Stamp Duty Reserve Tax
A new statutory instrument came into effect on 1 April 2010 amending the Stamp Duty Reserve Tax (SDRT) legislation. It extends HMRC’s powers and aligns the time limits for SDRT with those relevant to other taxes.
The statutory instrument also revokes existing powers in SDRT regulations which are now replaced by reference to Schedule 36, Finance Act 2008 under which HMRC carries out tax compliance checks. This standardises SDRT compliance checks with other taxes.
SDRT time limits will become subject to the same four-year time limit for assessments and claims as for other taxes. The introduction of the new time limit is subject to transitional provisions and will not be fully implemented until 1 April 2011.
Whilst most time limits for SDRT will be reduced, cases which involve deliberate underpayments will be subject to a time limit of 20 years from the date of the transaction instead of 6 years from the date that the underpayment came to HMRC’s knowledge. The earlier of the two time limits will apply to underpayments in respect of transactions taking place before 1 April 2011.