5. The following instruments and documents shall be exempt from the payment of stamp duty:
| (1) affidavit or affirmation made on the request of any public officer or in compliance with any requirement imposed by any written law ; |
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| (2) agreement .or covenant secured by a mortgage contained in the same instrument therewith, such instrument being duly stamped as a mortgage;, |
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| (3) agreement to marry, not containing any settlement or transfer of property ; |
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| (4) bail bond in criminal proceedings; |
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| (5) bond or mortgage made in pursuance of covenants or other agreements in that behalf, contained in some other instrument, and without additional money consideration, if such other instrument has been stamped with an ad valorem stamp duty on the amount of the consideration for such bond or mortgage; |
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| (6) bond of indemnity given to a public officer in the execution of his duty; |
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| (7) bond or mortgage given by any public officer or his sureties for the due execution of his office; |
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| (8) cheque drawn by any person in the service of the State in the execution of his duties ; |
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| (9) conveyance or transfer by the Government or by any person, for or on behalf of the Government; |
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| (10) debenture issued by a company or other corporate body in terms of a mortgage deed, duly stamped in respect of the full amount of debenture to be issued thereunder, whereby the company or body borrowing makes over, in whole or in part, their property to the trustee for the benefit of the debenture holder: |
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| (11) deed of partition of any land held in common; |
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| (12) instrument executed by, or on behalf of, or in favour of, the Government in cases where, but for this exemption, the Government would be liable to pay the duty chargeable in respect of such instrument; |
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| (13) instrument executed by, or on behalf of, or in favour of, the Government of any country, being a country in respect of which an Order under section 67(3) is in force; |
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| (14) the following documents filed in legal proceedings
| | (a) all documents filed in Magistrates' Courts and Primary Courts and all documents filed for the purposes of criminal proceedings in any other court; | | |
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| (15) letter of credit, whether in sets or not, sent by any person in Sri Lanka to any person outside Sri Lanka authorizing drafts on Sri Lanka; |
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| (16) mortgage of food crops ; |
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| (17) receipts given for money or securities for money deposited in a bank ; |
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| (18) receipt or discharge given for any money or other property amounting to less than one hundred rupees; |
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| (19) share certificate issued upon a subdivision or consolidation of existing shares in any company; |
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| (20) share certificate issued in lieu of share certificate lost or destroyed, or new share certificate for a greater or less number of shares in lieu of existing share certificates but not exceeding the value of the existing share certificates; |
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| (21) will, testament or codicil, whether notarial or otherwise. |
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Sri Lanka Consolidated Acts