Home › Forums › Patrick Cannon › Is SDLT paid on the VAT market value of an exchange of properties? › Reply To: Is SDLT paid on the VAT market value of an exchange of properties?
I think that the amendments made by Sch 21 of the Finance Bill to para 5 of Sch 4 FA 2003 apply regardless of any tax avoidance motive. I suspect that the references to tax avoidance in the enabling provision are there largely for presentational reasons.
I take it that you act for the purchaser and in that case it seems to me on an initial reading of the changes that if the cash price paid by your client including VAT is higher than the market value of the property acquired excluding VAT then your client has to use the cash price as the basis for the SDLT computation.
I am touched that you expected a reply from HMRC to your question. They are far too busy looking after their “customers”!