On 11 December the Government published its draft tax legislation and responses to consultations that have taken place over the summer. Strutt & Parker takes a look at the legislation, which will be included in Finance Bill 2013 and implements a number of tax policies previously announced at the Budget in March 2012.

The Chancellor has reiterated his hard-line approach to stamp duty tax avoidance, creating annual charges of up to £140,000 and capital gains tax for high-end houses owned by companies.There is more detail to come out over the coming weeks and months however the proposed annual charges have been adopted with a new tax called ARPT (annual residential property tax) to sit alongside the 15% SDLT (stamp duty land tax).

The announcement marks the end of a nine month wait for UK estate agents specialising in prime property that have complained since the Budget that uncertainty about the incoming charges was deterring overseas buyers from the UK market. The new ARPT will start at £15,000 for properties worth between £2m and £5m, go to £35,000 for properties between £5m and £10m, and £70,000 for properties between £10m and £20m. 

Read our full summary and the implications of the Draft finance bill here.