In the 2008 Budget, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) confirmed that the Finance Bill 2008 (FB 2008) will change the rules in section 77 of the Finance Act 2003 (FA 2003) on notifying HMRC about land transactions for SDLT purposes. The change applies new notification thresholds to leasehold and freehold transactions that have an effective date on or after 12 March 2008.

The FB 2008 will also amend section 79 of the FA 2003 so that the requirement to submit a certificate to the Land Registry, confirming that the SDLT provisions of the FA 2003 have been complied with, will only apply to notifiable transactions.

The amendment to section 79 indicates that the requirement for SDLT 60s has been abolished. However, this is not clear because there is reference elsewhere in the 2008 Budget documentation to SDLT 60s which casts doubt on whether it is Parliament's intention to dispense with them.

Until clarification is received on the fate of SDLT 60s, conveyancers and purchasers should continue to use them in accordance with the pre-budget rules.

We would welcome your views on this point and any other topic arising from the 2008 Budget. Comments can be made using the PLC Tax Budget 2008: discussion forum.