When withdrawn LTT relief can be recovered from someone else
Recovery after relief is withdrawn
WRA can sometimes recover unpaid LTT from an eligible group company or controlling director, rather than only the company that bought the land.
- The tax must be final and unpaid for six months.
- WRA must issue a notice within three years.
- The payer may recover the amount from the buying company.
Scroll down for the full analysis.
Read the original guidance here:
When withdrawn LTT relief can be recovered from someone else
When withdrawn LTT relief can be recovered from someone else
A company may claim Land Transaction Tax relief and later lose it, allowing WRA to seek unpaid tax from another person in the group. That can come as a serious surprise. Land Transaction Tax replaced stamp duty land tax in Wales in 2018.
What this rule is about
When companies reorganise, reconstruction and acquisition relief can reduce the LTT due, although unmet conditions may later trigger recovery of that saving under the relevant rules. WRA can reclaim the saving.
Usually, the company that bought the land owes the resulting tax. A back-up recovery route is also provided by law. Certain companies above it in the group, or a controlling director, may be reached.
What the official source says
According to WRA’s technical guidance, it must serve a notice on the person from whom it seeks to recover the unpaid amount. That notice states what the person must pay. It allows 30 days from service.
- Withdrawal of the relief must happen first.
- Final determination must establish the amount due.
- Six months after it was due, some or all of that amount must still be unpaid.
- Eligibility is required as a company in the group or as a controlling director.
- The notice must state the amount WRA says the person must pay.
- WRA must issue the notice within three years of the final determination.
For recovery and appeal purposes, the guidance treats the notice like an assessment. It also permits recovery of interest on the unpaid tax.
What this means in practice
Unrelated people get no new tax bill. Instead, WRA collects an unpaid bill after relief is withdrawn.
After paying under such a notice, the person has a legal right to recover the money from the company that bought the land, even if that company lacks funds. That right may have little practical value.
- A parent company can face exposure for a subsidiary’s unpaid LTT.
- A director with control can also face a notice.
- Interest may increase the amount that has to be paid.
- Keep the notice and record its date carefully.
- Check whether the stated sum matches the final determination.
How to analyse it
Begin with the unpaid tax rather than the group chart. Then follow the statutory steps forwards.
- Was relief withdrawn under the reconstruction or acquisition relief rules?
- Has the amount become final, with no further change possible?
- Has six months passed since payment was due?
- What amount remains unpaid, including any interest?
- Was the named person in an eligible position during the relevant period?
- Was the notice issued within the three-year limit?
- Does the notice clearly state the sum demanded?
Example
Suppose Green Ltd bought land during a group reorganisation and received relief. Later, the relief is withdrawn, and £12,000 remains unpaid after six months. WRA may send a notice to a parent company that was above Green Ltd in the group at the relevant time. If that parent pays £12,000, it may recover the sum from Green Ltd.
Why this can be difficult in practice
Often, the difficult question is who was in the group at the right time. A current group chart may not resolve it. Ownership, control and directorships can change quickly.
There is also a point about wording to examine. WRA guidance uses service and an assessment, whereas the supplied statutory text uses issuing a notice and payment enforcement.
- Being connected with a company does not by itself make someone responsible.
- A director is not automatically a controlling director.
- The three-year period runs from final determination, not from the original land purchase.
- Payment does not remove the payer’s right to recover the amount from the buying company.
Key takeaways
- Withdrawn relief can leave unpaid LTT to collect.
- WRA may sometimes pursue an eligible group company or controlling director.
- A person who pays can seek repayment from the buying company.
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 17 para 5 — when reconstruction or acquisition relief can be withdrawn
- LTTA 2017 Schedule 17 para 7 — withdrawal after a later non-exempt group transfer
- LTTA 2017 Schedule 17 para 8 — who may be required to pay unpaid tax
- LTTA 2017 Schedule 17 para 9 — notice, payment and recovery from buying company
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 supplied guidance describes the notice as being treated as an assessment and having effect for appeals. Those points do not appear in the supplied text of Schedule 17 paragraph 9(4), which instead refers to payment and enforcement under Part 7 of TCMA.
- No currency notice was present in the mounted skills. The current status and any later amendment of the notice and appeal rules should be checked.
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 original relieved land transaction and relief claim
- the final determination of the withdrawn tax
- the date the tax became payable and any payments made
- the group structure between the transaction date and change of control
- details showing whether the recipient was an eligible group company or controlling director
- the notice, its issue or service date, and stated amount
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 When withdrawn LTT relief can be recovered from someone else [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 17 para 5 - when reconstruction or acquisition relief can be withdrawn https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2017/1/schedule/17/paragraph/5 - LTTA 2017 Schedule 17 para 7 - withdrawal after a later non-exempt group transfer https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2017/1/schedule/17/paragraph/7 - LTTA 2017 Schedule 17 para 8 - who may be required to pay unpaid tax https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2017/1/schedule/17/paragraph/8 - LTTA 2017 Schedule 17 para 9 - notice, payment and recovery from buying company https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2017/1/schedule/17/paragraph/9 Guidance page from the Welsh Revenue Authority on this topic (guidance, not law): https://www.gov.wales/land-transaction-tax-reconstruction-and-acquisition-reliefs-technical-guidance#6896 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 supplied guidance describes the notice as being treated as an assessment and having effect for appeals. Those points do not appear in the supplied text of Schedule 17 paragraph 9(4), which instead refers to payment and enforcement under Part 7 of TCMA. - No currency notice was present in the mounted skills. The current status and any later amendment of the notice and appeal rules should be checked. 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: When withdrawn LTT relief can be recovered from someone else
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