Stamp Duty on 2 adjoining plots

by **RedRiverRock** on Tue Feb 15, 2011 7:24 pm

A builder wants to buy an adjoining pair of building plots, price around £260k for the two. This looks like SDLT at 3%.

Is it acceptable to HMRC to treat the transaction as one at £125K (0% SDLT) & one at £135k (1%SDLT)?

The plots have been marketed individually and the values are fair market value as indicated by other offers for individual plots.

In other words, will HMRC seek to view the purchase as a single transaction because the same person is buying two plots?

Thank you for your thoughts

by **section 44** on Wed Feb 16, 2011 10:39 am

Is it the same (or connected) vendor?

If yes, then these would be linked transactions and so SDLT at 3%.

RedRiverRock wrote:the values are fair market value

"Fair" in your opinion - we will never know. Unless there was a decent break between transcations (not just exchange of contracts and completion but also negoatitions - this hasn't happened) it is difficult to see how these wouldn't be linked. The law is drafted wider than HMRC 's interpretation of it and even based on the latter these would be linked.