The National Taxation Bureau clarified that property sold but not yet transferred before death must be included in the estate, with unpaid amounts treated as liabilities or receivables for estate tax purposes.
The Taipei National Taxation Bureau of Taiwan’s Ministry of Finance stated that it often receives inquiries regarding situations where a deceased person (the decedent) had sold real property before death, but the ownership transfer registration had not been completed at the time of death. Taxpayers often ask how such cases should be handled for estate tax purposes.
This announcement was made on 6 November 2025.
The Bureau clarified that, upon a person’s death, all property left by the decedent is subject to estate tax, while outstanding debts may be deducted from the total value of the estate. If the decedent sold a property before death but the ownership transfer to the buyer had not yet been completed at the time of death, the property remains registered under the decedent’s name. Therefore, the property must be included in the total estate value based on its officially announced land value or the standard assessed value of the building at the time of death.
At the same time, since the decedent had the legal obligation to complete the ownership transfer to the buyer, the property’s corresponding estate value should be recognised as a liability and deducted from the estate as an unpaid debt. Furthermore, if the decedent had not yet received the full payment from the sale, the unpaid amount must be declared as a receivable and included in the total estate for tax purposes.
For example, Mr A signed a contract on 1 July 2025 to sell a parcel of land (with an officially announced value of TWD 3 million for 2025) to Mr B for TWD 7 million. However, Mr A passed away on 1 August 2025 before completing the ownership transfer, and TWD 5 million of the sale price remained unpaid. In this case, the land should be included in Mr A’s estate at its announced land value of TWD 3 million, while the same amount (TWD 3 million) should be listed as a deductible unpaid debt. The remaining TWD 5 million in unpaid sale proceeds must also be declared as a receivable and included in the total estate value.
