Guidance on SDLT Responsibilities for Representatives of Incapacitated Persons and Minors

Who can handle SDLT when the buyer cannot act personally?

If a property buyer cannot deal with Stamp Duty Land Tax themselves, the law allows certain representatives to take over the SDLT duties. This means the return can still be filed, HMRC can be dealt with properly, and the tax can be paid from the relevant funds or estate where the rules allow.

• SDLT normally remains the buyer’s liability, but a recognised representative may have to deal with the compliance if the buyer is a minor, lacks capacity, has died, or their property is under a court-appointed receiver.
• The main representatives are: a person controlling the property of an incapacitated person, a parent or guardian of a minor, the personal representatives of a deceased buyer, and a UK court-appointed receiver controlling the property.
• This rule is about legal responsibility for meeting SDLT obligations, which is different from a power of attorney that may simply allow someone to sign or act for the buyer.
• Representatives may need to file the SDLT return, answer HMRC queries, and arrange payment using the funds, property money, or estate assets they control where permitted.
• In practice, the key issues are identifying who the correct representative is, what authority they have, and whether the transaction affects the property they manage.

Scroll down for the full analysis.

Who can deal with SDLT when the buyer cannot act personally?

This page explains who is allowed, and in some cases required, to deal with Stamp Duty Land Tax obligations when the purchaser is not acting for themselves. The rule matters because SDLT obligations do not disappear just because the buyer is a child, lacks capacity, has died, or their property is under court control. Someone else may need to file the return, deal with HMRC, and arrange payment.

What this rule is about

SDLT is normally the responsibility of the purchaser in a land transaction. But some purchasers cannot act personally, or no longer can. Finance Act 2003 section 106 deals with people acting in a representative capacity. It allows certain representatives to carry out SDLT functions on the purchaser’s behalf.

The HMRC material also notes a separate point: a person holding a power of attorney can sign SDLT returns for the purchaser under Finance Act 2003 section 81B. That is slightly different from section 106. A power of attorney is about authority to sign and act for the purchaser. Section 106 is about who is responsible for discharging SDLT obligations in particular representative situations.

What the official source says

The official material identifies four main categories of representative:

• a person with the direction, management or control of the property of an incapacitated person
• a parent or guardian of a minor
• the personal representatives of a deceased purchaser
• a receiver appointed by a UK court who has direction and control of property

For an incapacitated person, the person controlling that person’s property is responsible for meeting SDLT obligations connected with a transaction affecting that property, to the extent the incapacitated person would have had those obligations if they were not incapacitated.

The source says that “incapacitated” is not defined in the SDLT legislation itself. HMRC’s view is that the definition used in section 108 of the Taxes Management Act 1970, for the purposes of section 72 of that Act, should be followed, because section 106 is based on that provision.

For a minor, the parent or guardian is responsible for any obligations of the minor that the minor does not discharge personally.

For a deceased purchaser, the personal representatives are responsible for discharging the purchaser’s SDLT obligations in relation to the transaction.

For property under the direction and control of a receiver appointed by a UK court, that receiver is responsible for SDLT obligations relating to a transaction affecting that property.

The source also states who bears the financial burden in practical terms. A representative who pays SDLT for an incapacitated person may keep back money they hold for that person to meet the liability and is entitled to be reimbursed or indemnified so far as they are not already repaid. Personal representatives may deduct SDLT they have paid from the deceased person’s assets and effects.

What this means in practice

The key point is that HMRC does not have to wait for the purchaser personally to act if the law recognises someone else as the proper representative. The representative can deal with returns and correspondence, and is responsible for ensuring the SDLT obligations are met.

This does not change who the purchaser is for the land transaction. Instead, it changes who can and must handle the tax compliance.

In practice, this is important in cases such as these:

• a property is bought in the name of someone who lacks capacity, and a deputy, attorney or other person controls their property affairs
• a child is the purchaser
• the purchaser dies before the SDLT return is filed or before the tax is paid
• the property is being dealt with by a court-appointed receiver

The representative steps into the administrative role needed to make the SDLT system work. That includes matters such as filing the return, responding to HMRC queries, and arranging payment from the funds or assets they control where the legislation allows that.

How to analyse it

A sensible way to approach the issue is to ask the following questions.

• Who is the purchaser for SDLT purposes? Start with the land transaction itself.
• Can that purchaser act personally? If not, is there a recognised representative situation under the legislation?
• What is the representative’s legal status? For example, are they a parent, guardian, personal representative, court-appointed receiver, or someone with direction, management or control of the property of an incapacitated person?
• Does the transaction affect the property that the representative controls? This matters particularly for incapacitated persons and receivers.
• Who should sign or submit the SDLT return? If a power of attorney exists, section 81B may also be relevant.
• From what funds can the SDLT be paid? The source expressly allows retention or deduction from the relevant person’s money or estate in some cases.

It is also important to separate two issues that are easy to blur together:

• authority to sign or communicate with HMRC
• legal responsibility for discharging the SDLT obligations

The same person may have both, but the route by which they do so may differ. The HMRC page expressly mentions both section 106 and the separate rule for powers of attorney in section 81B.

Example

A buyer exchanges contracts to buy land, but dies before the SDLT return is filed. The buyer’s personal representatives take control of the estate. Under the rule described in the source, the personal representatives are responsible for discharging the buyer’s SDLT obligations for that transaction. If they pay SDLT, they may deduct that amount from the deceased buyer’s estate.

Another illustration is a purchase by a minor. If the child does not discharge the SDLT obligations personally, the parent or guardian is responsible for doing so.

Why this can be difficult in practice

The main difficulty is often identifying the correct representative and the source of their authority.

For incapacitated persons, the SDLT legislation does not define “incapacitated”. HMRC says the definition in the Taxes Management Act should be followed, but that is an interpretative step rather than an express SDLT definition. In straightforward cases this may not matter, but in marginal cases capacity and control over property may need careful analysis.

Another practical difficulty is that several people may appear to have some authority. For example, there may be an attorney under a power of attorney, a deputy, a trustee, or a family member involved in the transaction. The source does not say that every such person automatically becomes responsible. The legal question is whether the person falls within the relevant representative category or has authority under the separate signing rule.

Timing can also matter. If the purchaser dies or loses capacity during the transaction process, someone needs to identify quickly who is responsible for the SDLT compliance obligations from that point onward.

Key takeaways

• SDLT obligations can be discharged by a legally recognised representative where the purchaser cannot act personally.
• Section 106 covers categories such as those acting for incapacitated persons, minors, deceased purchasers, and property under a court-appointed receiver.
• A power of attorney may also allow a return to be signed on the purchaser’s behalf, but that is a separate point from who is legally responsible under section 106.

This page was last updated on 24 March 2026

Useful article? You may find it helpful to read the original guidance here: Guidance on SDLT Responsibilities for Representatives of Incapacitated Persons and Minors

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