Contractual schemes

STOP PRESS relating to Reserved Investor Funds: Legislation setting out the tax rules for a new type of unauthorised contractual fund, the Reserved Investor Fund (Contractual Scheme), known as the RIF, came into force in March 2025. For more on RIFs and their tax treatment, see News Analysis: The new reserved investor fund—a brief guide.

FORTHCOMING CHANGE relating to the modernisation of stamp taxes on securities framework: Stamp duty and SDRT will, in 2027, be replaced with a single, self-assessed tax on transfers of securities, the securities transfer tax (STT) (formerly referred to as the securities transfer charge or STC), that will be paid (and reported) through electronic transfer systems such as CREST or, where appropriate, a new online portal. Draft legislation for the STT was published on 13 July 2026, along with explanatory notes, a policy paper and the outcome of the higher rate 1.5% stamp tax consultation. For more information on the STT and the modernisation of stamp taxes on securities, see News Analyses: Legislation Day: Draft Finance Bill 2027—Tax analysis—Stamp and transfer taxes, Budget 2025—Tax analysis—Stamp and transfer taxes, Tax update spring 2025—Stamp taxes on shares modernisation,