The Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (Scotland) Bill will provide for a Scottish tax on land transactions to replace Stamp Duty Land Tax from April 2015.
The Law Society of Scotland today welcomed the introduction of the Bill which is the first of three related bills being brought put forward by the Scottish Government as a consequence of the Scotland Act 2012.
The Society responded to the Scottish Government’s consultation earlier this year, and Isobel d’Inverno, convener of the Society’s tax law sub-committee, said: "As we said when we submitted our response to the consultation, this new tax has the potential to make a real improvement on the current system in Scotland.
“We welcome the simplified drafting of the Bill using Scots law terminology and reflecting Scottish conveyancing practice and we are particularly pleased to see that the Bill replaces the existing "slab and slice" system of payment with progressive rates.”
Ms d’Inverno said the policy memorandum reflected the discussion the Society had with the Scottish Government prior to the introduction of the Bill and includes an undertaking to give further consideration to several issues.
These include option for the treatment of non-residential leases, as well as recognition of our concerns about making registration of title subject to receipt of payment.
