Non-resident stamp duty where you move in before completion
The short answer
Where a contract is substantially performed before formal completion, the non-resident SDLT test is applied at the earlier event.
- Taking possession can trigger early performance.
- Paying almost all the price can also trigger it.
- Later completion follows the earlier non-resident result.
Scroll down for the full analysis.
Read the original guidance here:
Non-resident stamp duty where you move in before completion
If you move in or pay almost all the price before your property purchase formally completes, you may fix the non-resident stamp duty test at that earlier point. It is not tested again on the later completion date. That can affect the extra SDLT charge for a non-UK resident buyer.
What this rule is about
Most people think completion day decides every stamp duty question. Usually, that is a sensible starting point. Parties may substantially perform a contract before formal completion, and the law can then treat it as having happened earlier.
In simple terms, substantial performance means the deal has already gone far enough in practice. This may happen when you take possession of all, or almost all, of the property. It can also happen when you pay all, or almost all, of the amount due.
What the official source says
Finance Act 2003 treats an early-performed contract as a transaction in its own right, even where the same contract later completes through a formal transfer. Both events are reportable for SDLT.
For the non-resident increase, the key date is the date of substantial performance. That earlier transaction determines the non-resident status of the later completion.
- First, the contract must be substantially performed before formal completion.
- Then, the contract must later complete through a land transfer document.
- Non-resident status is tested for the early contract event.
- Only where that early event was non-resident is the later completion non-resident.
What this means in practice
You cannot usually rely on a change in your residence position between moving in and formal completion. For this part of SDLT, the earlier date is the one that matters.
Where a contract has already been substantially performed before formal completion, a delayed formal transfer does not create a fresh residence test, even when the buyer’s circumstances change in the meantime. In that situation, the earlier date governs.
- Check whether you had possession before completion.
- Check whether you paid nearly all the price early.
- Record the exact date that happened.
- Apply the non-resident test to that date, not simply completion day.
How to analyse it
Start with the facts, not the label on the paperwork. Calling an arrangement an early move-in does not settle the issue.
- Read the contract and identify its planned completion date.
- Find out when you received possession of the property.
- Check whether you could receive rents or other income from it.
- List every payment made before completion.
- Decide whether the contract was substantially performed.
- If it was, apply the residence test at that earlier date.
- Then check whether the later completion follows the same contract.
Example
Amira signs a contract to buy a flat. If Amira’s receipt of the keys and move into the flat mean that she substantially performed the contract before the formal transfer was signed, apply the non-resident test when she took possession. That is the relevant date. A change in her circumstances before formal completion, on its own, does not alter the answer for that completion.
Why this can be difficult in practice
Possession is not always obvious. You might hold keys for building work, have only limited access, or use the property under a temporary right without necessarily having possession for SDLT. Both the documents and the real arrangement matter.
Payments can be difficult too. In the law, the reference is to all, or substantially all, of the amount due. No simple percentage that works in every case is given by the official source.
- Having keys does not always mean you had possession for SDLT.
- A small early payment may not be enough to trigger substantial performance.
- A later completion must be the completion of the same transaction.
- For transactions after 17 November 2025, current legislation should be checked.
Key takeaways
- Early possession or payment can set the key SDLT date.
- Apply the non-resident test at that earlier date.
- Formal completion normally follows the earlier non-resident answer.
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 section 44 — early performance creates a separate land transaction; when a contract has been substantially performed; later completion after early performance and reporting
- FA 2003 section 75ZA — increased rates for non-resident land transactions
- FA 2003 Schedule 9A para 17 — non-resident status after earlier contract performance
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 a contract was substantially performed can depend on the facts, especially when possession started and how much was paid.
- The supplied statutory text is current only to 17 November 2025. The position for a transaction after that date needs checking against current legislation.
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.
- The signed contract and completion documents.
- Evidence of the date keys, possession, rents or income rights passed.
- Evidence of payments made before completion.
- Information needed to apply the residence test at the early-performance date.
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 Non-resident stamp duty where you move in before completion [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 section 44 - early performance creates a separate land transaction https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2003/14/section/44/2025-11-17 - FA 2003 section 44 - when a contract has been substantially performed https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2003/14/section/44/2025-11-17 - FA 2003 section 44 - later completion after early performance and reporting https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2003/14/section/44/2025-11-17 - FA 2003 section 75ZA - increased rates for non-resident land transactions https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2003/14/section/75ZA/2025-11-17 - FA 2003 Schedule 9A para 17 - non-resident status after earlier contract performance https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2003/14/schedule/9A/paragraph/17/2025-11-17 Guidance page from HMRC on this topic (guidance, not law): https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/stamp-duty-land-tax-manual/sdltm09955 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 a contract was substantially performed can depend on the facts, especially when possession started and how much was paid. - The supplied statutory text is current only to 17 November 2025. The position for a transaction after that date needs checking against current legislation. 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: Non-resident stamp duty where you move in before completion
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