LTT: court-appointed deputies buying a home for a child
Deputies and LTT higher rates
A qualifying court-appointed deputy who buys or holds a home for a child can prevent that home being treated as a parent’s home for higher LTT rates.
- The deputy must act under a qualifying court appointment.
- The home must be held for the child.
- The child’s later purchases are tested using the child’s own home ownership.
Scroll down for the full analysis.
Read the original guidance here:
LTT: court-appointed deputies buying a home for a child
A court-appointed deputy can buy or hold a home for a child without that home automatically counting as the parents’ property for higher LTT rates. That can make a major difference to the Welsh tax bill. LTT is Wales’s land transaction tax. It is not stamp duty land tax.
What this rule is about
Children usually cannot deal with property themselves. Under the higher LTT rules, a home held for a child can be treated as if it belongs to a parent.
Families cannot normally avoid the extra LTT rate simply by putting a home in a child’s name. A different rule applies, however, where a court has appointed a deputy to act for the child.
In that situation, the child’s home is kept separate from the parents’ homes for this test. For this purpose, the child is treated more like an adult with their own property position.
What the official source says
The Welsh Revenue Authority’s guidance explains the exception in Schedule 5. This exception applies where a deputy, acting under the relevant court authority, buys, holds or sells a major interest in a home for a child. That is its scope.
- Appointment by a court under section 16 of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 is required.
- An equivalent appointment from outside England and Wales can also qualify.
- Purchase of the home must be in the child’s name or for the child.
- Action by the deputy must be under their deputy powers.
- Holding of the home must be for the child.
- The deputy does not have to be the only owner.
- One of several people buying the home must be the court-appointed deputy.
When all those conditions are met—court appointment, deputy powers, purchase in the child’s name or for the child, and holding for the child—the home is not treated as a parent’s home for the higher LTT rules. Instead, it is treated as the child’s home.
What this means in practice
This is the point that matters: a parent’s existing home does not, by itself, make the child’s purchase a higher-rate purchase. The child and parents are looked at separately for this purpose.
That does not mean every purchase for the child is free from higher LTT rates. The child’s own home ownership still matters. If the child later buys another home through the deputy, the ordinary higher-rate tests may apply.
- A parent can own a home without that fact automatically affecting the child’s qualifying purchase.
- A child can own a home through the deputy without it automatically affecting the parents’ next purchase.
- A second home for the child may be treated differently if the child already owns another home.
- Joint ownership does not prevent the exception, provided one buyer is the qualifying deputy.
How to analyse it
Start with the legal role of the person acting for the child. A relative helping informally is not enough. The special rule is tied to a court appointment and to the way the home is held.
- Check whether there is a court appointment as deputy, or an equivalent overseas appointment.
- Read the appointment to confirm that the deputy has the relevant powers.
- Check whose name the home is bought in and who benefits from it.
- Confirm that the deputy holds the interest for the child.
- Check whether the deputy is one of the people buying the home.
- Work out what homes the child owns at the end of the day the purchase completes.
- Apply the usual higher LTT tests to the child instead of treating the parents’ homes as the child’s.
What actually decides the answer? Not the family relationship alone. It is the deputy’s court authority and whether the home is genuinely held for the child.
Example
Amir’s parents own their family home. A court appoints Priya as Amir’s deputy. Priya buys a home in Amir’s name, using her deputy powers, and holds it for Amir. For the higher LTT rules, Amir’s purchase is considered by reference to Amir’s own home interests, not his parents’ family home.
Now change one fact. Priya later buys another home for Amir while Amir still owns the first one. The special rule still keeps the parents’ position separate, but the later purchase could face higher LTT rates because Amir already has a home interest.
Why this can be difficult in practice
People often focus only on the child’s age or the fact that a parent helped pay. Neither point, on its own, answers the question. The documents and the deputy’s authority matter.
- A parent or guardian is not necessarily a court-appointed deputy.
- Buying for a child does not suffice unless the deputy holds the home for the child.
- Joint ownership needs care, especially where parents or other relatives are also named as owners.
- A later purchase needs a fresh higher-rate check based on the child’s own homes.
- The official guidance explains the WRA’s view, but the legislation is the law.
Key takeaways
- For higher LTT rates, a qualifying deputy may keep a child’s home separate from the parents’ homes.
- The court appointment, deputy powers and trust arrangements are central.
- A later home purchase for the child can still face higher LTT rates.
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
- LTTA 2017 Schedule 5 para 3 — when a home purchase can face higher rates
- LTTA 2017 Schedule 5 para 5 — owning another home when the purchase completes
- LTTA 2017 Schedule 5 para 27 — trust beneficiaries treated as buyers in some purchases
- LTTA 2017 Schedule 5 para 28 — trust beneficiaries treated as owning homes
- LTTA 2017 Schedule 5 para 30 — special treatment for children with court-appointed deputies
- LTTA 2017 Schedule 8 para 3 — bare trust property treated as belonging to beneficiary
- an Act of 2005 we do not have an identifier for section 16 — court powers to appoint a deputy (no link: an Act of 2005 we do not have an identifier for)
Official guidance
The pages below are the Welsh Revenue Authority’s guidance. Guidance is not law. It sets out how the Welsh Revenue Authority 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. the Welsh Revenue Authority can also change or withdraw guidance, and it may not cover your facts.
Where this is not settled
- Whether the deputy has acted within their court-appointed powers will depend on the appointment and the facts.
- The higher-rate result for any later purchase depends on the full statutory tests at that time.
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 court order appointing the deputy and setting out their powers
- Documents showing the home was bought for the child
- Trust and ownership records showing the interest is held for the child
- Details of every home the child owns when a later purchase completes
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 Land Transaction Tax (LTT), the tax on property in Wales. It replaced Stamp Duty Land Tax in Wales on 1 April 2018, and SDLT does not apply in Wales. MY QUESTION LTT: court-appointed deputies buying a home for a child [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 - LTTA 2017 Schedule 5 para 3 - when a home purchase can face higher rates https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2017/1/schedule/5/paragraph/3 - LTTA 2017 Schedule 5 para 5 - owning another home when the purchase completes https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2017/1/schedule/5/paragraph/5 - LTTA 2017 Schedule 5 para 27 - trust beneficiaries treated as buyers in some purchases https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2017/1/schedule/5/paragraph/27 - LTTA 2017 Schedule 5 para 28 - trust beneficiaries treated as owning homes https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2017/1/schedule/5/paragraph/28 - LTTA 2017 Schedule 5 para 30 - special treatment for children with court-appointed deputies https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2017/1/schedule/5/paragraph/30 - LTTA 2017 Schedule 8 para 3 - bare trust property treated as belonging to beneficiary https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2017/1/schedule/8/paragraph/3 - an Act of 2005 we do not have an identifier for section 16 - court powers to appoint a deputy Guidance page from the Welsh Revenue Authority on this topic (guidance, not law): https://www.gov.wales/higher-rates-purchases-residential-property-technical-guidance#5287 HOW I WANT YOU TO ANSWER 1. Work from the legislation above. Read it before answering. Guidance from the Welsh Revenue Authority 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 the deputy has acted within their court-appointed powers will depend on the appointment and the facts. - The higher-rate result for any later purchase depends on the full statutory tests at that time. Do not give me a conclusion you cannot support from the provisions above.
Legislation links show the Land Transaction Tax and Anti-avoidance of Devolved Taxes (Wales) Act 2017 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 3 September 2026
Useful article? You may find it helpful to read the original guidance here: LTT: court-appointed deputies buying a home for a child
Search Land Tax Advice with Google
