Fixtures and fittings: what counts for Land Transaction Tax?
Fixtures and fittings and LTT
Items fixed to a Welsh property normally count as part of it for Land Transaction Tax. Movable goods normally do not.
- Check how each item is attached.
- Use realistic values for movable goods.
- Keep evidence for the split in the agreed price.
Scroll down for the full analysis.
Read the original guidance here:
Fixtures and fittings: what counts for Land Transaction Tax?
Fixtures and fittings: what counts for Land Transaction Tax?
When you buy property in Wales, Land Transaction Tax (LTT) applies to the part of the price paid for the land and what forms part of it. It does not normally apply to separate movable goods. That sounds like a small distinction.
When the price includes separate movable goods, that distinction can alter the amount on which Wales’s property purchase tax, rather than stamp duty land tax, is worked out. It matters.
What this rule is about
A house sale often includes more than the building. The seller may leave carpets, furniture, appliances or garden pots. Some things stay because they have become part of the property. Others remain separate belongings.
The key question is simple: has the item been fixed to the property, or can it be treated as a movable item? The Welsh Revenue Authority’s guidance calls fixed items fixtures. They count as part of the land.
When a single agreed price covers the property and movable goods, you must divide it fairly, taking account of what each item really is rather than the label in the contract. The split must be just and reasonable. A contract label alone does not settle the point.
What the official source says
The Welsh Revenue Authority says that an item attached to the property is subject to LTT because it is a fixture, or part of the land. Its examples are helpful, but they are not a complete list.
- Fitted kitchen units, cupboards and sinks normally count as fixtures.
- Fitted bathroom fittings normally count as fixtures.
- An Aga or wall-mounted oven normally counts as a fixture.
- Central heating and intruder alarm systems normally count as fixtures.
- Plants, shrubs and trees growing in the ground normally count as fixtures.
The guidance says other items would not normally be fixtures. In other words, they would not normally form part of the amount paid for the land.
- Carpets normally remain movable, even when fitted.
- Curtains and blinds normally remain movable.
- Free-standing furniture normally remains movable.
- Kitchen white goods normally remain movable unless fully integrated.
- A gas or electric fire can remain movable when you can disconnect it without damaging the property.
- Light fittings normally remain movable.
- Plants and trees in pots normally remain movable.
What this means in practice
You cannot simply remove an amount from the property price because the contract calls it “fixtures and fittings”. The split must reflect what is really being bought. That is the part people get wrong.
Even when buyer and seller separately list fitted cupboards, they form part of the property because their attachment means they are not genuinely separate movable goods. The list does not decide it.
By contrast, a free-standing sofa may have its own value and can fall outside the land price.
- Keep a clear list of everything included in the sale.
- Separate fixed items from genuinely movable goods.
- Put a realistic value on the movable goods.
- Keep evidence that explains how you reached that value.
- Do not assume every kitchen appliance is movable.
How to analyse it
Begin by considering the item itself, rather than the wording in the estate agent’s details, and ask what would happen to both item and property if somebody removed it. The description is not decisive.
Does it leave damage behind? Is it built into the property? Does it serve as part of the building?
- List each item included in the agreed price.
- Check whether it is attached to the property.
- Consider whether removal would damage the item or the property.
- For appliances, check whether they are fully integrated.
- For garden items, check whether they grow in the ground or a pot.
- Value only the items that are genuinely separate from the land.
- Check that the final split is just and reasonable overall.
Commercial property needs the same care. The guidance says easily removable plant or machinery would not count as a fixture. Heavy plant or machinery that is integral to the property would count.
Example
Amir agrees to pay £300,000 for a house. The deal includes fitted kitchen cupboards, an integrated dishwasher, a free-standing dining table and £5,000 of other movable furniture, all covered by the agreed price for the house. Not every item is land.
The cupboards and integrated dishwasher form part of the property. If £5,000 is a just and reasonable value for the movable furniture, the amount attributed to the land would be £295,000. A higher figure simply agreed with the seller would not necessarily be fair.
Why this can be difficult in practice
Some items sit close to the line. A white good may look separate but be fully integrated. A fire may be connected to power yet still come away without property damage.
Facts matter more than the name given to the item.
Value can also cause trouble. Used furniture may have little resale value, even where the sale contract gives it a large figure. The guidance makes clear that the split may differ from the figure agreed by buyer and seller.
- Do not treat the guidance examples as fixed legal categories.
- Do not count all white goods as movable without checking.
- Do not treat a contract allocation as conclusive.
- Do not ignore evidence of an item’s condition and real value.
Key takeaways
- Fixed items normally form part of the property for LTT.
- Genuinely movable goods normally sit outside the land price.
- Any split must be just and reasonable, not merely convenient.
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 section 18 — introduces the rules for taxable payment
- LTTA 2017 Schedule 4 para 1 — defines payment given for the land purchase
- LTTA 2017 Schedule 4 para 4 — requires a just and reasonable split
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
- The guidance does not give a full legal test for deciding every borderline item.
- A fair value for movable items can be hard to establish where they are old, unusual or included in a single deal.
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 sale contract and any list of included items
- Photographs showing how each disputed item is attached
- Details of whether an item can be removed without damage
- Evidence supporting the value placed on movable goods
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 Fixtures and fittings: what counts for Land Transaction Tax? [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 section 18 - introduces the rules for taxable payment https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2017/1/section/18 - LTTA 2017 Schedule 4 para 1 - defines payment given for the land purchase https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2017/1/schedule/4/paragraph/1 - LTTA 2017 Schedule 4 para 4 - requires a just and reasonable split https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2017/1/schedule/4/paragraph/4 Guidance page from the Welsh Revenue Authority on this topic (guidance, not law): https://www.gov.wales/chargeable-consideration-technical-guidance#12827 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 - The guidance does not give a full legal test for deciding every borderline item. - A fair value for movable items can be hard to establish where they are old, unusual or included in a single deal. 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: Fixtures and fittings: what counts for Land Transaction Tax?
Search Land Tax Advice with Google
