Stamp Duty avoidance

simongover

Hi everyone

I'm about to buy a property and out of curiosity have contacted a company who advertise that they can save stamp duty. I've received some detail from them but their fees seem astronomical and their claims unrealistic at best.

I wondered if anyone out there has any experience of this and the results...?

Here is the quote I've received. The property has an agreed sale price of £600,000. Of the £20,000 payable for stamp duty the company pockets nearly half of it (so I would still save £10,000) and claims I'm insured against HMRC investigating (I'm not sure how!). I am extremely suspicious but I'd love to hear if anyone else has any experience in this area.

The firm are called fiducia.co.uk

Starting point £20,000 liability for Stamp Duty

Tax Planning fee £6,800
Includes Barrister’s legal Counsel Opinion costs, administration and a 4 year fully insured policy to cover the HMRC compliance window ( maximum period allowed for HMRC to make a random compliance ) which would refund the £6,800 although this has never happened to date.

Vat £1,360
Sub total £8,160

Balance refunded £11,840
Post completion when your name(s) hit the Land Registry for new title on the property.

Because there is a mortgage involved you would need to deposit the full £20k liability on completion day to comply with the Council of Mortgage Lenders regulations. Our solicitor must see the funds in full until your name is on the Land Registry, about ten days later. This is when you receive the £11,840 saving. The usual other costs are for conveyancing :

Professional Fee £600 + vat
Disbursements £250 approx
SDLT Admin fee £250
Land registry fee £270

Out,_Vile_Jelly

So you pay stamp duty as usual, and then after a few days they send you a cheque for £11,840 and a Better Call Saul business card?

LateStarter

If it looks like a duck, and it quacks like a duck...

pinkteapot

While not about Fiducia specifically, probably worth reading:

http://citywire.co.uk/money/why-avoiding-stamp-duty-is-a-bad-idea/a665733

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/380af80c-7aaa-11e2-915b-00144feabdc0.html#axzz3e4HWeFG7

http://www.accountingweb.co.uk/anyanswers/question/stamp-duty-avoidance-scheme

While Fiducia's website looks impressive at a glance, they appear to be a one-man band so you don't know how long they'll be around for:
http://fiducia.co.uk/our-barristers/

maninthestreet

Fiducia Wealth & Tax is a trading style of CDP Tax & Wealth Limited (registered in England and Wales, number 09100065)

Companies House shows their date of incorporation was 24/06/2014 but their website makes the following claim:

Over the years, we have worked with clients from across the globe, whether they’re businesses, individuals, property buyers or owners of other high value assets.

halfone

There have been several threads on this in the past; if I remember correctly the government/HMRC have been slowly closing the loopholes and charging individuals retrospectively for the 'avoided' stamp duty.

TBeckett100

Against my advice someone I knew did this and a few years later HMRC unwound the loophole and that person had to pay SDLT. The company went out of business and their 'insurance' was null and void.

Do not get involved. HMRC is really cracking down on these things and you will get in trouble.

Dan-Dan

I love the SDLT admin fee , kinda ironic

Pixie5740

I looked into one of these SDLT avoidance schemes last year. More out of curiosity than anything else but they were very vague and couldn't give me a satisfactory explanation of how it worked, not that I expected them too. It sounded similar to what you're describing in that the fee was 50% of the SDLT. I imagine that you pay the fee and at some point hmrc come knocking on your door for the full SDLT.

WestonDave

Hmm read the small print very carefully.


Under "Am I protected against a future claim by HMRC" it does say that there is an insurance policy but that this is to fund further legal advice. They appear to avoid offering any actual guarantees that you won't get clobbered later.

booksurr

SDLT mitigation schemes are the next PPI area.

HMRC announced years ago that there is no approved avoidance scheme, and that every attempt at doing so is in basic terms "simply awaiting HMRC getting round to look at it, close it and recoup underpaid tax (+ penalties)

many many threads on here - search on: "SDLT mitigation"

you will find quite a few folks posting back to say they are now being forced to repay the tax and cannot recover fees paid to the scheme , net cost therefore 150% of original tax due.