Guidance on Preserving LBTT Records in Various Formats for Compliance

Keeping LBTT Records and Making Them Accessible

For LBTT records, you do not always need to keep the original paper documents, but you must preserve all the necessary information for the full retention period. Records can be kept on paper, electronically, or in a mix of formats, as long as they remain complete, legible, and easily accessible to Revenue Scotland if requested.

• You can comply either by keeping the original documents or by preserving the information they contain.
• Electronic storage is allowed, including scanned copies, if it captures everything needed for a correct and complete LBTT return.
• Records must be capable of being reproduced clearly and legibly throughout the whole retention period.
• “Easily accessible” means more than simply existing; the records must be realistically retrievable and readable for Revenue Scotland.
• If system upgrades or obsolete formats make old digital records inaccessible, you must still keep them accessible or retain paper copies instead.

Scroll down for the full analysis.

LBTT records: how you can keep them, and what “accessible” really means

This page explains how records for Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) can be preserved for an LBTT return or a non-notifiable transaction. The main point is simple: you do not always have to keep the original paper document, but whatever method you use must preserve the necessary information and allow Revenue Scotland to see it if requested.

What this rule is about

LBTT record-keeping rules do not just require a person to have records at the time a return is completed. They also require records to be preserved for the relevant retention period. This matters because LBTT liabilities may later need to be checked, corrected, or evidenced.

The official guidance here deals with the form in which records may be kept. It applies both to records relating to an LBTT return and to records for a non-notifiable transaction. The issue is not only whether records exist, but whether they remain usable and readable for the full period they must be kept.

What the official source says

The guidance says a person can meet the obligation to preserve records in one of two ways:

• by retaining the original documents; or
• by preserving the information contained in the original documents.

It also says that, provided the legislative requirements are met, records may be kept in whatever format the person chooses. That can include paper, electronic storage, or a mixture of both. The examples given include a computer hard drive, tablet or smartphone, magnetic tape, flash drive or memory stick, and optical media such as a CD, DVD or Blu-Ray.

Whatever format is chosen, the records must be easily accessible to Revenue Scotland if it asks to see them.

The guidance also addresses system changes. If records are stored on a computer and the system is later upgraded so that the new system is not compatible with the old one, the records on the old system must still remain accessible for the required retention period referred to in LBTT9003. If that cannot be achieved, paper copies must be kept.

Where paper records are converted into electronic form, the storage method must be capable of:

• capturing all the information needed to make a correct and complete LBTT return; and
• reproducing that information in a legible form.

What this means in practice

The practical effect is that LBTT record-keeping is technology-neutral, but not outcome-neutral. You are free to choose the storage method, but only if that method actually preserves the information properly and allows it to be produced later.

In practice, this means:

• you can scan paper records and keep them electronically instead of keeping the original paper, if the scan captures everything needed;
• you can store records digitally, but they must remain readable and retrievable for the full retention period;
• you should think ahead when changing software, hardware, or file formats;
• if a digital system becomes obsolete and you cannot still access the records, you may need paper copies instead.

The phrase “easily accessible” is important. It suggests more than mere theoretical existence. A record is unlikely to be satisfactory if it is buried in an obsolete system, saved in a format no longer readable, or stored in a way that makes it impractical to provide to Revenue Scotland.

The rule about preserving “the information contained in the original documents” also matters. It means the legal focus is on preserving the content needed for LBTT purposes, not necessarily the physical original itself. But if information is lost in the conversion process, the obligation may not be met.

How to analyse it

A sensible way to assess compliance is to ask the following questions.

• What records are required for this LBTT return or non-notifiable transaction?
• Am I keeping the original documents, or am I preserving the information from them in another form?
• Does the chosen method capture all the information needed to support a correct and complete LBTT position?
• Can the records be reproduced clearly and legibly if requested?
• Will the records still be accessible throughout the full retention period?
• If my systems change, have I made sure older records will still be retrievable?
• If continued digital access is uncertain, have I kept paper copies where necessary?

For conveyancers, taxpayers, and anyone maintaining transaction files, the key is not simply storing documents somewhere. It is maintaining a reliable audit trail that remains usable over time.

Example

A buyer’s agent receives signed paper documents and supporting papers for an LBTT return. The firm scans the papers into its document management system and destroys the originals.

This can satisfy the preservation requirement if the scans capture all the information needed for a correct and complete LBTT return and can later be reproduced in a legible form. But if some pages were scanned poorly, attachments were missed, or the system later changes and the files can no longer be opened, there may be a problem. If the firm cannot keep the old records accessible after a system upgrade, it would need to keep paper copies instead.

Why this can be difficult in practice

The guidance is straightforward in principle, but compliance can become fact-sensitive when records are digitised or systems change.

One difficulty is deciding whether an electronic copy really preserves all the relevant information. A document may contain annotations, attachments, formatting, or linked material that is easy to overlook when scanning or exporting.

Another difficulty is long-term accessibility. A file may exist, but that is not the same as being easily accessible. Password protection, obsolete storage media, unsupported software, or missing metadata can all make retrieval difficult.

There is also a practical difference between preserving records for internal use and preserving them in a way that satisfies a tax authority request. The guidance requires records to be accessible to Revenue Scotland, so the storage method should be judged from that perspective, not only from the keeper’s own convenience.

The source does not set out a detailed technical standard for electronic storage. That means the legal test is functional: does the method preserve the necessary information, and can it be reproduced legibly and accessed when needed?

Key takeaways

• You do not always have to keep the original paper document if you preserve the information it contains properly.
• Electronic storage is acceptable, but the records must remain legible and easily accessible to Revenue Scotland.
• If a system upgrade makes old records inaccessible, you must still keep them accessible for the required period, or keep paper copies instead.

This page was last updated on 24 March 2026

Useful article? You may find it helpful to read the original guidance here: Guidance on Preserving LBTT Records in Various Formats for Compliance

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