In Myles-Till v HMRC [2020] UKFTT 127 (TC) (11 March) the FTT held that a paddock adjoining a cottage and garden was part of the cottage’s grounds with the result that the property should be classified as residential for SDLT purposes.
The taxpayer acquired a residential cottage with a garden and adjoining paddock. The paddock had originally been part of an adjacent farm but at the time of the acquisition it was owned by the seller. It was separated from the garden by a hedge and fencing. It was arable land suitable for grazing but it was not in use at the time of acquisition.
The FTT had to consider whether the paddock formed part of the grounds of the cottage within FA 2003 s 116(1)(b). If it did the residential rate of SDLT applied to the taxpayer’s acquisition.
In terms of evidence the FTT considered the estate agent’s particulars and a witness statement from an agricultural and rural planning consultant (describing the paddock as agricultural). In coming to its decision the FTT considered case law...
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