HM Revenue and Customs has revealed of the four per cent of stamp duty returns filed on paper, one in five contain completion errors.
HMRC stated in a bulletin that these errors are leading to delays in getting the certificate and additional costs to customers.
In the bulletin, HMRC stated the most common errors relate to the questions about the purchaser.
A common error is when the person completing the form fills in boxes unnecessarily, and the information does not reflect the specific transaction.
The tax office pointed out filing online removes the scope for these types of errors.
HMRC said this is because its system has inbuilt intelligence including data matching, offers prompts to help answer questions, and will not let you submit the return until it is completed according to the filing requirements.
The push for people to complete their stamp duty land tax returns online comes after HMRC announced last month it is going to cut down on the amount of information it requires for the bereaved to reclaim tax or pay tax when someone dies.
Back in 2012, HMRC gave a commitment to improve their service for bereaved customers.
One of the main changes it is now set to make is around form R27, which is for reclaiming tax or paying tax when someone dies.
emma.hughes@ft.com
