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New stamp duty fines come into force

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HMRC has issued guidance on late payment of stamp duty, and published details of the new stamp duty penalties that were introduced on 1 October 2014. These apply to all documents submitted for stamping after that date.

HMRC has issued guidance on late payment of stamp duty, and published details of the new stamp duty penalties that were introduced on 1 October 2014. These apply to all documents submitted for stamping after that date. Late submission penalties for stamp duty on share or land transactions have been amended to:

  • 10% of the duty, capped at £300, for documents up to 12 months late;
  • 20% of the duty, for documents late by 12 to 24 months; and
  • 30% of the duty, for documents that are more than 24 months late.

This is a simplification of the previous rules, which applied higher initial penalties and then provided for these to be reduced using the reduced charges tables. Such reductions were at HMRC’s discretion. Under the new system, the reason for failure will only be considered where the delay is for 12 months or more and there is evidence that the failure to submit the documents was deliberate. In these circumstances, HMRC may charge a greater penalty calculated as a percentage of the unpaid duty, proportionate to the seriousness of the reason. Further guidance is in HMRC’s new Stamp Taxes on Shares Manual at STSM015020

Categories: News , SDLT , Stamp taxes
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