How UK property transaction tax works in 2026
Stamp duty in the UK is not a single tax. It is three separate progressive taxes operating in parallel across the three parts of Great Britain: Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) in England and Northern Ireland, Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) in Scotland, and Land Transaction Tax (LTT) in Wales. Each has its own bands, its own thresholds, and its own surcharges. The calculator above lets you switch between them and applies the correct rules automatically.
All three systems share a common shape. For a property of price P, the tax is calculated band-by-band: for each band (bᵢ, rᵢ) the portion of the price that falls within that band is taxed at the band's rate. The first band starts at zero and is always zero-rated, so cheap properties pay nothing. Above the zero-rated threshold the rate steps up progressively, with the highest band catching the top portion of any very expensive property.
Current SDLT bands — England and Northern Ireland
| Price band | Rate |
|---|---|
| £0 – £125,000 | 0% |
| £125,001 – £250,000 | 2% |
| £250,001 – £925,000 | 5% |
| £925,001 – £1,500,000 | 10% |
| Above £1,500,000 | 12% |
So a £400,000 standard purchase pays 0% on the first £125,000, 2% on the next £125,000 (=£2,500), and 5% on the remaining £150,000 (=£7,500). Total SDLT: £10,000.
First-time buyer relief
First-time buyers in England and Northern Ireland get enhanced relief on properties priced up to £500,000. They pay 0% on the first £300,000 and 5% on the portion from £300,000 to £500,000. Above £500,000 the relief disappears entirely and standard rates apply — this is the cliff edge that catches first-time buyers of more expensive homes.
Scotland offers a parallel relief that effectively increases the LBTT nil-rate band from £145,000 to £175,000, saving up to £600. Wales has no first-time buyer relief on LTT.
Additional property surcharge
Buy a second home, a buy-to-let, or any property that is not a replacement for your main residence and you pay an extra surcharge on top of every band. The current additional-property treatment is:
- England & NI (SDLT): +5%
- Scotland (LBTT): 8% ADS on the full price
- Wales (LTT): separate higher-rate bands from 5% to 17%
That surcharge applies to each band — so a £400,000 additional-property purchase in England pays 5% on the £0-£125k band, 7% on the £125k-£250k band, 10% on the £250k-£925k band, and so on. The calculator applies this automatically when you select "Additional property".
Non-UK resident surcharge
Since 1 April 2021, non-UK residents buying residential property in England or Northern Ireland normally pay an additional 2% SDLT surcharge. Scotland and Wales do not apply an equivalent general non-resident surcharge. Tick the box only for an England or Northern Ireland purchase.
The current Scottish LBTT bands
| Price band | Rate |
|---|---|
| £0 – £145,000 | 0% |
| £145,001 – £250,000 | 2% |
| £250,001 – £325,000 | 5% |
| £325,001 – £750,000 | 10% |
| Above £750,000 | 12% |
The current Welsh main residential LTT bands
| Price band | Rate |
|---|---|
| £0 – £225,000 | 0% |
| £225,001 – £400,000 | 6% |
| £400,001 – £750,000 | 7.5% |
| £750,001 – £1,500,000 | 10% |
| Above £1,500,000 | 12% |
Worked example — first-time buyer in Leeds, £280,000
A first-time buyer purchasing a £280,000 home in England falls entirely within the relief zone. They pay 0% on the first £300,000, so the entire £280,000 is at 0%. Total SDLT: £0. The same purchase by a moving-home buyer would pay 0% on £125k, 2% on £125k (=£2,500), and 5% on £30k (=£1,500), totalling £4,000 — a £4,000 difference that the relief is designed to deliver.
What this calculator does not cover
This calculator models the standard residential SDLT, LBTT, and LTT regimes using the current published rates. It does not provide historical calculations and does not cover commercial property rates, non-residential SDLT, mixed-use transactions, multiple dwellings relief, transactions involving linked purchases, or the special rules for shared ownership purchases. If your situation involves any of these, you need a solicitor or tax adviser rather than a web calculator.
Sources
Check the current official residential rates forSDLT in England and Northern Ireland,LBTT in Scotland, and LTT in Wales. Our methodology page records the calculation model and review process. We review the tool after relevant national rate changes.