You can apply online if you think you’re entitled to a Land Transaction Tax (LTT) refund.
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Apply for a refund
You can claim a refund if:
- you paid the higher rates of LTT and now sold your previous main residence
- you overpaid tax
- you paid us by mistake
- you’re claiming multiple dwellings relief (MDR)
Once you’ve completed a form, it can take 15 to 20 working days to process. It may take longer if we need more information or if you claimed a refund more than 12 months after your property purchase.
If you were not entitled to a refund, you must pay the tax back with any interest due. You may be charged penalties for submitting an incorrect amendment. Further guidance on penalties.
When you can claim a refund
If you bought your property or land less than 12 months ago
You can amend your LTT return up to 12 months from the filing date to claim a refund. Repayment will be made following your amendment.
This does not mean we agree with the reason for your refund. We may write to you with any concerns we have with your amendment. We have 12 months from when you amended your return to open an enquiry and check it.
If you bought your property or land more than 12 months ago
You cannot amend your return, but you can still make a refund claim. Usually, you have to do this within 4 years of your purchase and tell us why you think you overpaid.
We can check your claim before repayment and may write to you if it does not look right. If you then still wish to make the claim, we may open an enquiry into it and check if it’s correct. We have 12 months to enquire into it, starting from the day after you submitted it.
Any refund due will only be processed once we finish our check.
When we cannot accept your refund claim
Refund claims will not be accepted when both the following apply:
- you believe you’ve overpaid tax and could have claimed a LTT relief
- you bought your property or land more than 12 months ago
You must claim most LTT reliefs in one of the following:
- in the tax return
- by amending a tax return within 12 months of the filing date
If your claim relates to visiting forces and international military headquarters reliefs, these rules do not apply.
For more information, refer to our technical guidance on why a claim may be rejected.
Amendments
If you need to change anything else on your tax return, you can use the amend your return online form.
Support
If you're unsure if you can apply for a refund or need a form in a different format, please contact us.