My parents' property in London was transferred into my name approximately 14 years ago, for reasons unknown to me. In April 2021, I purchased a property in Oxford for myself and was responsible for paying excess stamp duty land tax (as a second property). My aim is to sign over the original property to my parents without the need to pay capital gains tax or stamp duty land tax. The property is mortgage-free. I lived there up until my house purchase, and I have no expectation to retain any rights with regard to the property. Searching the net, I found conflicting information and was hoping you could advise on the above. I was also unsure as to whether gifting or transfer would impact the SDLT refund. 

Arthur Weller replies:  

See HMRC’s Stamp Duty Land Tax Manual (www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/stamp-duty-land-tax-manual/sdltm09800), where it states: “Condition D is that the purchased dwelling is not a replacement of the purchaser’s only or main residence”. And “For the purpose of condition D, the disposal of the previous main residence does not have to be by way of sale, although that is likely to be the case for most individuals. For example, the property may have been gifted to someone else or transferred under a court order as part of a divorce settlement.” From what you have written, it appears that you meet the conditions in the section headed “Old main residence sold after the new main residence is purchased”. Consequently, you should be able to apply for a refund.