Last updated September 2026Figures: 2026/27, sourced from GOV.UK
Work out your stamp duty
Stamp Duty Land Tax · 2026/27
What stamp duty will you pay?
England and Northern Ireland. Covers a main home, buying before your old home is sold, buying a main home while you keep another property, an additional property with the surcharge, and first-time buyer relief. Free, and no email required.
£
Rates and thresholds from GOV.UK: SDLT residential rates, GOV.UK: additional properties and GOV.UK: SDLT reliefs, checked 5 September 2026. The figure is rounded down to the nearest pound, as HMRC does (SDLTM00050). Applies to England and Northern Ireland only; Scotland has LBTT and Wales has LTT. Not modelled: the non-resident surcharge, purchases by companies, mixed-use property, buying more than one dwelling in a single transaction (six or more are charged as non-residential), linked transactions, leases and any rent element, shared ownership, an inherited share of 50% or less in another dwelling during the three years after the death, and whether you qualify for a higher-rate refund. This is an estimate for general information, not advice. Your position depends on your circumstances. Speak to us before acting.
Figures checked 5 September 2026.
How to use it
- Enter the purchase price, not the mortgage amount.
- Choose the kind of purchase. The higher rates apply where you will own more than one residential property at the end of the day of purchase, the price is £40,000 or more, and your interest in the other dwelling is worth £40,000 or more.
- If you are buying your main home before the old one is sold, use the second option. You own two homes at the end of completion day, so the higher rates are due then, and the extra is reclaimed afterwards.
- If you are buying a main home and keeping another property you already own, such as a buy to let, use the third option. The higher rates apply and there is no refund route, because the purchase is not replacing a main home you have sold.
- First-time buyer relief needs every buyer to have never owned a home, in the UK or anywhere else in the world, and you must intend to live in it as your only or main residence.
- Where a comparison is possible the result shows it, so you can see the difference the surcharge or first-time buyer relief makes.
The bands, and why it is not one flat percentage
Stamp duty is charged in slices, like income tax. You do not pay the top rate on the whole price, only on the part that falls in each band. The rates below are the 2026/27 rates, in force since 1 April 2025.
| Slice of the price | Main home | Additional property |
|---|---|---|
| Up to £125,000 | 0% | 5% |
| £125,001 to £250,000 | 2% | 7% |
| £250,001 to £925,000 | 5% | 10% |
| £925,001 to £1.5m | 10% | 15% |
| Above £1.5m | 12% | 17% |
So a £300,000 main home is nothing on the first £125,000, 2% on the next £125,000 and 5% on the last £50,000, which comes to £5,000 rather than 5% of the whole price.
HMRC rounds the calculated tax down to the nearest pound, so a price of £499,999 gives £14,999 rather than £15,000.
The additional property surcharge
Buying a second home, a buy to let, or any property that leaves you owning more than one, adds 5 percentage points to every band, including the band that would otherwise be nil. On a £250,000 purchase that is £12,500 on top of the £2,500 a main home would pay (2026/27).
The higher rates have an entry threshold. They apply only where the chargeable consideration is £40,000 or more, and only where you already hold an interest worth £40,000 or more in another dwelling. Below £40,000 the standard rates apply, which means nothing to pay, and a purchase under £40,000 with no linked transactions and no rent element does not need an SDLT return at all.
The surcharge is not only for second homes. If you are buying a home to live in, but you already own another dwelling worth £40,000 or more and this purchase does not replace a main home you have sold, the higher rates apply to it, and there is no refund to claim later.
If you are replacing your main residence but have not yet sold the old one, you own two homes at the end of the day you complete, so the higher rates are payable then. The extra can be reclaimed if the previous main home sells within 36 months of completion. The reclaim is not automatic: it is a separate claim, and it must be made within 12 months of that sale, or within 12 months of the filing date of the SDLT return, whichever is later.
First-time buyer relief has a cliff edge
First-time buyers pay nothing up to £300,000 and 5% between £300,000 and £500,000 (2026/27). Above £500,000 the relief is lost entirely, not tapered. A purchase at £500,000 carries £10,000 of stamp duty; at £505,000 the standard rates apply to the whole price and the bill is £15,250.
That is a real cliff, and it is worth knowing about before agreeing a price just over the line.
The relief also has conditions. Every buyer must be a first-time buyer, meaning none of you has ever owned a home or an equivalent interest in a dwelling, in the UK or in any country outside it, and you must intend to occupy the property as your only or main residence. If any buyer has owned before, the standard rates apply to the whole price.
Common questions
When is stamp duty due?
Within 14 days of completion. The return is usually filed by your conveyancer, but the liability is yours.
Is there anything to pay below £40,000?
No. The higher rates for additional properties start at £40,000, and the standard rates start at £125,000, so a purchase below £40,000 carries no stamp duty either way. A purchase under £40,000 with no linked transactions and no rent element is also not notifiable, so no SDLT return is due.
There is no tax to pay. Do I still have to file?
Usually yes. A purchase of £40,000 or more is notifiable, so the return is due within 14 days of completion even where the tax works out at nothing. Below £40,000, with no linked transactions and no rent element, there is no return to file.
Who counts as a first-time buyer?
Someone who has never owned a home, or an equivalent interest in a dwelling, anywhere in the world. Every buyer has to meet that test, and you all have to intend to live in the property as your only or main residence. An inherited share of a house, or a flat owned abroad, will usually stop the relief. If it does, the standard rates apply to the whole price.
Does the surcharge apply if I am buying with someone who already owns a home?
Generally yes. The test looks at all the buyers, so if any of you will own more than one residential property at the end of the day, the surcharge applies to the whole purchase.
I am buying a home to live in, but I already own a buy to let. What do I pay?
Usually the higher rates. The test looks at what you own at the end of the day you complete, not at what the new property is for. If you will still own another dwelling worth £40,000 or more, and this purchase is not replacing a main home you have sold, the higher rates apply and the refund route is not open to you.
I am buying my next home before my current one is sold. What do I pay?
The higher rates, at completion, because you own two homes at the end of that day. If your previous main home sells within 36 months you can claim the extra back, within 12 months of that sale or 12 months of the SDLT return's filing date, whichever is later. Use the second option in the calculator to see both figures.
What if I am buying in Scotland or Wales?
Different taxes apply. Scotland charges Land and Buildings Transaction Tax and Wales charges Land Transaction Tax, both with their own bands. This calculator covers England and Northern Ireland.
Can I add stamp duty to my mortgage?
That is a lending question rather than a tax one. The tax is due within 14 days of completion regardless of how you fund it.
This is an estimate for general information, not advice. Your position depends on your circumstances. Speak to us before acting.
