Buying property through a limited company: stamp duty, checks and fees

Limited company at a glance

What will the company pay in stamp duty?

In England and Northern Ireland, a company buying residential property for £40,000 or more pays the higher rates for residential property. Over £500,000, it may pay 17% of the whole price instead; if a relief from the 17% rate applies, the higher rates are charged. A company that is not UK resident pays a 2% surcharge on top.

A company counts as not UK resident if it is not UK resident for corporation tax, or if it is a UK close company controlled by people who are not UK resident (some companies are excluded).

In Wales the company pays Land Transaction Tax at the higher rates. Wales has no flat 17% rate on the whole price for companies, and no non-resident surcharge. Over £500,000, the company may also owe ATED each year. See below.

The higher rates do not apply below £40,000. Tell us about the purchase and we will work it out.

Rates checked on GOV.UK on 20 October 2026 and on GOV.WALES on 29 October 2026. The figures on this page are estimates for a company buying residential property. They are not tax advice: HMRC (or the Welsh Revenue Authority in Wales) is the authority on what the company owes. Speak to an accountant before you commit.

Why does a company pay the higher rates on its very first property?

For a person, the higher rates depend on whether they will own more than one home. A company is tested differently. It pays the higher rates on any residential property bought for £40,000 or more, whether or not it owns anything else. So a newly formed company buying one flat pays the same rates as a landlord buying a tenth.

There is one exception. If someone else already holds a lease of the property with more than 21 years left, for example when a company buys the freehold of a block of long-leasehold flats, the higher rates do not apply to that purchase. Tell us at the start if that is your case.

A company never gets first-time buyer relief. That relief is only for people buying a home to live in.

If you are buying in your own name instead, use our stamp duty for a second home calculator.

When does the 17% rate apply, and what takes it away?

If a company pays more than £500,000 for a home, stamp duty can be charged at 17% of the whole price, not in bands.

HMRC lists reliefs from the 17% rate. The ones landlords and developers meet most are:

• a property rental business, where the home is let on commercial terms to people not connected with the company
• a property developer or trader buying to develop or resell
• a home occupied by the company’s employees, a farmhouse, a trade that opens the property to the public, financial institution lending, and qualifying housing co-operatives

Where a relief applies, the higher rates are charged instead. Each relief has conditions. If, in the three years after completion, the property stops being used for the relief’s purpose, or someone connected with the company is allowed to live there, the relief is withdrawn and the extra tax becomes due.

Does a company buying in Wales pay a different tax?

Yes. In Wales the tax is Land Transaction Tax, paid to the Welsh Revenue Authority. A company pays the higher rates on residential property of £40,000 or more, unless it is buying subject to someone else’s lease with more than 21 years left. The Welsh higher rates are a table of their own, from 5% up to 17%, not a surcharge on the main rates. Wales has no flat 17% rate for companies buying above £500,000 and no 2% surcharge for buyers who are not UK resident.

A company, UK resident. Checked on GOV.UK on 20 October 2026 and on GOV.WALES on 29 October 2026. For a Welsh purchase, see our Land Transaction Tax calculator below.

Will the company owe ATED every year?

Possibly. The Annual Tax on Enveloped Dwellings (ATED) is a yearly tax, mainly on companies that own a UK home valued at more than £500,000. It applies in Wales as well as England. Reliefs exist, including for a home let on commercial terms to someone not connected with the company. Even when a relief brings the charge to nil, the company must still file a Relief Declaration Return each year. ATED is separate from stamp duty and is not part of the conveyancing. GOV.UK lists this year’s charges.

What do we check on the company before exchange?

The legal steps are the same as any purchase: searches, enquiries, exchange and completion. What changes is the buyer.

• The company must exist first. It signs the contract, so it has to be set up, with a bank account the money can come from, before we can exchange.
• The company’s record. We check its record at Companies House, its directors, and the people who own or control it. We also run a winding-up search, to make sure no one has started to wind the company up.
• Identity checks for each director. Identity and anti-money laundering checks are charged per director. Our quote counts the directors you give it.
• Where the money comes from. If directors lend or invest money into the company for the deposit, we check the source of those funds as we would for any buyer. Our source of funds page, below, explains what we ask to see.
• When the money must reach us. The deposit at least 1 working day before exchange, and the balance at least 1 working day before completion.

A company that is not set up, or has no bank account, by the time we start can delay exchange. Tell us early.

What will a buy-to-let lender ask of the company?

Lenders set their own rules, and they differ. Many that lend to companies want a company set up only to hold property, often called a special purpose vehicle (SPV). Lenders often check what the company says it does through its SIC code at Companies House. The codes used for property companies include:

Many lenders also ask each director for a personal guarantee, which means the director can be personally liable for the company’s debt. Some require each guarantor to get independent legal advice before completion.

We are not mortgage brokers. A broker can tell you which lenders suit your company.

Who signs for the company, and what happens after completion?

The contract, the transfer and the mortgage deed are signed for the company in the way company law requires: by two directors, by a director and the company secretary, or by one director whose signature is witnessed.

After completion we register the company as the owner at HM Land Registry. If there is a mortgage, the lender’s charge needs to be registered at Companies House within 21 days, starting the day after it is created, or it is void against a liquidator, administrator or creditors of the company. Only a court can allow it to be registered late.

A company formed outside the UK must be on the Register of Overseas Entities at Companies House, with an Overseas Entity ID, before it can be registered as the owner of land in England and Wales. Our buying from abroad page, below, covers the rest.

Can I move a home I already own into my company?

Yes, but it is a sale from you to the company, with tax on both sides. Because you and your company are connected, stamp duty is usually charged on the property’s market value, not the price the company pays. Capital Gains Tax may be due from you as the seller. If there is a mortgage, the lender must agree. Speak to an accountant before you take this step. We act for one side of a transaction only.

Where do company purchases come unstuck?

• The company is not ready. It is not set up, or has no bank account, when we start. That can delay exchange.
• A 17% relief is withdrawn. In the three years after completion, the property stops being used for the relief’s purpose, or someone connected with the company is allowed to live there. The extra tax becomes due.
• The charge is registered late. A lender’s charge not registered at Companies House within 21 days is void against a liquidator, administrator or creditors, and only a court can allow it late.
• An overseas company has no Overseas Entity ID. It cannot be registered as the owner of land in England and Wales until it is on the Register of Overseas Entities.

What does our quote include when a company buys?

We give you a written, itemised quote before you instruct us. When a company buys, the quote shows these lines, with VAT and third-party costs listed separately. Tell us how many directors the company has and whether a tenant is in place, as both change the total.

Our legal fee comes from our purchase scale: the range for Buying a residential property is in the box below. On every company purchase the quote adds Dealing with Company House Charges. Only if a tenant is in place: Buy to Let. There is no Buy to Let charge for a company buying with no tenant. Only if they apply: Dealing with Leasehold and New Build Property. Third-party costs on a company purchase include the Winding up Search, with no VAT. The amounts are in your written quote; our published fees are on our fees page.

Stamp Duty Land Tax (England) or Land Transaction Tax (Wales) and the HM Land Registry fee are government charges: they sit in their own box and are never added to our fees.

About one in ten purchase quote requests we receive through our website is for a buy-to-let (website quote requests, 2 Sep–29 Oct 2026). More on buy-to-let conveyancing.

Is it better to buy in my own name or through a company?

We are not tax or financial advisers: whether to buy in your own name or through a company is a question for an accountant. Speak to one before you buy. What changes on the legal side: the company, not you, owns the property; it pays the higher rates even on its first purchase; it cannot get first-time buyer relief; lenders usually want personal guarantees; and a sale or transfer later is a company decision, signed by its directors.

What happens next

• Buy-to-let conveyancing
• Stamp duty for a second home (buying in your own name)
• Source of funds: what to send us
• More buyer situations, explained