What is a TA13 form? Completion information and requisitions on title explained
A TA13 form, officially called Completion Information and Requisitions on Title, is the standard Law Society document that your solicitor uses to lock down the practical details of completion just before a property sale finishes. If you have been told your conveyancer is “waiting on the TA13” or “raising requisitions,” this is the paperwork behind that phrase, and it matters more than its dry name suggests.
What is a TA13 form, in plain English?
Strip away the legal phrasing and a TA13 form is really a checklist. Towards the end of a sale, the buyer’s solicitor sends a standard set of questions, known as requisitions on title, to the seller’s solicitor, using the TA13 form as the template. The seller’s solicitor answers each question and returns the completed form, confirming the details the buyer’s side needs before money changes hands and keys are released.
Almost every residential conveyancing transaction in England and Wales uses this form, or a close variant of it, in the run-up to completion. It is a routine document, but a routine one that carries real legal weight. Most buyers and sellers never see the form itself, since it passes between solicitors rather than clients, but the answers it records shape exactly when and how their move actually happens.
Why the TA13 form matters more than its name suggests
Some of the answers given on a TA13 form are treated in law as a solicitor’s undertaking, not just an informal reply. That distinction matters, since a solicitor’s undertaking is a formal promise their firm is bound to honour, and breaching one is a serious professional matter, not a simple broken promise between neighbours.
That is exactly why completion information and requisitions on title are not treated as a box-ticking exercise by a competent conveyancer. If a seller’s solicitor confirms on a TA13 form that a mortgage will be redeemed on completion, for example, the buyer’s side is entitled to rely on that as a binding commitment, not just a statement of intent. That reliance matters in practice, because it lets the buyer’s solicitor release funds on completion day with confidence, rather than waiting for separate proof that every step has genuinely been taken care of.
What information does a TA13 form actually cover?
A completed TA13 form typically confirms several practical points that need to be settled before completion can safely go ahead:
- Vacant possession, and exactly when the property will be empty and available
- Deeds and documents that will be handed over, or held to order, on completion
- Completion arrangements, including timing and how funds will be sent
- Bank details and the precise amount to be paid on the day
- Confirmation that any existing mortgages or charges will be redeemed
Between them, these sections cover most of the practical risk points in a transaction, which is why a thorough conveyancer reviews the completed TA13 form carefully rather than filing it away unread.
The vacant possession answer is worth reading twice
Of everything on the form, the vacant possession confirmation is one of the most common sources of dispute after completion. If a seller’s solicitor confirms vacant possession but the previous owner has not actually moved out, or has left substantial rubbish or belongings behind, that confirmed answer becomes central to any claim the buyer might bring afterwards.
How the TA13 form fits alongside the other TA forms
The TA13 form is one of a wider family of Law Society Transaction, or TA, forms used throughout a typical sale. Earlier in the process, a TA6 property information form and a TA10 fittings and contents form set out what the buyer is told about the property and what is included in the sale. The TA13 form comes much later, right at the completion stage, and deals with logistics rather than the condition of the property itself.
Understanding where the TA13 form sits in that sequence helps explain why it can only really be finalised close to completion, once a redemption figure for any mortgage is confirmed and a firm completion date has been agreed by everyone in the chain.
Ready to ask about your own completion timeline?
If you are approaching completion and want to understand exactly what your solicitor is waiting on, it helps to talk it through with someone who reviews TA13 forms every week. Our conveyancing team can walk you through where your transaction stands and what is still outstanding before your completion date.
What happens if the TA13 form causes a delay?
A TA13 form is often the last document exchanged before completion, which means any last-minute problem with it tends to land right when everyone is hoping to move quickly. A mortgage redemption figure that has not yet been confirmed, or a seller who has not finished packing, can hold up an otherwise ready transaction at the worst possible moment.
Good conveyancing practice is to chase the information behind the TA13 form early, rather than waiting until completion day to discover a gap. A solicitor who leaves these checks until the last minute is far more likely to see a chain-wide delay than one who chases redemption figures and vacant possession confirmation as soon as a completion date is realistic. In a chain of several properties, one unanswered requisition can hold up everyone else too, since nobody further along the chain can safely release funds until the gap is closed.
TA13 forms and auction purchases
Completion information and requisitions on title matter even more when time is tight, and nothing compresses a timeline like a property bought at auction. Auction contracts typically demand completion within 14 or 28 days of the fall of the hammer, leaving very little room to chase a slow-moving TA13 form if problems only surface at the last minute.
Specialist auction conveyancing builds this kind of document into the timeline from day one, rather than treating it as an afterthought once the pressure is already on.
Need Help With Your Property Completion?
Our experienced conveyancing solicitors can manage the TA13 form, requisitions on title and completion arrangements to help your property transaction reach completion smoothly.
A quick summary of what to expect
Before completion, it is worth knowing roughly what your solicitor is doing with a TA13 form on your file:
- Your solicitor sends or receives the standard requisitions on title using the TA13 form
- The other side’s solicitor answers each section, including vacant possession and mortgage redemption
- Some of those answers count as a solicitor’s undertaking, not just an informal reply
- Your solicitor reviews the completed form before confirming completion can go ahead
- Any gaps or unclear answers get chased before, not after, funds are sent
Our recent guide on what is checked during conveyancing covers the wider process the TA13 form sits within, from the first title check through to the day you get your keys.
Working with a CQS-accredited conveyancer
Because parts of a TA13 form carry the weight of a solicitor’s undertaking, it is worth having it handled by a firm that takes conveyancing standards seriously. The Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme sets out the standards that accredited firms are expected to meet on documents exactly like this one.
Our residential conveyancing team is CQS accredited, which means completion information and requisitions on title get the same careful attention on every file, not just the straightforward ones. That consistency is what turns a routine form into a genuine safeguard, rather than a document that only gets proper attention when something has already gone wrong.
Buying or selling and want a clear view of your completion?
A TA13 form might look like routine paperwork, but the answers it contains, particularly around vacant possession and mortgage redemption, can make the difference between a smooth completion and a stressful one. Getting it reviewed properly, and chased early, is one of the simplest ways to avoid a last-minute hold-up. Whether you are buying, selling, or both at once, knowing what your solicitor is waiting on removes a lot of the uncertainty from the final stretch of a move.
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