business deals, or holds himself out as dealing, as a principal in any stock or marketable
Stamp 13
securities, advising the principal, or the vendor or purchaser, as the case may be, of the sale or purchase of any stock or marketable security, but does not include a note sent by a dealer or agent to his principal where the principal is himself acting as dealer or agent for a principal and is himself a person who bona fide carries on the business of a dealer in Malaysia;
“conveyance on sale” includes every instrument and every decree or order of any Court, whereby any property, or any estate or interest in any property, upon the sale thereof is transferred to or vested in a purchaser or any other person on his behalf or by his direction;
“dealer”
means any person licensed under the
*Securities Industry Act 1983 [Act 280] to carry on the business of dealing in securities in Malaysia and is recognized as a member company by a stock exchange;
“die” includes any plate, type, tool or implement whatever used under the direction of the Collector for expressing or denoting any duty or rate of duty, or the fact that any duty or rate of duty or penalty has been paid, or that an instrument is duly stamped, or is not chargeable with any duty or for denoting any fee, and also any part of any such plate, type, tool or implement;
“duly stamped”, as applied to an instrument, means —
(a)
the instrument bears an adhesive or impressed stamp of not less than the proper amount or the amount of initial duty or the amount of advance duty paid under subsection 37(1) and that such stamp has been affixed or used in accordance with the law for the time being in force;
(b)
any official receipt for the proper amount or the amount of initial duty or the amount of advance duty is affixed to the instrument;
(c)
a stamp certificate for the proper amount or the amount of initial duty or the amount of advance duty is attached to the
*NOTE―The Securities Industry Act 1983 [Act 280] was repealed by the Capital Market and Services
Act 2007 [Act 671]—see section 381 of Act 671.
14 Laws of Malaysia ACT 378
instrument if the instrument is stamped through an electronic medium; or
(d)
the instrument is stamped by means of digital stamping for the proper amount or the amount of initial duty or the amount of advance duty;
“duty” means any stamp duty for the time being chargeable under this Act or under any written law;
“equitable mortgage” means an agreement or memorandum, under hand only, relating to the deposit of any title deeds or instruments constituting or being evidence of the title to any property whatever
(other than stock or marketable securities and a letter of hypothecation), or creating a charge on such property but does not include a registered charge on land in any State;
“executed” and “execution”, used with reference to instruments not under seal, mean “signed” and “signature”;
“foreign currency loan” means any loan denominated wholly in currencies other than the Ringgit;
“impressed stamp” means a stamp impressed by means of a die, or an adhesive stamp over which an impression, denoting the date of such impression, has been made by the proper officer by means of a die;
“instrument” includes every written document;
“insurer”
means any person licensed under the
*Takaful Act 1984 [Act 312] or the **Insurance Act 1996 [Act 553] to carry on an insurance business in Malaysia and includes a reinsurer;
“lease” means a lease of immovable property, and includes—
(a)
any undertaking in writing to cultivate, occupy, or pay or deliver rent for, immovable property;
*NOTE―The Takaful Act 1984 [Act 312] was repealed by the Islamic Financial Services Act 2013
[Act 759]—see section 282 of Act 759.
**NOTE―The Insurance Act 1996 [Act 553] was repealed by the Financial Services Act 2013
[Act 758]—see section 271 of Act 758.
Stamp 15
(b)
any instrument by which tolls, rents or profits of any description are let to farm;
(c)
any writing on an application for a lease intended to signify that the application is granted;
“letter of hypothecation” means any instrument creating a pledge or lien over goods in consideration of monies advanced or to be advanced or to secure the payment or repayment of monies;
“marketable security” means a security of such a description as to be capable of being sold or negotiated in any stock market in Malaysia or elsewhere;
“money” includes all sums whether expressed in the ringgit or in any other currency;
“mortgage” means a security by way of mortgage for the payment of any definite and certain sum of money advanced or lent at the time, or previously due or foreborne to be paid, being payable, or for the repayment of money to be thereafter lent, advanced or paid, or which may become due upon an account current, together with any sum already advanced or due, or without, as the case may be; and includes—
(a)
any conveyance of any property in trust to be sold or otherwise converted into money intended only as a security, and redeemable before the sale or other disposal thereof either by express stipulation or otherwise;
(b)
any instrument in writing for defeating or making redeemable, or explaining or qualifying any conveyance of property, apparently absolute, but intended only as a security;
(c)
any agreement for a mortgage or any agreement (other than an agreement chargeable with duty as an equitable mortgage), contract, or bond accompanied with a deposit of title deeds or with other instruments evidencing a right to property, for making a mortgage or any other security or conveyance as aforesaid of any property comprised in the title deeds or other instruments or for pledging or charging the same as a security; and
16 Laws of Malaysia ACT 378
(d)
any deed operating as a mortgage of any stock or marketable security;
“official receipt” means a receipt issued by or on behalf of the
Collector for payment of stamp duties;
“paper” includes every material upon which words or figures can be expressed;
“policy of insurance” includes every writing whereby any contract of insurance is made or agreed to be made or is evidenced, and the expression “insurance” includes assurance;
“policy of sea insurance”—
(a)
means any insurance, including re-insurance, made upon any ship or vessel, whether for marine or inland navigation, or upon the machinery, tackle or furniture of any ship or vessel or upon any goods, merchandise or property of any description whatever on board of any ship or vessel or upon the freight of or any other interest which may be lawfully insured in or relating to any ship or vessel; and
(b)
includes any insurance of goods, merchandise or property for any transit which includes, not only a sea risk under paragraph (a), but also any other risk incidental to the transit insured from the commencement of the transit to the ultimate destination covered by the insurance;
“power of attorney” means any instrument except a warrant to act as a solicitor in any judicial proceeding, empowering a specified person to act in the stead of the person executing it;
“promissory note” means any document or writing (except a bank note) containing a promise to pay any sum of money and includes a note promising the payment of any sum of money out of any particular fund which may or may not be available or upon any condition or contingency which may or may not be performed or happen;
“property” includes movable or immovable property and any estate or interest in any property movable or immovable, whether in
Stamp 17
possession, reversion, remainder or contingency, and any debt, and anything in action, and any other right or interest in the nature of property which is capable of being disposed of and has a value in it;
“residential property” means a house, condominium, apartment, flat, service apartment or small office home office solely to be used as a dwelling house;
“settlement” means any non-testamentary disposition in writing whether made voluntarily or upon a good or valuable consideration other than a bona fide pecuniary consideration whereby any definite and certain property is settled or agreed to be settled in any manner for any purpose whatsoever;
“small and medium enterprise” means—
(a)
in relation to the manufacturing activities, an enterprise with sales turnover not exceeding fifty million ringgit or full-time employees not exceeding two hundred people; or
(b)
in relation to the services, and other sectors, an enterprise with sales turnover not exceeding twenty million ringgit or full-time employees not exceeding seventy-five people;
“stamp certificate” means a certificate that is issued electronically in respect of any instrument chargeable with duty denoting the amount of duty paid in respect of that instrument;
“stock” includes any share in the capital stock or funded debt of any corporation, company or society in Malaysia or elsewhere and any share in the stocks or funds of the Government of Malaysia or of any other Government or country;
“writing” or “written” includes any handwriting, typewriting, printing, electronic record or transmission which is in an electronically readable form.
18 Laws of Malaysia ACT 378