I need help with stamp duty

[Pointingwiththepointer]

Posting here for traffic, sorry!

If we exchange this week and the government announces the scrapping of stamp duty in next Wednesday’s budget, would we still have to pay stamp duty since we’d already exchanged?

We’re hoping to complete on Friday 28th November.

I have asked my solicitor, but they haven’t got back to me.

Thank you

Literally no-one can tell you.

IF there are stamp duty changes announced next week you can't predict when they'll take effect.

In summary, plan to pay it. If you don't have to it will be a nice suprise.

I expect any fundamental changes to stamp duty will require legislative input and won’t take effect before 28 November, but no one can say for sure. Any such announcement would come in with a timescale announced at the same time, or tbc.

if they scrap stamp duty it is likely to be replaced with some other form of tax or charge which is unlikely to end up being cheaper…

Whilst nobody knows anything about what’s going to change in the budget next week, wrt the stamp duty currently, the key date is the date of completion - the date of exchange is irrelevant.

Is your name Angela Raynor?

its usually the date of completion that's relevant not exchange.

I really dont think they will scrap stamp duty anyway.

As PPs have said, stamp duty occurs on completion, not exchange. It is literally the stamping of the sale document. (Which obvs occurs electronically these days. But, previously, it was an actual stamp.)

Thank you everyone, really appreciate the responses.

It's Rayner, not Raynor.

Changes to alcohol, tobacco duties tend to happen the next day, hence long queues at the shops! Other things take longer.
If she does scrap stamp duty and replaces it with some other form of taxation you can bet it will cost you more!

Stamp duty will not be scrapped, btw.