Finance Act 2000

128 Surrender of leases

(1) Where a lease is or has been surrendered or, in Scotland, renounced at any time, a document evidencing the surrender or renunciation shall be treated for the purposes of stamp duty as if it were a deed executed at that time effecting the surrender or renunciation.

(2) Stamp duty shall be chargeable by virtue of subsection (1) on a document containing a statutory declaration, notwithstanding anything in rule 316(1) of the [S.R.&O. 1925/1093.] Land Registration Rules 1925 or any other provision of those Rules or of any other rules (whenever made) under section 144 of the [1925 c. 21.] Land Registration Act 1925.

(3) Stamp duty shall not be chargeable by virtue of subsection (1) on any lease or agreement for a lease or with respect to any letting if the lease or agreement—

(a) is made in consideration of the surrender or renunciation; and

(b) relates to the same subject matter as the lease surrendered or renounced.

(4) Stamp duty shall not be chargeable by virtue of subsection (1) on any document if a document falling within subsection (5) has been duly stamped.

(5) The documents that fall within this subsection are—

(a) a deed effecting the surrender or renunciation;

(b) an agreement which falls to be treated for the purposes of stamp duty as if it were such a deed;

(c) any document which falls to be so treated by virtue of subsection (1); and

(d) any lease or agreement falling within subsection (3).

(6) A land registrar shall regard a document which by virtue of subsection (4) is not chargeable to stamp duty by virtue of subsection (1) as not duly stamped unless—

(a) it is stamped as if it were a deed effecting the surrender or renunciation; or

(b) it appears by some stamp impressed on it that the full and proper duty chargeable on such a deed has been paid on another document; or

(c) it appears by some stamp impressed on it that a lease or agreement falling within subsection (3) has been duly stamped; or

(d) the land registrar is aware of a document falling within subsection (5) which has been duly stamped.

(7) The documents which evidence the surrender or renunciation of a lease shall be taken to include an application, in consequence of the surrender or renunciation of the lease, for—

(a) the making in a land register, or

(b) the removal from a land register,

of an entry relating to the lease.

(8) In this section—

• “land register”—

  (a)

  in relation to England and Wales, means the register kept under section 1 of the [1925 c. 21.] Land Registration Act 1925;

  (b)

  in relation to Scotland, means the Land Register of Scotland or the General Register of Sasines;

  (c)

  in relation to Northern Ireland, means the register maintained under section 10 of the [1970 c. 18 (N.I.)] Land Registration Act (Northern Ireland) 1970;

• “land registrar”—

  (a)

  in relation to England and Wales, means the Chief Land Registrar or any other officer of Her Majesty’s Land Registry exercising functions of the Chief Land Registrar;

  (b)

  in relation to Scotland, means the Keeper of the Registers of Scotland;

  (c)

  in relation to Northern Ireland, means the Registrar of Titles or any other official of the Land Registry exercising functions of the Registrar of Titles.

(9) This section shall be construed as one with the [1891 c. 39.] Stamp Act 1891.

(10) This section applies to documents relating to the surrender or renunciation of a lease after the day on which this Act is passed.