Guide to Completing ‘About the Calculation’ in Online LBTT Return

Completing the “About the calculation” Section of an Online LBTT Return

The “About the calculation” section in Revenue Scotland’s online LBTT return is mainly a summary of the tax figures created from the earlier “About the transaction” section. It shows the LBTT and any Additional Dwelling Supplement (ADS), any reliefs claimed, and the final tax payable, but it does not include penalties or interest.

• You can usually edit this section only after completing the “About the transaction” section.
• It shows key figures such as LBTT calculated, ADS calculated, total liability, reliefs claimed, and total tax payable.
• Some fields may not apply, for example if there is no ADS charge or no relief being claimed.
• Penalties and interest must not be entered in this section because Revenue Scotland deals with them separately.
• If the figures look wrong here, the issue may come from earlier transaction details rather than from the calculation page itself.
• After making any changes, selecting “next” updates the figures and the return summary.

Scroll down for the full analysis.

How to complete the “About the calculation” section of an online LBTT return

This section of the online Land and Buildings Transaction Tax return shows how the tax figure has been calculated. In most cases, it pulls figures through from the earlier “About the transaction” section. It matters because it shows the total LBTT and any Additional Dwelling Supplement, any reliefs claimed, and the final tax payable on the return.

What this rule is about

The page is dealing with the calculation summary within Revenue Scotland’s online LBTT return. It is not setting out the underlying tax law in detail. Instead, it explains how the online form presents the figures that have already been entered elsewhere in the return.

The key point is that the calculation section depends on the transaction details having been completed first. The return uses those earlier entries to generate the tax figures.

What the official source says

According to Revenue Scotland’s guidance, the “About the calculation” section only becomes editable after the “About the transaction” section has been completed.

Once opened for editing, the section allows you to view or amend these fields:

• LBTT calculated
• ADS calculated
• Total liability, being LBTT and/or ADS calculated
• Total LBTT reliefs claimed
• Total ADS reliefs claimed
• Total tax payable, being total liability less LBTT and/or ADS reliefs claimed

The guidance also says that some fields may not apply to a particular transaction, so they may not need to be amended.

It expressly states that penalties and interest should not be included in these fields. Those amounts are dealt with separately by Revenue Scotland.

After any necessary amendments are made, selecting “next” updates the figures and shows the revised position in the return summary.

What this means in practice

In practice, this section is mainly a check on the tax result produced by the return. It brings together the figures that matter financially:

• the LBTT charge
• any ADS charge
• any reliefs entered earlier in the return
• the final amount payable

If the transaction does not involve ADS, the ADS fields may not be relevant. If no relief is being claimed, the relief fields may simply remain at nil or not require amendment.

This section is also important because it separates the tax due on the transaction itself from later compliance amounts. If penalties or interest arise, they are not part of the tax calculation shown here.

How to analyse it

A sensible way to work through this part of the return is:

• First, make sure the “About the transaction” section has been completed fully and accurately.
• Check whether the transaction gives rise to LBTT only, ADS only, or both.
• Check whether any LBTT relief or ADS relief has been claimed earlier in the return.
• Review the total liability figure and make sure it reflects the relevant tax charges.
• Review the total tax payable and make sure it correctly deducts any reliefs claimed.
• Do not add penalties or interest into the calculation fields.
• After making changes, move forward so the return summary updates.

The main practical question is whether the figures shown in this section properly match the transaction details already entered. If they do not, the problem may lie earlier in the return rather than in the calculation section itself.

Example

Illustration: a buyer enters the transaction details and indicates that LBTT is due. They also enter a relief claim that reduces the amount payable. When they open “About the calculation”, the section shows the LBTT calculated, the relief claimed, and the reduced total tax payable. If the transaction does not involve an additional dwelling, the ADS fields may not need any action.

Why this can be difficult in practice

The guidance is brief and assumes that the earlier transaction section has been completed correctly. That means this section can be misleading if the user treats it as the place where the tax position is worked out from scratch. It is really a calculation and summary page built on previous answers.

Another practical difficulty is that users may confuse tax due on the return with later amounts such as penalties or interest. The guidance is clear that those amounts are administered separately and should not be entered here.

There can also be uncertainty where a user is unsure whether a relief applies, or whether ADS is in point at all. Those issues are not resolved by this page itself. They must be determined under the substantive LBTT rules and then reflected correctly in the return.

Key takeaways

• The “About the calculation” section depends on the earlier “About the transaction” section being completed first.
• It summarises LBTT, ADS, reliefs, and the final tax payable on the return.
• Penalties and interest are not part of this calculation section and should not be entered there.

This page was last updated on 24 March 2026

Useful article? You may find it helpful to read the original guidance here: Guide to Completing ‘About the Calculation’ in Online LBTT Return

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