Am i a first time buyer

TET_2

I have shares in a UK company which holds a holiday rental property
Does this excuse me as a first time buyer for LISA rules and stamp duty rules

Keep_pedalling

Unless you are a director of this company no.

Linton

Keep_pedalling wrote: »

Unless you are a director of this company no.

Or, to answer the question in the OPs title perhaps you mean "yes"!

Out of interest, what if you are a major shareholder (perhaps 100%) but not a director? At what point may HMRC consider you as having acquired a major interest in a dwelling?

eskbanker

Linton wrote: »

Out of interest, what if you are a major shareholder (perhaps 100%) but not a director? At what point may HMRC consider you as having acquired a major interest in a dwelling?

The wording of the FTB criteria at https://www.helptobuy.gov.uk/documents/2015/12/eligibility-of-ftbs.pdf (which I believe also applies to LISAs) doesn't qualify the interest as 'major', it's 'any' interest:

I do not own, and never have owned any interest in land....

Theoretically this could be interpreted as disqualifying anyone with a minor shareholding in, say, Barratt Homes though, which seems unlikely to have been the intention!

bowlhead99

Linton wrote: »

Out of interest, what if you are a major shareholder (perhaps 100%) but not a director? At what point may HMRC consider you as having acquired a major interest in a dwelling?

You won't have acquired it because you won't have been a purchaser of the interest in land, and you haven't had it gifted to you or got it through an inheritance. You have never bought or owned it at all. You just happen to own a company that owns it.


Note 'major interest in land' does not mean 'I beneficially own the majority of the land/dwelling'... It means the type of interest that I own is a 'major' interest like the freehold or a leasehold with 21+ years to run (at its inception), rather than a minor interest such as a short leasehold which was created with only ten years on the clock, or a twelve month tenancy agreement etc.

If I do not own an interest in land (for example, I only own a company), then I can't own a 'major' interest in land or a 'minor' interest in land. I don't have any interest in land. Although, I do own a company that has some interest in land.

bowlhead99

eskbanker wrote: »

The wording of the FTB criteria at https://www.helptobuy.gov.uk/documents/2015/12/eligibility-of-ftbs.pdf (which I believe also applies to LISAs) doesn't qualify the interest as 'major', it's 'any' interest

No, the legislation *does* say it only applies to a major interest in land.

However, following your link: what you have done is read 'I've never had any interest in land' and stopped reading at that point.

You were supposed to keep reading so it said: 'I never had any interest in land that is
A:
(a) freehold;
(b) leasehold, where the lease was originally granted for a term certain exceeding 21 years; or
(c) commonhold [and equivalents for other countries] etc'

By reading to the end you can see your declaration will be that you have not had any interests in land... which qualify as major interests such as freeholds or 125 year leasholds or 999 year leasholds. You are quite welcome to have held minor interests in land such as having a 12 month tenancy granting you the right to use a property as your home.

eskbanker wrote: »

Theoretically this could be interpreted as disqualifying anyone with a minor shareholding in, say, Barratt Homes though, which seems unlikely to have been the intention!

I get that your post is tongue in cheek but

If you read the link you posted, if I make the declaration that I've never had an interest in land that is :

A: (i) in England or Wales and
(a) freehold;
(b) leasehold, where the lease was originally granted for a term certain exceeding 21 years; or
(c) commonhold ; or
(ii) in Scotland, registered or recorded, or would be capable of being registered or recorded, as a right of absolute ownership in the Land Register of Scotland or General Register of Sasines in Scotland, as applicable; or
(iii) in Northern Ireland:
(a) freehold; or
(b) leasehold, where the lease was originally granted for a term certain exceeding 21 years; or
(iv) an equivalent interest in land to the interests in land listed in paragraphs (A)(i) to (iii) above under the laws of any jurisdiction outside the United Kingdom; and
(B) comprises a building that is used or suitable for use as a dwelling, or is in the process of being constructed or adapted for such use; and
(C) (i) which I acquired as a purchaser by way of sole or joint ownership; or
(ii) which entitles me to possess or occupy that land

Then if I own 50% of Barratt which I bought on the stock exchange, it still doesn't entitle me to possess or occupy any of the land they own. And if I've never actually bought any land with a dwelling on it, it doesn't stop me asking for stamp duty relief when I buy my first £300k house.