Keeping SDLT relief for a home made available to the public
In brief
SDLT relief for a commercial home made available to the public can be withdrawn during the three-year control period.
- Keep the home in genuine income-producing use.
- Keep records if trading is delayed or paused.
- Check the law current at the relevant purchase date.
Scroll down for the full analysis.
Read the original guidance here:
Keeping SDLT relief for a home made available to the public
If a company or similar buyer got stamp duty relief because it planned to use a home for paying guests, the saving does not simply stay locked in. For three years, the business must keep using the home to earn income, or take reasonable steps to resume that use.
What this rule is about
This relief can apply to a commercial business that makes a home available to the public. It targets genuine trading activity, not private use presented as a business.
The key point is easy to miss: the test continues after the purchase. A later change can trigger withdrawal of the relief.
What the official source says
HMRC’s manual explains the legislation’s ongoing test. The three-year control period starts on the effective date of the purchase.
- Holding the home requires qualifying-trade income.
- The same applies to any legal right in the home that comes from the original right and remains held by the buyer.
- Non-trading needs reasonable start-or-restart steps.
- The buyer may not need to meet the use condition during an unforeseen change outside the buyer’s control, where use would not reasonably be expected.
A qualifying trade must be commercial and run to make a profit. In its normal course, it must let the public use or stay in the home as customers on at least 28 days in a calendar year.
What this means in practice
This is not holiday-home ownership relief. The home needs to form part of a real, income-producing business. A short pause does not automatically end the relief. Doing nothing may.
- Keep records of bookings, guests and income.
- Keep evidence of marketing and efforts to attract customers.
- Record why any closure happened and what you did next.
How to analyse it
Assess the business as it actually operates. Then work through the three-year period from the effective date.
- Did the buyer claim relief under the public-use trade rule?
- Is the buyer still holding the home or a right derived from it?
- Was it earning income through the qualifying trade at that time?
- If not, had trading not started or had it stopped?
- Was the buyer taking reasonable steps to start or resume trading?
Example
Maya’s company buys a home. It receives relief for commercial guest business. Guests can book stays throughout the year. After storm damage, the home closes while repairs take place. If the company arranges repairs, continues marketing and prepares to reopen, those facts may show reasonable steps to restart the business. If it simply leaves the home unused, the relief may be withdrawn.
Why this can be difficult in practice
Evidence often decides the issue. A website saying a home is available to guests will not, by itself, show that the business is commercial or that it gives the public meaningful access.
- Private use can undermine the claimed business purpose.
- Few guests may not show meaningful access. One small room offers little interior access.
- Closures need clear cause and reopening records.
Key takeaways
- The relief remains under review for three years.
- The business must be genuine, public-facing and profit-making.
- If trading stops, keep proof of reasonable steps to restart it.
Technical analysis
For advisers, and for anyone who wants to check the law behind this page. You do not need this section to understand the guidance above.
Legislation
- FA 2003 Schedule 4A para 5B — relief for commercial public-use property businesses
- FA 2003 Schedule 4A para 5H — three-year rules for keeping that relief
Official guidance
The pages below are HMRC’s guidance. Guidance is not law. It sets out how HMRC reads the legislation, and it is not binding on you, on a tribunal or on a court. Where guidance and the legislation differ, the legislation wins. HMRC can also change or withdraw guidance, and it may not cover your facts.
Where this is not settled
- Whether steps taken to start or restart the business are reasonable depends on the facts.
- Whether a setback was unforeseen and beyond the buyer’s control can be fact-sensitive.
- Whether guests can use a significant part of the interior depends on the real arrangements, not just advertising.
Evidence you would need
This kind of case is decided on the facts of the individual property. These are the records that usually settle it, and the ones an adviser would ask you for.
- Business plans, budgets and records showing the intended commercial activity.
- Booking, guest and income records showing public use of the home.
- Records of delays, closures and steps taken to start or restart trading.
- Evidence explaining any event said to be unforeseen and outside the buyer’s control.
Explore this with an AI
Readers often want to test their own situation. Copy the prompt below into ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini. It hands the model the actual legislation for this page rather than letting it answer from memory, and tells it to be explicit about what is uncertain. What comes back is information, not advice – check it against the links above.
I am researching UK Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT), which applies in England and Northern Ireland. MY QUESTION Keeping SDLT relief for a home made available to the public [Replace this with your own situation: what you are buying, the price, the dates, who the buyer is, and what you plan to do with the property.] THE LAW THIS TURNS ON - FA 2003 Schedule 4A para 5B - relief for commercial public-use property businesses https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2003/14/schedule/4A/paragraph/5B/2025-11-17 - FA 2003 Schedule 4A para 5H - three-year rules for keeping that relief https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2003/14/schedule/4A/paragraph/5H/2025-11-17 Guidance page from HMRC on this topic (guidance, not law): https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/stamp-duty-land-tax-manual/sdltm09665 HOW I WANT YOU TO ANSWER 1. Work from the legislation above. Read it before answering. Guidance from HMRC is its view of the law, not the law, and does not bind a tribunal or a court. 2. Tell me what the rule actually requires, in plain English. 3. Tell me which facts decide the answer, and which facts would change it. 4. Tell me what evidence I would need to support the position. 5. Be explicit about anything unsettled or fact-sensitive. Do not guess. 6. Your training data has a cutoff and SDLT rates and reliefs change at fiscal events. Say so if you are not sure the law is current. POINTS ALREADY KNOWN TO BE UNCERTAIN ON THIS TOPIC - Whether steps taken to start or restart the business are reasonable depends on the facts. - Whether a setback was unforeseen and beyond the buyer's control can be fact-sensitive. - Whether guests can use a significant part of the interior depends on the real arrangements, not just advertising. Do not give me a conclusion you cannot support from the provisions above.
Legislation links show Finance Act 2003 as it stood on 2025-11-17. The law may have changed since, and the rules that apply are those in force on the date of your transaction. The official guidance this page is based on is here.
This page was last updated on 31 August 2026
Useful article? You may find it helpful to read the original guidance here: Keeping SDLT relief for a home made available to the public
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