File Land Transaction Tax Online for Solicitors and Conveyancers

Filing a Land Transaction Tax return with the Welsh Revenue Authority

The Welsh Revenue Authority uses different filing routes for Land Transaction Tax depending on who is submitting the return. Solicitors and conveyancers use the WRA’s online service, while taxpayers acting without a solicitor or conveyancer must contact the WRA for a paper return and arrange payment themselves.

• The online LTT filing service is only for tax professionals such as solicitors and conveyancers.
• Professional firms must be registered for the online service, and each user needs their own login account.
• The online service can be used to file returns, view submitted returns, and generate LTT certificates.
• If no solicitor or conveyancer is acting, the taxpayer cannot file online and must ask the WRA for a paper return.
• When requesting a paper return, the taxpayer should mention if the transaction involves more than 2 buyers, more than 2 sellers, or more than one piece of land.
• A postcode checker is available to help confirm whether a property is in Wales, but it is only a practical check and not a full legal analysis.

Scroll down for the full analysis.

How to file a Land Transaction Tax return with the Welsh Revenue Authority

This page explains how the Welsh Revenue Authority’s online filing service works for Land Transaction Tax (LTT), who can use it, and what to do if you are not using a solicitor or conveyancer. The official material is mainly procedural, but it matters because the route you must use depends on whether you are a tax professional or a taxpayer filing personally.

What this rule is about

The source material is about access to the WRA’s LTT filing system. It does not set out the substantive tax rules for when LTT is due. Instead, it explains the approved filing routes for submitting an LTT return, viewing submitted returns, and generating LTT certificates.

The key distinction is between:

• solicitors and conveyancers, who use the online service, and
• taxpayers who are not using a solicitor or conveyancer, who must contact the WRA for a paper return.

This matters in practice because using the wrong route may delay the filing process.

What the official source says

The Welsh Revenue Authority provides an online service that allows a solicitor or conveyancer to:

• file LTT returns
• view submitted returns
• generate LTT certificates

Before using that service, the organisation must be registered to file LTT online. If the organisation is already registered but an individual user does not yet have login details, that user must create a new user account.

The source also points users to a postcode checker to help confirm whether a property is in Wales for LTT purposes.

The online service is stated to be only for tax professionals. If a taxpayer is not using a solicitor or conveyancer, they cannot use that online route. Instead, they must contact the WRA for a paper return and pay the tax themselves.

When asking for a paper return, the WRA asks the taxpayer to say whether the transaction involves:

• more than 2 buyers
• more than 2 sellers
• more than one piece of land

The source also says taxpayers should give their language preference when contacting the WRA, and confirms that correspondence in Welsh is welcomed.

What this means in practice

If you are a solicitor or conveyancer dealing with an LTT transaction, the expected route is the WRA online service. That is where you file returns and obtain certificates. But access is not automatic. The firm or organisation must already be registered, and each user needs their own login.

If you are the buyer or another taxpayer handling matters without a solicitor or conveyancer, this page indicates that you do not file online through the professional portal. You must ask the WRA for a paper return and arrange payment yourself.

The reference to LTT certificates is also practically important. In a normal conveyancing process, the ability to generate a certificate can be part of completing post-transaction formalities. The source does not explain the legal effect of the certificate, but it makes clear that this function sits within the professional online service.

The postcode checker is not a substitute for legal analysis of the land’s location, but it is a practical tool where there is any doubt about whether the property falls within Wales for LTT purposes.

How to analyse it

A sensible way to approach this page is to ask the following questions.

• Who is filing the return: a solicitor or conveyancer, or the taxpayer personally?
• If a professional is filing, is the organisation already registered for the WRA online service?
• If the organisation is registered, does the individual user have their own account, or do they need to create one?
• If no solicitor or conveyancer is acting, has the taxpayer contacted the WRA for the correct paper form?
• Does the transaction involve more than 2 buyers, more than 2 sellers, or more than one piece of land, so that the WRA can send the right forms?
• Is there any uncertainty about whether the land is in Wales, so that the postcode checker should be used as an initial check?

This is mainly an administrative framework, but it affects whether the return can be filed smoothly and in the correct format.

Example

A buyer purchases a residential property in Cardiff without using a solicitor. The buyer cannot use the professional online LTT filing service. Instead, they must contact the WRA, ask for a paper return, and pay the tax themselves. If the purchase includes two separate parcels of land, the buyer should mention that when contacting the WRA so that the correct forms can be issued.

Why this can be difficult in practice

The official material is clear on who may use the online service, but it is brief. A reader might wrongly assume that any taxpayer can create an online account and file directly. This page says that is not the case: the online service is only for tax professionals.

Another practical difficulty is that filing method and tax liability are separate issues. This page does not tell you whether an LTT return is required for a particular transaction, how the tax is calculated, or when reliefs may apply. It only explains the filing channel.

There can also be factual uncertainty about whether land is in Wales. The postcode checker may help, but the page does not say that it conclusively determines the legal position in every case.

Key takeaways

• The WRA online LTT service is for solicitors and conveyancers, not taxpayers filing on their own.
• Professional users need both organisational registration and an individual user account.
• Taxpayers without a solicitor or conveyancer must contact the WRA for a paper return and pay the tax themselves.

This page was last updated on 24 March 2026

Useful article? You may find it helpful to read the original guidance here: File Land Transaction Tax Online for Solicitors and Conveyancers

View all WRA LTT Guidance Pages Here