Guidance

Apply for a repayment of the non-UK Resident Stamp Duty Land Tax surcharge

Check if you can and how to apply for a repayment if you’re a non-residential purchaser of property in England and Northern Ireland.

• From: HM Revenue & Customs
• Published: 1 April 2021
• Last updated: 15 July 2022 — See all updates

Who can apply

You or your agent can apply for a repayment of the surcharge paid on a property if all the purchasers are individuals and have spent 183 days in the UK in any continuous 365-day period:

• starting no more than 364 days before the effective date of transaction

• ending no more than 365 days after the effective date of the transaction

The effective date of the transaction is usually the completion date.

You must apply for the repayment within 2 years of the effective date of the transaction.

What information you’ll need

You will need the:

• UK bank account and sort code details for the person to receive the payment — this is where the refund will be paid and can be in sole or joint names

• Unique Transaction Reference Number (UTRN) of the Stamp Duty Land Tax return submitted when the property was purchased

• effective date of the purchase of the property, usually the completion date

• amount of Stamp Duty Land Tax paid on the property, including the non-resident surcharge

• purchase price, if it’s a freehold property (or other ‘consideration’ if the transaction included goods, works, services, debt release and so on)

• total lease premium, if it’s a leasehold property

• ‘net present value’ calculation used when the Stamp Duty Land Tax was calculated if it’s a new lease

If you’ve already reclaimed the higher rate on additional dwellings, you’ll need the amount of Stamp Duty Land Tax that was due after the refund.

You may need to ask the solicitor or conveyancer used for the purchase for most of these details.

If you are an agent acting for the purchaser

You’ll need a document signed by the purchaser confirming that you have authority to apply for a repayment on their behalf. You can use this example letter of authority (ODT, 7.34 KB).

If the repayment is to be paid into an account other than the purchaser’s, the document must authorise this and include the account details.

You’ll need to upload an image of the signed document and include it in your online application.

How to apply for a repayment

Your application is a request to HMRC to amend the Stamp Duty Land Tax return for the property. You’ll be asked to certify that the amendment is correct.

There are 2 ways to apply, you can either use your:

• sign in details that you used to register for Self Assessment or file a tax return online
• email address — you can only use this if you do not have any sign in details

You’ll be able to save your application and return to it later.

Published 1 April 2021
Last updated 15 July 2022 + show all updates

1. 15 July 2022

   'If you are an agent acting for the purchaser' section updated, you must upload an image of a document the purchaser has signed confirming you have authority.

2. 1 April 2021

   First published.