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Move-home guide

What happens on completion day?

Short answer

Completion is the day the home becomes yours. Your conveyancer sends the money to the seller's conveyancer and, once it arrives, the keys are handed over. In England the Stamp Duty return is usually filed that day. From completion the bills are yours: read the meters, then give the date to the council and water company.

Updated

  • 14 days

    To file the Stamp Duty return and pay the tax after completion, GOV.UK says

  • Daily

    How council tax is counted, from the day the home is yours

  • 48 hours

    Notice Citizens Advice says to give the old home's energy supplier

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England, Scotland and Wales. The water figure is the company's average bill.

Exchange fixes the date. Completion is the day the money moves, the keys change hands and the home's bills become yours. This guide follows the day in order, answers the questions buyers ask about it, and lists what to do about the meters, council tax and water before the van arrives.

What happens on completion day?

Exchange makes the sale legally binding and fixes the date. On completion day the money moves along the chain and the home changes hands. These are the steps, in order.

  1. 1

    Your conveyancer sends the money

    Once contracts are exchanged and any last checks are done, your conveyancer transfers the purchase money, your mortgage advance and your own funds, to the seller's conveyancer. GOV.UK describes this transfer as the start of completion.

  2. 2

    The seller is paid and the mortgage cleared

    When the money arrives, GOV.UK says the seller's conveyancer pays off the seller's mortgage and any secured debts, the estate agent and their own fee, sends the seller the balance, and sends the documents that transfer ownership.

  3. 3

    You get the keys

    Your conveyancer tells you the sale has completed and the keys are handed over, usually by the estate agent. The seller must leave the home in the state agreed in the contract.

  4. 4

    Read and photograph the meters

    Read the gas and electricity meters and any water meter as soon as you are in, and photograph each reading with the date. Those readings separate your usage from the seller's, whichever supplier bills first.

  5. 5

    Your conveyancer files the Stamp Duty return

    In England and Northern Ireland the return and the tax are due within 14 days of completion, and GOV.UK says a solicitor, agent or conveyancer usually files and pays on the day. Scotland and Wales have their own property taxes.

  6. 6

    Your conveyancer registers you as the owner

    GOV.UK says a home you buy must be registered with HM Land Registry, and that a solicitor or conveyancer can make the application for you. Ask yours to confirm when it has gone in.

Sources (4)

What time do you get the keys on completion day?

There is no set time. The keys come when the money has reached the seller's conveyancer, and in a chain the purchases linked to yours have to complete too.

  • The contract fixes the completion date, not the hour: GOV.UK lists when the sale will complete among the details the contract must include.
  • The money moves from conveyancer to conveyancer. In a chain, a seller who is also buying usually needs their sale's money to pay for their next home, so a delay anywhere in the chain moves everyone's keys later.
  • Plan the day so nothing depends on an early handover: leave room around the removal van, and book any broadband or meter appointment for another day.
  • Ask your conveyancer how they will tell you the sale has completed, and the estate agent where to collect the keys.
Sources (1)

Can a house sale fall through on completion day?

Rarely. After exchange the agreement is legally binding, so what goes wrong on the day is usually a delay, not a collapse.

  • GOV.UK says that once contracts are exchanged the agreement to sell and buy is legally binding, and that usually neither side can pull out without paying compensation.
  • Delays come from money moving late along a chain or a last check not finished. Your conveyancer tells you if the completion time or date moves.
  • If completion moves, so do the bills. Council tax is counted by the day from the day you become liable, so give the council and the water company the date the home actually became yours, and keep the old home's accounts running until you leave it.
Sources (2)

What do solicitors do on completion day?

Most of the day's work is the conveyancers'. On the buyer's side it ends with the tax return and the registration, which you can check afterwards.

  • The buyer's conveyancer sends the purchase money. GOV.UK says the seller's conveyancer then pays off the mortgage, any secured debts, the estate agent's fees, any service charges and their own fee, and sends the balance to the seller.
  • Stamp Duty Land Tax applies in England and Northern Ireland. GOV.UK says the return and the tax are due within 14 days of completion, and that a solicitor, agent or conveyancer will usually file and pay on the day. In Scotland the tax is Land and Buildings Transaction Tax, and in Wales Land Transaction Tax.
  • GOV.UK says you must register a home you buy with HM Land Registry, and that a solicitor or conveyancer can do it for you.
  • Keep the completion statement: it shows the date the home became yours, which is the date the council and the water company bill from.
Sources (3)

What should I do about the meters and bills on completion day?

The home's bills start on completion whether or not you move in that day. Three accounts, a set of dated photos and the old home's final readings cover it.

  • Council tax: liability is counted by the day from the day you become liable, normally completion, and GOV.UK says an empty home usually still pays, with any discount the council's decision. Give the new council your completion date; Brent Council, for example, takes its moving-in form once the date is less than 28 days away.
  • Energy: the home's supplier carries on, on a deemed contract from the day you become responsible. Give it your opening readings; Ofgem says you can choose a new tariff or supplier after you have moved in. If nobody left a bill, Find My Supplier names the gas supplier for the address.
  • Water: register with the water company from the date you took responsibility, and read any water meter as soon as you are in, as Citizens Advice advises. Thames Water, for example, takes a move from 28 days before the date.
  • The home you leave: Citizens Advice says to give its energy supplier at least 48 hours' notice and to read the meters on the day you go.
  • Broadband: order it once the completion date is fixed, because a line or engineer visit takes time to arrange. A new build may have one network, or none live yet.
Sources (9)

Where does Taupia fit?

  • Pick your new address above and Taupia shows the bills for it from your start date: the council tax band and the council's charge, the water company and its average bill, the energy supplier with its default price on the home's usage, and broadband deals. It is free, and nothing changes without your approval.
  • Taupia does not set up council tax or switch water: use the council's and the water company's registration routes linked above for those. Water is tracked, never switched, because households cannot choose their company.
  • The address picker covers Great Britain. Scotland returns the council but not the band, the water figure is the company's average rather than a quote, and broadband is checked at the exact address only for Virgin Media.

The bills that become yours on completion day

BillFrom whenWhat to do on the day
Council taxFrom completion, by the dayGive the council your completion date. It is due even if you move in later, and an empty home usually still pays.
Gas and electricityFrom completionRead and photograph the meters when you get the keys and give the readings to the home's supplier. You can choose a tariff or switch once you have moved in.
WaterFrom the day you take responsibilityRegister with the water company from your completion date and read any water meter.
BroadbandFrom the day you order itOrder once the completion date is fixed, and book any engineer visit for after you have the keys.
TV LicenceFrom the moveThe licence is for your home address: tell TV Licensing the new address and the move date.

Questions about completion day

Do I pay council tax from completion or from when I move in?

From completion, in most cases. Council tax is counted by the day from the day you become liable, and a buyer usually becomes liable on completion even if the home stands empty while you decorate. GOV.UK says an empty home usually still pays, with any discount the council's decision, so ask the new council what it does.

Do I need to take meter readings on completion day?

Yes, as soon as you get the keys. Readings with dated photos separate your usage from the seller's, whichever supplier bills first. Give them to the home's supplier, which carries on supplying you on a deemed contract until you choose a tariff or switch; Ofgem says you can do that once you have moved in.

Who pays the bills if completion is delayed?

The seller, until the home is yours. Each bill runs from the day you become liable or responsible, so a later completion moves your start date too. Tell the council, the water company and the energy supplier the new date, and keep paying the bills at the home you are leaving until that sale or tenancy ends.

Do I have to file the Stamp Duty return myself?

Usually not. GOV.UK says a solicitor, agent or conveyancer will usually file the Stamp Duty Land Tax return and pay the tax for you on the day of completion, and the deadline is 14 days after it. Stamp Duty applies in England and Northern Ireland; Scotland and Wales have their own property taxes.

Can a buyer or seller pull out on completion day?

Not without a cost. GOV.UK says exchanging contracts makes the agreement legally binding, and that usually neither side can pull out without paying compensation. What goes wrong on the day is more often a delay while money moves along a chain, and your conveyancer will tell you if the completion time or date moves.

When should I tell the council and the water company?

Once exchange has fixed the completion date. Brent Council, for example, takes its moving-in form once the date is less than 28 days away, and Thames Water takes a move from 28 days before it. Registering early does not start the charges sooner: council tax and water run from the day the home becomes yours.

Before and after completion day

The bills to set up when you buy, the weeks you might hold two homes, and what the first bills look like once you are in.

Start here

Buying a house: which bills to set up, and from which day

Recommended

Exchange to completion, the seller's readings, keys released late and a home bought before you move in.

Official references

See the new home's bills from completion

Pick your new address above to see its council tax band and charge, the water company's average bill, the energy supplier and its default price, and broadband deals, from your completion date.

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Cite this page

Taupia. "What happens on completion day?". Last updated 30 October 2026. https://taupia.com/move-home/completion-day