Form

Apply for a repayment of the higher rates of Stamp Duty Land Tax

Ask for a repayment of the higher rates of Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) for additional properties if you sell what was previously your main home.

Documents

Apply online (sign in using Government Gateway)

Apply by post

Details

You can apply for a repayment of the higher rates of SDLT for additional properties if you’ve sold what was previously your main home if you’re either the:

  • main buyer of the property which was charged at the higher SDLT rate
  • agent acting for them

You must have sold your previous main residence within 3 years of buying the new property to qualify for a refund unless exceptional circumstances apply.

Properties sold on or before 28 October 2018

If you sold your previous main residence on 28 October 2018 or earlier, HMRC must have your request within 3 months of the sale of that previous main residence, or within 12 months of the filing date of the return relating to the new residence, whichever is later.

Properties sold on or after 29 October 2018

If you sold your previous main residence on 29 October 2018 or later, HMRC must have your request within 12 months of the sale of that previous main residence, or within 12 months of the filing date of the return relating to the new residence, whichever is later.

Exceptional circumstances

You may still be able to apply for a refund, if you purchased your new home on or after 1 January 2017 and were unable to sell your previous home within 3 years. To be able to get the refund, the delay in selling must be because of reasons outside of your control. These may be, but are not limited to:

  • the impact of coronavirus (COVID-19) preventing the sale
  • an action taken by a public authority preventing the sale

Once the reason has ended, you must sell the previous home to be able to apply for the refund. You can then write to HMRC and include:

You should send the information to:

BT Stamp Duty Land Tax
HM Revenue and Customs
BX9 1HD

You can find more information in our SDLT manual.

Apply for a repayment

To apply for a repayment you can:

  • use the online form
  • fill in the form on-screen, print it off and post it to HMRC

To use the online form, you need a Government Gateway user ID and password. If you do not have a user ID, you can create one when you use the service.

Email HMRC to ask for this form in Welsh (Cymraeg).

Before you start

Make sure your browser is up to date before you start to fill in the form.

You cannot save a partly completed form so have all your information together before you start to fill it in.

Information you’ll need

To fill in this form you’ll need:

  • your details
  • the main buyer’s details if they’re different to your own
  • details of the property that attracted the higher rates of SDLT, including the effective date of purchase and the SDLT unique transaction reference number
  • details of the previous main residence you’ve sold, including the effective date of sale, the address of the property and the name of the buyer
  • the amount of tax paid on the property that attracted the higher rates of SDLT
  • the amount of tax you’re asking for a repayment of
  • the bank account and sort code details of the person to receive the payment, where possible we will pay any refund electronically

If your repayment is going to an agent rather than the purchaser, you’ll need to attach a covering letter and signed purchaser authority. This should be in JPEG or PDF format, and a maximum of 5MB in size.

If you’re an agent asking on behalf of the main buyer you’ll also need a signed letter of consent from them.

Published 1 April 2016
Last updated 3 June 2020 + show all updates
  1. Following the government’s announcement, we have updated guidance on exceptional circumstances if you bought a new home on or after 1 January 2017 and have been unable to sell your previous home within 3 years.

  2. Guidance updated following an extension to the time limits for making a repayment claim as announced at Budget 2018.

  3. An online service is now available.

  4. Updated the new return address and deleted the DX address

  5. An online forms service is now available.

  6. Minor change to URL - removed space from URL.

  7. First published.