Stamp Duty Explained: What You'll Actually Pay in 2026/27

Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) is one of the largest upfront costs in buying property in England or Northern Ireland, and the rules changed meaningfully in April 2025 when temporary pandemic-era relief expired. Here’s exactly what applies now.

Standard residential rates (from 1 April 2025, unchanged for 2026/27)

• 0% on the portion from £0 to £125,000
• 2% on the portion from £125,001 to £250,000
• 5% on the portion from £250,001 to £925,000
• 10% on the portion from £925,001 to £1.5 million
• 12% on the portion above £1.5 million

These are charged on a slice basis - like income tax bands - so you only pay the higher rate on the portion of the price within that band, not the whole purchase price.

First-time buyer relief

• 0% on the first £300,000
• 5% on the portion from £300,001 to £500,000
• No relief at all if the price exceeds £500,000 - the standard rates above apply to the entire purchase instead

This is a genuine cliff edge: a first-time buyer purchasing at £499,999 pays roughly £10,000 in SDLT, while a purchase at £500,001 loses the relief entirely and can face a bill in excess of £15,000 - a difference of several thousand pounds for a £2 change in price, which is worth being aware of if negotiating near this threshold.

Why this is a bigger change than it might first appear

The first-time buyer nil-rate threshold was temporarily raised to £425,000 (with relief up to £625,000) between 2022 and 2025. Its return to £300,000 (relief up to £500,000) from April 2025 has been a particular blow for buyers in London and the South East, where average property prices frequently exceed the new, lower ceiling - meaning many first-time buyers who wouldn’t have paid any SDLT under the temporary rules now face a genuine bill.

Additional property surcharge

Buying an additional residential property (a second home or buy-to-let) adds a 5 percentage point surcharge on top of every standard band (raised from 3 points on 31 October 2024) - applying where the additional property costs £40,000 or more. If you’re replacing your main residence, the surcharge generally doesn’t apply, and can be reclaimed if you sell your previous main home within a set window (typically 36 months).

Non-UK resident surcharge

Non-UK residents pay an additional 2% surcharge on top of whatever rate otherwise applies - stacking with the additional property surcharge if both apply.

Worked examples

• First-time buyer, £280,000 property: £0 SDLT - the whole price falls within the nil-rate band.
• First-time buyer, £425,000 property: £6,250 SDLT - 5% on the £125,000 above the £300,000 threshold.
• First-time buyer, £500,000 property: £10,000 SDLT - the maximum payable under the relief.
• Home mover (not first-time buyer), £500,000 property: £14,999 SDLT under the standard rates.
• Additional property purchase, £500,000: standard rate plus 5-point surcharge on every band, resulting in a considerably higher total.

Who qualifies as a first-time buyer

You must never have owned a residential property - anywhere in the world, including as part-owner - and the property must be intended as your main residence, not a buy-to-let. If buying jointly, every buyer must individually qualify as a first-time buyer; if one partner has owned property before and the other hasn’t, the relief is lost entirely for the joint purchase.

Practical tips

• If you’re near a band threshold, even a modest price negotiation can meaningfully reduce your SDLT bill - worth raising explicitly during price negotiations.
• Fixtures and fittings genuinely separate from the property (curtains, carpets, freestanding appliances) can sometimes be listed separately in the contract at a fair valuation, reducing the SDLT-liable amount - though the valuation must be genuine and reasonable, not an artificial way to avoid tax.
• Budget for SDLT as cash, not as part of your mortgage - it’s due within 14 days of completion and generally can’t be added to a standard residential mortgage, which is why it’s worth folding into the wider budget alongside your deposit and other costs from the outset (see our step-by-step first-time buyer guide for the fuller picture).

The bottom line

SDLT rates reset to their pre-2022 levels from April 2025 and remain unchanged for 2026/27 - meaning most buyers, and especially first-time buyers in higher-cost areas, are paying more than they would have a year or two earlier. Check exactly where your purchase price falls relative to the thresholds, since the difference of a few pounds near a band boundary can mean thousands in tax.