I don't pay stamp duty 'cos I'm a muslim '

[principled]

Has the reason for the increase in people claiming to be Muslims been uncovered? Could it be a tax scam?

Apparently, as Sharia Law does not permit the payment of interest, a law passed in 2005 by the Lab Government allows Muslims to buy a property without the need for them to pay conventional mortgage interest. The process involves the house being purchased and then sold immediately to an offshore financial company who then "owns it" and to whom you pay rent rather than interest. If the sale is then combined with a particular scheme intended for some types of commercial property transaction then the whole process is exempt from stamp duty! Saving a cool £20K on a property of £500k

Sometimes it pays to be religious!

P

[marchesarosa]

The "interest/usury" thing is just an example of religious [snip].

Whether you call it "interest" or not, it still boils down to the fact you are paying more for the thing you are buying on installments than its sale price. It's a way of having access to the conveniences of the modern world (in this case "credit") whilst still PRETENDING to be religiously observant. There are loads of different ways muslims have evaded their religion's ban on usury and millions of muslim financiers who are "profiting" nicely, thank you, from their co-religionists and their own [snip]. They call it "Islamic Banking". en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_banking

It is analogous to the supposedly "observant" jews who string up a fishing line thread from the telegraph poles around their neighboourhood to create an "eruv" and then claim it exempts them from inconvenient Sabbath rules.

www.nytimes.com/2000/06/02/nyregion/symbolic-line-divides-jews-borough-park-debate-over-strictures-for-sabbath.html
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eruv

Why don't these religious [snip] simply accept that times have moved on? Either that, or be TRULY observant of their religious obligations. But that gets in the way of the many conveniences of modern life, I guess.

[Progenitor A]

Do Moslems using that system pay Capital Gains Tax, I wonder?

[marchesarosa]

I doubt if HM Revenue and Customs even knows about the existence of many of them, nay.

[speakertoanimals]

I think the law change was that stamp duty only had to be paid once. But if anyone thinks the various financial institutions offering different ways of buying a house are going to come up with ways that make them LESS money just because of religious issues, then you don't know the financial world that well............

Plus if you go look, anyone can purchase one of these alternative financial products. But as always, you can guarantee that the banks concerned, islamic or not, WILL be making as much money out of you as they can, in the long run.

It's just alternative financial products, if the market wants them, that is all, just another way for banks to make money.