<p>According to the Sunday Times, the loophole involves registering the property in the names of companies rather than people, though those involved may have other reasons for choosing company ownership.<br /><br />Mittal lives in a mansion near Kensington Palace, West London, which has a jewel-inlaid swimming pool and parking for 20 cars, and is decorated with marble from the same quarry as the Taj Mahal.<br /><br />The property has been owned by Laken Properties since June 2004, when it was bought by Mittal for GBP 57.1 million.<br /><br />Mittal also has a second property in Bishops Avenue, Hampstead, known as The Summer Palace. It was purchased by a company called Spalace in 2002. Both Laken Properties and Spalace are dormant British companies.<br /><br />The Mittal family declined to comment but it is understood that stamp duty was paid at the time of purchasing the properties.<br /><br />Bob Geldof, the Live Aid organiser, and Zac Goldsmith, the Tory MP who prides himself on his green credentials, are among those who have followed this route.<br />A home registered in the name of a company allows the owner to simply sell the shares in the company rather than the property itself.<br /><br />The company shares attract 0.5 per cent in stamp duty rather than the 5 per cent levy to be imposed next month on houses costing more than GBP 1 million and sold the traditional away.<br /><br />Under the loophole, a house worth GBP 20 million attracts a stamp duty of GBP 100,000 for the next owner rather than GBP 1 million. This means the current owner can offer it for a lower price or share the savings with the purchaser.<br /><br />The tax authorities believe the avoidance scheme is already being used on many expensive homes and cost the exchequer GBP 40 million a year in lost revenue. Treasury officials fear the practice will increase when the stamp duty rises next month.<br /><br />Owners set up a company, often in a tax haven such as the British Virgin Islands or Panama though it doesn't have to be offshore, to buy a property and initially pay the full stamp duty. But when the owner decides to sell the property, he sells shares in the company rather than the property itself.<br /><br />Saif Gadaffi is among those who have properties held in offshore companies. He bought a GBP 10 million home in Hampstead, West London, in the name of a company registered in the British Virgin Islands.</p>
<p>According to the Sunday Times, the loophole involves registering the property in the names of companies rather than people, though those involved may have other reasons for choosing company ownership.<br /><br />Mittal lives in a mansion near Kensington Palace, West London, which has a jewel-inlaid swimming pool and parking for 20 cars, and is decorated with marble from the same quarry as the Taj Mahal.<br /><br />The property has been owned by Laken Properties since June 2004, when it was bought by Mittal for GBP 57.1 million.<br /><br />Mittal also has a second property in Bishops Avenue, Hampstead, known as The Summer Palace. It was purchased by a company called Spalace in 2002. Both Laken Properties and Spalace are dormant British companies.<br /><br />The Mittal family declined to comment but it is understood that stamp duty was paid at the time of purchasing the properties.<br /><br />Bob Geldof, the Live Aid organiser, and Zac Goldsmith, the Tory MP who prides himself on his green credentials, are among those who have followed this route.<br />A home registered in the name of a company allows the owner to simply sell the shares in the company rather than the property itself.<br /><br />The company shares attract 0.5 per cent in stamp duty rather than the 5 per cent levy to be imposed next month on houses costing more than GBP 1 million and sold the traditional away.<br /><br />Under the loophole, a house worth GBP 20 million attracts a stamp duty of GBP 100,000 for the next owner rather than GBP 1 million. This means the current owner can offer it for a lower price or share the savings with the purchaser.<br /><br />The tax authorities believe the avoidance scheme is already being used on many expensive homes and cost the exchequer GBP 40 million a year in lost revenue. Treasury officials fear the practice will increase when the stamp duty rises next month.<br /><br />Owners set up a company, often in a tax haven such as the British Virgin Islands or Panama though it doesn't have to be offshore, to buy a property and initially pay the full stamp duty. But when the owner decides to sell the property, he sells shares in the company rather than the property itself.<br /><br />Saif Gadaffi is among those who have properties held in offshore companies. He bought a GBP 10 million home in Hampstead, West London, in the name of a company registered in the British Virgin Islands.</p>