Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to extend the stamp duty waiver to allow people who have started but may not complete the house buying process within the existing deadline to benefit from that policy.

The Stamp Duty Land Tax temporary rates apply to transactions completed or substantially performed between 8 July 2020 and 31 March 2021. A transaction is substantially performed where the buyer has paid 90% of the purchase price, or where they have possession of the whole or substantially the whole of the property.

Changing the point at which a transaction is eligible to receive the relief to include anyone who has started the process of buying a house before 31 March could lead to uncertainty and confusion among home buyers. This lack of certainty would also mean that such a trigger point would be open to abuse.

As with all tax policy, the Government continues to monitor the impact of the SDLT temporary rates. However, the Government is not minded to extend the relief further than 31 March.