daveymomo Moscrop

Dear HMRC Team, My wife and I are about to complete the joint purchase (no mortgage) of a buy to let property. I pay 20% basic rate tax on my pension and my wife is a non-earner so we wish to allocate the majority of the earnings to her for tax purposes. We want to ensure everything that we do is prudent and above board, and so want to check our approach with you prior to acting. Through the solicitor acting on our behalf we are proposing the following. 1. Confirming that we will hold the property as 'tenants in common', and that this is stated on the Land Registry title deed for the property. 2. Stipulating that the beneficial ownership of the property will be split 95% by my wife and 5% owned by me, and I understand that we do this via a 'Declaration of Trust' document. 3. In order that rental earnings are split on the same basis as 'beneficial ownership' (i.e. 95/5%) we need to submit a HMRC From 17 to HMRC within 60 days of contract completion, along with the Declaration of Trust document. We will then need to submit individual tax returns for tax year 2024/25 (online prior to 31/01/26) in order that tax liabilities can be calculated and tax paid. Given the above approach HMRC will consider rental income on a 95 / 5% split with the higher proportion being my wife's income. Does this all sound correct. Thanks.