Stamp Duty 2026: What You Pay and First-Time Buyer Relief

Buying a home means budgeting for more than the deposit - and Stamp Duty is often the largest extra cost. The rules differ by nation and by whether you are a first-time buyer or buying an additional property. This guide sets out the 2026 rates for England and Northern Ireland, explains first-time buyer relief, covers Scotland and Wales, and works through real examples so you know your bill before you offer.

Quick summary

• England & NI (SDLT): starts at £125,000; first-time buyers 0% to £300,000
• Scotland (LBTT): starts at £145,000; first-time buyer relief to £175,000
• Wales (LTT): starts at £225,000; no first-time buyer relief
• Second homes/buy-to-let: a surcharge applies on top

Stamp Duty in England & Northern Ireland

SDLT is charged in slices - each rate applies only to the part of the price within that band:

First-time buyer relief

First-time buyers purchasing for £500,000 or less pay 0% up to £300,000 and 5% on the part between £300,001 and £500,000. Above £500,000 there is no relief and standard rates apply. The first-time buyer stamp duty calculator shows your exact bill.

Real-life examples

Example 1 - first-time buyer at £280,000. Aaron buys his first home for £280,000. As a first-time buyer, the whole price is within the £300,000 nil-rate band, so he pays £0 SDLT.

Example 2 - home mover at £350,000. Beth, not a first-time buyer, buys for £350,000. She pays 0% on the first £125,000, 2% on the next £125,000 (£2,500), and 5% on the final £100,000 (£5,000) - a total of £7,500. Use the stamp duty calculator to check.

Example 3 - buy-to-let surcharge. Carl buys a £200,000 second home. On top of the standard SDLT, a 5% surcharge applies across the bands, adding several thousand pounds. The second-home stamp duty calculator includes it.

Scotland and Wales are different taxes

Official sources: Scotland uses LBTT, set by Revenue Scotland (LBTT). Wales uses LTT, set by GOV.WALES (LTT). Neither pays SDLT.

"Stamp Duty" only exists in England and Northern Ireland. Scotland charges Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT), starting at £145,000, with first-time buyer relief lifting the nil-rate band to £175,000. Wales charges Land Transaction Tax (LTT), starting at £225,000, with no first-time buyer relief. Never assume England's rules apply across the UK - the tax and the thresholds are genuinely different.

Who is affected

• Home movers above the nil-rate band for their nation.
• First-time buyers above the relief thresholds.
• Second-home and buy-to-let buyers, who pay a surcharge.

How to manage the cost

• Calculate before you offer with the stamp duty calculator so the tax is in your budget.
• Check first-time buyer status carefully - neither buyer may have owned property anywhere in the world before.
• Budget for the surcharge if the property won't be your only home.
• Use the right nation's rules - England, Scotland and Wales each have their own.

Common mistakes to avoid

Don't assume "first-time buyer" applies if either of you has ever owned property, including abroad or via inheritance. Don't forget the second-property surcharge can apply even if you're replacing a main home that hasn't sold yet (though you may reclaim it later). And always use the correct tax for the property's location.

How the surcharge and reliefs really work

The additional-property surcharge catches more people than expected. It applies whenever you end up owning more than one residential property - so it can hit you even when buying what will become your main home, if you haven't yet sold your previous one. The good news is that if you sell your old main home within the time limit, you can usually reclaim the surcharge. It is essential to budget for it upfront, though, because it must be paid at completion and only refunded later.

First-time buyer relief has its own traps. To qualify, you must never have owned a residential property anywhere in the world - including a share inherited from a relative or a property owned abroad. And if you buy jointly, both buyers must be first-time buyers; if one has owned before, the relief is lost for the whole purchase. These rules catch out couples where only one partner is a true first-time buyer.

More real-life examples

Example 4 - a first-time buyer just over the cap. Maya buys her first home for £510,000. Because the price exceeds £500,000, first-time buyer relief is lost entirely and she pays standard rates on the whole purchase. Buyers near the cap should be aware that going slightly over can cost thousands in lost relief.

Example 5 - buying in Scotland. Callum buys a £300,000 home in Edinburgh. He pays LBTT, not SDLT - nothing up to £145,000, then rising bands above that. The thresholds and the tax are different from England, so an English stamp duty estimate would be wrong. Always use the rules for the property's nation.

Example 6 - buying in Wales. Ffion buys her first home in Cardiff for £240,000. Wales charges LTT with a £225,000 starting threshold and, unlike England and Scotland, no first-time buyer relief - so she pays LTT on the slice above £225,000 regardless of being a first-time buyer.

Budgeting for the whole cost

Stamp Duty is rarely the only extra cost of buying. Alongside it you'll typically face legal fees, survey costs, mortgage arrangement fees and removal costs. Because Stamp Duty must be paid shortly after completion (within 14 days in England and NI), it needs to be cash you have ready, not money you can add to the mortgage. Working it out before you make an offer - with the stamp duty calculator for movers or the first-time buyer calculator - means no nasty surprises at completion.

How the "slice" system works in detail

Stamp Duty is progressive, which means each rate applies only to the part of the price within its band - not to the whole price. This trips people up, because they fear that nudging just over a threshold will suddenly tax everything at the higher rate. It won't. If you buy for £255,000 in England, only the £5,000 above the £250,000 band is taxed at the higher 5% rate; the rest is taxed at the lower bands as normal. Understanding this means you can negotiate sensibly around band edges without panic, and it explains why a stamp duty bill rises gradually with price rather than jumping in big steps.

The same slice principle applies in Scotland's LBTT and Wales's LTT, though the band boundaries and rates differ. In every case, the calculator adds up the tax band by band, which is why an accurate figure needs the right nation's bands.

A full worked example for a home mover

Take Beth, buying a £350,000 home in England as a mover (not a first-time buyer). The first £125,000 is taxed at 0% (£0). The next £125,000, from £125,001 to £250,000, is taxed at 2% (£2,500). The final £100,000, from £250,001 to £350,000, is taxed at 5% (£5,000). Her total bill is £7,500. Now compare a first-time buyer paying the same £350,000: they pay 0% up to £300,000 and 5% on the remaining £50,000, a bill of £2,500 - a £5,000 saving from first-time buyer relief. The stamp duty calculator and first-time buyer calculator show both instantly.

Timing, payment and reclaims

Stamp Duty in England and Northern Ireland must be reported and paid within 14 days of completion, normally handled by your solicitor, so the cash needs to be ready at completion rather than added to your mortgage. If you paid the additional-property surcharge because your previous main home had not yet sold, you can reclaim it provided you sell that home within the time limit (generally three years) and apply within the deadline. Keeping these dates in mind - payment within 14 days, surcharge reclaim within the window - avoids both penalties and lost refunds, and is part of budgeting for a purchase properly from the start.

Key takeaways

• In England & NI, SDLT starts at £125,000; first-time buyers pay nothing up to £300,000 (on purchases ≤ £500,000).
• It is charged in slices - only the part of the price within each band is taxed at that band's rate.
• An additional 5% surcharge applies to second homes and buy-to-lets of £40,000 or more.
• Scotland (LBTT, from £145,000) and Wales (LTT, from £225,000) are separate taxes with different rules.
• Wales has no first-time buyer relief; both joint buyers must be first-time buyers to qualify in England/Scotland.
• Pay within 14 days of completion in England & NI; you can reclaim the surcharge if you sell your old home in time.

The bottom line

Stamp Duty can be your biggest buying cost after the deposit, so work it out early and use the right rules for your nation and buyer status. Getting an accurate figure before you make an offer means you can budget for the full cost of moving, avoid a last-minute shortfall at completion, and know exactly where first-time buyer relief or the second-home surcharge changes the picture. Because the tax differs by nation and by buyer type, a few minutes with the right calculator is the surest way to avoid an expensive misunderstanding. Official rates are on GOV.UK.

General information only, not personal advice.