When stamp duty is due, and who files it
All three UK property transaction taxes are self-assessed. A return has to be filed and the tax paid within a short window after the transaction completes, and in practice your conveyancer handles both as part of completion.
Self-assessed, and filed by your conveyancer
The legal duty to file and pay sits with the buyer, not with the solicitor, the lender or the estate agent. What happens in practice is that the conveyancer prepares the return, asks the buyer to approve it, collects the tax with the completion monies and submits both. The buyer remains responsible if it is wrong or late, which is why the questions a conveyancer asks about previous ownership, main residences and days spent in the UK matter. Answer them from records rather than from memory, because the answers drive which rate table is applied.
The deadlines differ by regime
Each of the three taxes sets its own filing and payment window running from the effective date of the transaction, which is usually completion rather than exchange. The windows are short, measured in weeks rather than months, and they are not identical across the three regimes, so a rule remembered from a purchase in one nation should not be applied to a purchase in another. Filing and payment are generally due together rather than at separate times. Confirm the current deadline for your transaction with your conveyancer or with the relevant tax authority before relying on it.
A return is usually needed even when no tax is due
This surprises people at the lower end of the market. In most cases a notifiable transaction requires a return even where the calculation produces nothing to pay, because the authority needs to see the calculation that arrived at nil rather than simply receive silence. A first-time buyer paying nothing under a relief still has to claim that relief on a return, since the relief is not applied automatically. There are limited categories of transaction that do not need notifying at all, and whether yours is one of them is a question for your conveyancer.
Late filing, amendments and refunds
Missing the window triggers penalties, and interest runs on tax paid late, so the cost of a delay is not limited to the tax itself. Returns can generally be amended within a set period after filing if something was reported incorrectly. Refund claims, such as reclaiming an additional-property surcharge after a previous main residence sells, or reclaiming a non-resident surcharge after meeting the day count, run to their own separate deadlines rather than to the filing deadline. Those refund windows are strict and are missed more often than the original filing deadline is.
Key points
- All three taxes are self-assessed and due shortly after completion, normally handled at completion by your conveyancer.
- The buyer stays legally responsible for filing and paying on time.
- A return is usually required even when the tax calculates to nothing, and reliefs must be claimed on it.
Common questions
Does my solicitor pay the tax for me?
Normally your conveyancer prepares the return and pays the tax from the completion funds, but the legal responsibility for filing and paying on time remains with the buyer.
Do I have to file if my tax works out at nothing?
Usually yes. Most notifiable transactions require a return even when nothing is payable, and reliefs generally have to be claimed on that return rather than applying automatically.
Is the deadline the same in England, Scotland and Wales?
No. Each regime sets its own window from the effective date. Check the current deadline with your conveyancer or the relevant authority for your transaction.
Written by StampBand Editorial, published by Inventum. Rates verified 9 August 2026 against HM Revenue & Customs, Revenue Scotland and the Welsh Revenue Authority.