Mayfair Avenue Limited v The Commissioners for HMRC
Decision date: 23 May 2024
Neutral citation: [2024] UKFTT 430 (TC)
Overall AI summary confidence: high
Short overview
This short overview is intended to summarise the case, issues and outcome so far as they are supported by the judgment.
AI confidence in this short overview: high
Mayfair Avenue Limited appealed an HMRC closure notice asserting an additional £70,500 SDLT after MAL (a company controlled by Mr Ali) bought 94 Mayfair Avenue for £650,000. The Tribunal found the purchase met Schedule 4A conditions for the 15% higher rate and that Mr Ali was a connected person who was intended to occupy the dwelling at the effective date, so paragraph 5 relief did not apply. The appeal was dismissed and the closure notice upheld.
Ratio decidendi
This summary is intended to identify the ratio decidendi, meaning the legal reasons for deciding and the binding part of the decision.
AI confidence in this ratio decidendi summary: high
Where a company purchaser pays over £500,000 for a single dwelling and is controlled by an individual who it was intended would occupy the dwelling at the effective date, Schedule 4A precludes relief under paragraph 5 and the 15% higher SDLT rate applies; connection is established by control of the purchaser company and does not depend on the occupier’s awareness of tax consequences.
Obiter dicta
This summary is intended to identify obiter dicta, meaning observations made by the way that were not necessary to deciding the case and are not binding.
AI confidence in this obiter dicta summary: medium
The Tribunal observed its limited remit: absence of a statutory grace period or additional prompts in the SDLT filing process are matters for Parliament, not the Tribunal, and that lack of financial gain to the occupier does not alter the statutory application of the higher rate.