A company was liable to the higher 15% rate of stamp duty land tax on its acquisition of a residential property occupied by the company’s directors and shareholders and no exclusion from the higher rate applied. 

The appellant (MG) and his wife (RM) were both directors and 50% shareholders of the appellant company (GMR), through which MG and RM ran a property rental business. A property (Rosehill) had been MG and RM’s home for a number of years. GMR bought Rosehill from MG and RM on 18 June 2021. A stamp duty land tax (SDLT) return was submitted and SDLT paid based on the standard residential rates of SDLT applying. Following an enquiry into the SDLT return, HM Revenue and Customs issued a closure notice, increasing the self-assessed SDLT. GMR appealed.  

The First-tier Tribunal (FTT) found: (1) The transaction was a ‘higher threshold interest’ (under FA 2003, Sch 4A, para 1) because it was a single dwelling for