Budget 2001 - Stamp Duty and Stamp Duty Reserve Tax

The following Stamp Duty and SDRT measures are described in the Budget publications.

Stamp duty exemption for disadvantaged areas

Budget 2001 introduces an exemption for stamp duty on all property transactions in the most disadvantaged parts of the UK. This will help promote urban regeneration through the refurbishment and return to use of existing properties and aid new development. This will encourage businesses and families to locate in these areas, reviving depressed property markets and providing employment. The exemption will be targeted at the areas most in need of regeneration, at the level of particular wards. A list of areas which will qualify for the exemption will be published in due course.

Stamp Duty Exemption for shares bought through AESOP trusts

In Budget 2000 the Government introduced the All-Employee Share Ownership Plan (AESOP), to support employers' efforts to foster a more productive and enterprising relationship with their workers. To improve the plan even further, a stamp duty exemption will be introduced for employees buying shares through an AESOP trust.

Further details can be found in Press Release REV 3

Stamp Duty Reserve Tax and Individual Pension Accounts

Draft legislation to implement the Stamp Duty Reserve Tax (SDRT) exemption for Individual Pension Accounts has been made available today. The exemption will allow pension savers who hold units in unit trusts or shares in open-ended investment companies (oeics) within an Individual Pension Account (IPA) to adjust their investments within that framework without the usual SDRT charge.

Further details can be found in REV BN 8

The draft clauses are available in PDF format. To view a PDF document you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your computer.

• Reserve Tax and Individual Pension Accounts - Open Ended Investment Companies. Draft Clauses (PDF 5K)
• Reserve Tax and Individual Pension Accounts - Unit Trusts. Draft Clauses (PDF 10K)

The regulations that apply to entire unit trusts and oeics which are restricted to holdings within IPAs are also now available.

Further details can be found in the Press Release:Stamp Duty Reserve Tax and Individual Pension Accounts

The regulations can be found in The Stamp Duty and Stamp Duty Reserve Tax (Definition of Unit Trust Scheme and Open-ended Investment Company) Regulations 2001.)