Linked property purchases: how LTT is split between two deals
Linked LTT purchases
Where two property purchases are part of one arrangement, LTT is calculated on their combined price and split between them.
- A later purchase can increase tax on an earlier one.
- The earlier deal may need a further return.
- The 2020 deadline in the official example is not a current deadline.
Scroll down for the full analysis.
Read the original guidance here:
Linked property purchases: how LTT is split between two deals
Linked property purchases: how LTT is split between two deals
When two property purchases are linked because they form part of one wider plan involving the same parties, or people connected with them, you cannot calculate Land Transaction Tax (LTT) as two wholly separate bills. Start with the total price. Then divide the tax between the purchases. This can also require another return for an earlier deal.
What this rule is about
Land Transaction Tax replaced stamp duty land tax in Wales in 2018. One part of LTT covers linked purchases: separate deals that in reality make up one wider plan between the same parties, or people connected with them.
Why does this matter? Although considering each price separately can produce less tax than considering the combined price, the law requires you to begin with the total price before allocating each deal its share of the result. The combined figure comes first.
This is not simply about signing two contracts. The key question is whether the purchases make up a single scheme, arrangement or series.
What the official source says
The Welsh Revenue Authority’s example involves two linked purchases by A Ltd. The first costs £500,000. A later purchase costs £350,000. Together, they cost £850,000.
The example says the LTT on the combined £850,000 is £31,000. It then divides that amount between the two purchases according to each purchase’s share of the total price.
- Start with the combined price of every linked purchase: £850,000.
- Work out the tax on that combined amount: £31,000 in this example.
- For the second purchase, divide £350,000 by £850,000: 7/17.
- Multiply £31,000 by 7/17: £12,764.71.
- For the first purchase, divide £500,000 by £850,000: 10/17.
- Multiply £31,000 by 10/17: £18,235.29.
The source calls this a three-step calculation. It does not show the rates or other facts behind the £31,000 figure. You therefore cannot safely reuse that figure for another purchase.
What this means in practice
When a later purchase links to an earlier purchase, it can alter the final LTT bill for the earlier deal even if you paid the correct amount when that first deal completed. That is easy to miss. You may owe more once the second linked deal completes.
In the example, A Ltd had already paid £13,500 for the first purchase. Its revised share was £18,235.29. The further payment for that earlier purchase was therefore £4,735.29.
- File a return for the later purchase.
- Pay the tax shown as due for that later purchase.
- Check whether the later deal increases tax on an earlier linked deal.
- If it does, file a further return for the earlier deal.
- Pay only the extra amount due for that earlier deal.
The official example says A Ltd had to do both by 31 August 2020. That date belongs to the example, rather than being a deadline that automatically applies now.
How to analyse it
Before you do the maths, ask whether the deals genuinely belong to one plan, especially where the parties share buyers or sellers but the transactions may not form a scheme, arrangement or series. Do that first. A shared buyer or seller alone is not the whole test. The transactions must form a scheme, arrangement or series.
- List every related purchase and its price.
- Identify the buyer and seller for each one.
- Check whether any party is connected to another party.
- Look for one plan, arrangement or series behind the deals.
- Check whether the deal is an exchange, which is treated differently.
- Add the prices of purchases that are linked.
- Calculate LTT on that combined amount using the rates for the relevant date.
- Give each purchase its proportionate share of the combined tax.
- Compare that share with tax already paid on any earlier purchase.
- Check the filing date that applies to the later purchase.
Keep the contracts and the papers explaining why the deals were made. Those documents may be vital if the link between them is not obvious.
Example
Here is the source’s illustration. A Ltd buys the first property for £500,000 and later buys another for £350,000. The combined price is £850,000, and the example’s combined LTT figure is £31,000.
The second deal represents 7/17 of the total price. Its share of tax is £12,764.71. The first deal represents 10/17, so its final share is £18,235.29. After paying £13,500 on the first deal, A Ltd must pay a further £4,735.29 with the further return.
Small rounding differences appear in the source’s payment figure for the second deal. Use the figures and filing process required for the actual return.
Why this can be difficult in practice
Two purchases may appear separate on paper while still forming one series in real life. Equally, buying from the same seller does not automatically settle the point. The surrounding facts matter.
You might think only the second purchase needs attention because it happened later. It does not. Once the purchases are linked, you may need to revisit the earlier calculation.
- Deals completed weeks or months apart can still need to be considered together.
- Connected companies or individuals can matter as much as the named parties.
- The combined tax calculation may use rates that differ from those applying to the first deal alone.
- Lease rent has separate calculation rules.
- A historic worked example cannot confirm today’s filing deadline or rates.
Key takeaways
- Linked purchases are taxed using their combined price first.
- Each deal then pays its share of the combined tax.
- A later deal can require another return and payment for an earlier one.
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 8 — when land purchases count as linked transactions
- LTTA 2017 section 16 — exchanges that are not treated as linked
- LTTA 2017 section 27 — calculating tax for purchases that are not linked
- LTTA 2017 section 28 — calculating tax across linked land purchases
- LTTA 2017 section 44 — making a return for a notifiable purchase
- LTTA 2017 section 51 — further return after a later linked purchase
- LTTA 2017 section 57 — paying tax due with a tax return
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 source does not say what type of property was bought or show how the £31,000 combined tax figure was calculated.
- Whether purchases form one arrangement or series can depend on the full facts.
- The example uses a 2020 filing date. It should not be used as a current deadline without checking the law and WRA guidance that apply on the relevant date.
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 contracts, completion dates and prices for every related purchase
- Details showing the buyer and seller in each purchase
- Evidence of any connection between the parties
- Documents showing whether the purchases were part of one plan or series
- The earlier LTT return and proof of tax already paid
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 Linked property purchases: how LTT is split between two deals [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 8 - when land purchases count as linked transactions https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2017/1/section/8 - LTTA 2017 section 16 - exchanges that are not treated as linked https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2017/1/section/16 - LTTA 2017 section 27 - calculating tax for purchases that are not linked https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2017/1/section/27 - LTTA 2017 section 28 - calculating tax across linked land purchases https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2017/1/section/28 - LTTA 2017 section 44 - making a return for a notifiable purchase https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2017/1/section/44 - LTTA 2017 section 51 - further return after a later linked purchase https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2017/1/section/51 - LTTA 2017 section 57 - paying tax due with a tax return https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2017/1/section/57 Guidance page from the Welsh Revenue Authority on this topic (guidance, not law): https://www.gov.wales/calculation-land-transaction-tax-payable-technical-guidance#6944 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 source does not say what type of property was bought or show how the £31,000 combined tax figure was calculated. - Whether purchases form one arrangement or series can depend on the full facts. - The example uses a 2020 filing date. It should not be used as a current deadline without checking the law and WRA guidance that apply on the relevant date. 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 4 September 2026
Useful article? You may find it helpful to read the original guidance here: Linked property purchases: how LTT is split between two deals
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