Stamp Duty Reserve Tax: getting a refund
How to apply for a refund if you pay too much Stamp Duty Reserve Tax (SDRT).
Overview
If you pay too much Stamp Duty Reserve Tax (SDRT) on a transaction because you made a mistake, you can claim a refund from HMRC.
You can do this whether the SDRT was paid through the CREST system or by some other means.
When the amount input to CREST was incorrect
If you’ve paid too much SDRT on a share transaction made through the CREST electronic system, you can get a refund.
To get a refund you’ll need to write to us and provide the following information:
- a signed letter of claim (this can be in PDF format)
- your CREST participant ID, this must be the same as the participant ID that paid the tax in CREST, if these do not match, your claim may not be paid
- the CREST transaction ID (identifier), this identifies the transaction for which you want a SDRT refund (it is not the stamp transaction ID)
- the amount of refund you are applying for — in the case of more than one transaction make sure you state the amount of refund required for each individual CREST transaction ID
- the repayment code — choose a repayment code from the tables shown to indicate why a refund is due, if you’re claiming a refund for more than one transaction, choose the appropriate code for each
If the person who paid the SDRT gives you written authority to make a claim and gives up their rights over the money, we can process the claim.
Repayment code — exemption
| Code | Reason |
|---|---|
| 1 | No change of beneficial owner |
| 2 | Charity |
| 3 | Intermediary Relief (principal purchase) |
Repayment code — incorrect or missing information input to CREST
| Code | Reason |
|---|---|
| 4 | TSS Flag |
| 5 | Trade System of Origin or Stock Lending Relief |
| 6 | Market sale or American depositary receipt conversion back to underlying shares |
| 7 | Incorrect consideration |
| 8 | Agent indicator |
Repayment code — double SDRT payment
| Code | Reason |
|---|---|
| 9 | Cancelled or rebooked trades, or duplicated trades |
| 10 | Bulk or split payments, paid both in and outside CREST, paid by both parties |
| 11 | Other reasons not listed |
Claiming a refund for 15 or more transactions
If you claim for 15 or more transactions in a single application, you should put the information into a spreadsheet and send it to us by email.
Example spreadsheet format for multiple refund claims
| CREST Participant ID | CREST transaction ID | Claim | Repayment code |
|---|---|---|---|
| 123 | ABC0225466 | £33.22 | 1 |
| 123 | BC00605484 | £784.63 | 2 |
| 333 | FG10569882 | £12.54 | 10 |
| 333 | ADC0562337 | £2120.33 | 8 |
CREST refunds and HMRC accuracy checks
We will send a refund, plus any interest due, for all claims we receive with a valid CREST transaction ID. We will not make any detailed accuracy checks on your claim there and then. But we will check a sample of the claims we receive in detail to make sure they’re correct.
We may need to contact you at a later date to request more information to support your claim.
Other refunds
To get a refund for a transaction that was not made through CREST you’ll need to write to us and explain why you think a refund is due. You need to provide:
- the original receipt for the SDRT that was paid, if one was issued to you
- the trade date
- the names of the parties involved
- information about why a refund is due, along with any supporting documents that confirm this
- how the SDRT was paid
- when the SDRT payment was made
Before we make any refund we’ll check the details of your claim. We may request more supporting information if you did not provide enough detail when you first claimed the refund.
If we agree the refund we’ll repay the SDRT, usually along with interest, from the date when the tax was paid.
HMRC can only repay Stamp Duty Reserve Tax by electronic transfer.
Where to send your refund request
If you’re making a claim for a refund of SDRT, you can contact us by email or post.
If you make a claim by email, you should include a signed letter of claim in electronic format.
Do not email your bank details with your refund claim, we cannot use them for security reasons. We will contact you to arrange for your bank details to be sent securely once your request and information has been received.
We will accept electronic signatures.
You can use the same email address for all refund claims, whether the transaction was made through CREST or not. You should mark your letter Stamp Duty Reserve Tax.
Time limit for claiming a refund
You can get a refund of overpaid SDRT as long as you claim a repayment within 4 years of whichever is the later of when:
- SDRT became due
- the SDRT was actually paid
Updates to this page
Published 18 December 2013Last updated 7 January 2022 + show all updates
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Temporary changes to the way we deal with Stamp Duty Reserve Tax refunds due to coronavirus (COVID-19) have ended.
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Information about temporary changes to the way we deal with Stamp Duty Reserve Tax refunds due to coronavirus (COVID-19) has been added.
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First published.