Guidance on Requesting Paper LBTT Return Forms from Revenue Scotland
When a paper LBTT return form can still be used
Revenue Scotland now expects most LBTT returns to be filed online through the Scottish Electronic Tax System (SETS). Paper forms are only available in limited cases, mainly where an individual is dealing with their own transaction and needs to file a conveyance return or first-time lease return, as there is currently no online service for those submissions.
- Since 1 May 2020, solicitors, conveyancers, organisations and tax professionals must file LBTT returns online through SETS.
- Paper forms and cheques sent by post are not accepted from professional or organisational users.
- Individuals acting without a solicitor or conveyancer can submit lease reviews and ADS repayment claims online without registering for SETS.
- Unrepresented taxpayers cannot currently file a conveyance return or first-time lease return online.
- In those limited cases, the taxpayer should email Revenue Scotland’s LBTT team to request the correct paper form and guidance.
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Read the original guidance here:
Guidance on Requesting Paper LBTT Return Forms from Revenue Scotland
When you can use a paper LBTT return form
This page explains when Revenue Scotland will still issue a paper Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) return form, and when you must use its online system instead. The main point is that paper filing is now very limited. Whether you can ask for a paper form depends largely on who you are and what type of LBTT submission you need to make.
What this rule is about
LBTT returns are normally submitted to Revenue Scotland through its online system, the Scottish Electronic Tax System (SETS). But some people dealing with their own transaction, without a solicitor or conveyancer, may not have access to the same filing routes as professional users.
The source material is addressing a practical filing question rather than the tax calculation itself: if you need to send an LBTT return or related claim, do you file online or can you ask for a paper form?
What the official source says
Revenue Scotland says that, from 1 May 2020, organisations and tax professionals must submit all LBTT returns online through SETS. This covers conveyance returns, lease returns, and lease review returns. Paper forms and cheques sent by post are no longer accepted from those users.
For taxpayers who do not have a solicitor or conveyancer, the position is different:
- they can use Revenue Scotland’s online services to submit lease reviews online;
- they can use Revenue Scotland’s online services to submit Additional Dwelling Supplement (ADS) repayment claims;
- for those two online services, they do not need to register in the system;
- Revenue Scotland does not currently provide an online service for unrepresented taxpayers who need to submit a conveyance return or a first-time lease return.
In those cases, the taxpayer can contact the LBTT team by email and ask for a paper form. Revenue Scotland says it will provide the correct form and guidance for completing the return.
What this means in practice
The practical effect is that paper LBTT filing is now an exception, not a general option.
If you are a solicitor, conveyancer, organisation, or tax professional, you should assume that LBTT returns must be filed online through SETS. You also need to be registered for SETS in order to submit returns that way.
If you are an individual taxpayer handling the matter yourself, you need to separate out the type of submission:
- If you are filing a lease review, Revenue Scotland says there is an online route available to you.
- If you are making an ADS repayment claim, there is also an online route available to you.
- If you need to file a conveyance return, or a first-time lease return, and you do not have a solicitor or conveyancer, Revenue Scotland says there is no online service for you at present. In that situation, you should request a paper form by email.
This matters because using the wrong route could delay submission. In a transaction tax context, delay can have consequences for registration, payment, or compliance deadlines, even though this page does not set those deadlines out.
How to analyse it
A sensible way to approach this is to ask four questions.
- Who is making the submission?
Are you an unrepresented taxpayer, or are you acting as a solicitor, conveyancer, organisation, or tax professional? - What are you trying to submit?
Is it a conveyance return, a first-time lease return, a lease review, or an ADS repayment claim? - Is there an online route for that person and that submission type?
According to the source, some online routes are available to taxpayers acting without professional representation, but not all. - Do you need SETS registration?
Professional users filing returns online do need to be registered for SETS. Unrepresented taxpayers using the specific online routes for lease reviews or ADS repayment claims do not have to register.
If, after working through those questions, you are an unrepresented taxpayer needing to file a conveyance return or first-time lease return, the source indicates that you should email Revenue Scotland’s LBTT team to request the appropriate paper form.
Example
A buyer in Scotland is dealing with their own property purchase and does not have a solicitor or conveyancer. They need to submit an LBTT return for the acquisition itself. The source says Revenue Scotland does not currently provide an online service for an unrepresented taxpayer to submit a conveyance return. In that situation, the buyer should email the LBTT team and ask for a paper return form.
By contrast, if the same person later needed to submit an ADS repayment claim, the source says they could use Revenue Scotland’s online service for that claim without registering in the system.
Why this can be difficult in practice
The difficulty is that the filing route depends not just on the type of transaction, but also on the status of the person filing it. A reader may assume that “online filing” or “paper filing” applies across the board, but the source shows that this is not the case.
Another practical source of confusion is the difference between:
- an LBTT return for a transaction itself;
- a lease review;
- an ADS repayment claim.
They are not treated identically for filing purposes. The online access available to an unrepresented taxpayer for one type of submission does not mean the same access exists for another.
The page is also operational guidance from Revenue Scotland. It explains how Revenue Scotland currently accepts submissions. It is not a full statement of the wider LBTT filing and payment rules, so readers should be careful not to assume it answers every compliance question.
Key takeaways
- Paper LBTT forms are now only available in limited cases.
- From 1 May 2020, organisations and tax professionals must submit LBTT returns online through SETS.
- An unrepresented taxpayer may request a paper form for a conveyance return or first-time lease return, but can use online services for lease reviews and ADS repayment claims.
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Useful article? You may find it helpful to read the original guidance here: Guidance on Requesting Paper LBTT Return Forms from Revenue Scotland
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