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Stamp Duty Calculator

Stamp Duty Calculator

Including info on what's changed now the stamp duty holiday's finished

Kit Sproson
Kit Sproson
Updated 23 November 2021

Stamp duty rates in England and Northern Ireland have returned to their 'normal' thresholds after the stamp duty holiday ended entirely in September. This guide's got all you need to know about how stamp duty works, if you'll need to pay it, and what the differences are in Scotland and Wales. It also includes an updated Stamp Duty Calculator, which shows how much you'll pay.

Note: We're using stamp duty as a generic term here for ease because that is what so many people refer to it as – we know that it's called something different in Scotland (land and buildings transaction tax) and Wales (land transaction tax).

1 min read: How stamp duty works

Stamp duty is a tax charged when you buy a property in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. We've a summary and quick links on how to get started if you already know the basics. Alternatively, read the full guide below for detailed help.

1. Use our FREE Stamp Duty Calculator. Punch the details of how much you're paying for your property, where you're buying and when you expect to complete into our free calculator to see how much stamp duty you'll need to pay.

2. Check stamp duty rates where you live. What you pay depends on where you're buying, as the rates differ in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. First-time buyer? Rates can be different, so check if you might benefit from first-time buyer stamp duty relief.

3. Remember to pay your stamp duty on time. You've got 14 days from completion in England and Northern Ireland, and 30 days in Wales and Scotland. We've got details of how to pay depending on where you're buying.

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What is stamp duty?

When you buy a property or land, you usually pay tax on it. While often referred to as stamp duty, that's only the name in England and Northern Ireland – it's different in Scotland and Wales, where it's known as 'land and buildings transaction tax' and 'land transaction tax' respectively.

Since 2014, all the home nations have had a progressive stamp duty rate system. This means that instead of paying a single rate on the ENTIRE property price, depending on the cost of the property you're buying you might end up paying one rate on a certain portion of the property and a different rate on another.

Stamp Duty Calculator

The rate of stamp duty you'll pay depends on where in the UK you're buying a property. England and Northern Ireland have the same rates, while Scotland and Wales use different rate bandings.

Our calculator shows how much stamp duty is due on a MAIN RESIDENCE ONLY (excluding buy-to-let and additional properties), based on where you're buying.

Stamp duty rates in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales

In response to the coronavirus pandemic, the thresholds at which you start paying stamp duty in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland were temporarily increased. These stamp duty 'holidays' have now ended though – Scotland's in April, Wales's in June, and England and Northern Ireland's in September.

For buyers in England and Northern Ireland, you need to have completed your property purchase by 30 September to have benefited from the stamp duty holiday. If you exchanged on or before 30 September, but completed after 30 September, you'll have missed the deadline and will need to pay the normal rate of stamp duty. 

With the stamp duty holidays having ended, here's a breakdown of the rates of stamp duty in each country.

Stamp duty rates in England and Northern Ireland

In England and Northern Ireland, no stamp duty is due on the first £125,000 of a property (provided it's your main residence, it excludes additional properties) – though that threshold is £300,000 if you're a first-time buyer. Here are the stamp duty rates:

Stamp duty rates (England & Northern Ireland)

PURCHASE PRICE RATE ON MAIN RESIDENCE (1)
 RATE FOR ADDITIONAL PROPERTIES (2)
Up to £125,000 (£300,000 for first-time buyers (3))  0% 3%
£125,0001 – £250,000 2% 5%
£250,001 – £925,000 5% 8%
£925,001 – £1,500,000 10% 13%
£1,500,001 + 12% 15%
(1) Rate applies to that portion of the purchase price. (2) Additional properties bought for less than £40,000 will be charged the main residence rate of stamp duty. (3) The £300,000 first-time buyer stamp duty threshold does not apply if the property you are buying costs more than £500,000 – if it does, you'll pay the normal rate of stamp duty.

Stamp duty rates in Scotland

It's not actually called stamp duty in Scotland anymore - it's now referred to as 'land and buildings transaction tax' (LBTT). The main difference between Scotland and the rest of the UK is the thresholds it uses are at different rates – though the Scottish system does have extra relief for first-time buyers like in England and Northern Ireland. Here are the rates you'll need to pay:

Land & buildings transaction tax rates (Scotland)

PURCHASE PRICE RATE ON MAIN RESIDENCE
 RATE FOR ADDITIONAL PROPERTIES (1)
Up to £145,000 (£175,000 for first-time buyers) 0% 4%
£145,001 – £250,000 2% 6%
£250,001 – £325,000 5% 9%
£325,001 – £750,000 10% 14%
£750,001 + 12% 16%
(1) Additional properties bought for less than £40,000 will be charged the main residence rate of stamp duty.

Stamp duty rates in Wales

The Welsh Revenue Authority (WRA) is responsible for collecting and managing land transaction tax (LTT) in Wales. LTT works similarly to the old stamp duty system, but the Welsh Government has set the thresholds for the tax bands at different rates. Unlike in England, Northern Ireland and Scotland, there is no extra stamp duty relief for first-time buyers.

These are the current land transaction tax rates: 

Land transaction tax rates (Wales)

PURCHASE PRICE RATE ON MAIN RESIDENCE
 RATE FOR ADDITIONAL PROPERTIES
Up to £180,000 0% 4%
£180,001 – £250,000 3.5% 7.5%
£250,001 – £400,000 5% 9%
£400,001 – £750,000 7.5% 11.5%
£750,001 – £1,500,000 10% 14%
£1,500,001 + 12% 16%

How much stamp duty does a first-time buyer pay?

It can be confusing to work out how much stamp duty a first-time buyer needs to pay now that the stamp duty holiday has changed in some countries and ended in others. Here's what you need to know:

In England and Northern Ireland

There's no stamp duty for first-time buyers on the first £300,000 of a main residential property (provided the property you're buying costs £500,000 or less).

In Wales 

First-time buyers pay no land transaction tax on the first £180,000 of a property.

In Scotland

First-time buyers pay no land and buildings transaction tax on the first £175,000 of a property.

When must I pay stamp duty and how can I do it?

If you're buying in England or Northern Ireland, you have 14 days from the date of completion/date of entry (when all the contracts are signed and dated, and you get the keys – read our Buying a home guide for a full timeline) to pay stamp duty. In Scotland and Wales, you have 30 days. 

Take longer, and you could face a fine and possibly interest on top, so don't!

In reality, your solicitor will probably sort this out and push you to pay the bill straightaway – in fact, most tend to want their cash before completing the property purchase for you, just in case you then can't or don't pay them.

However, it's legally your responsibility to ensure your stamp duty/transaction tax is paid. If you are doing this yourself, click the questions to see the process.

  • How do I pay stamp duty in England and Northern Ireland?

    In case your solicitor doesn't do this for you, here's what you need to do...

    • Find your unique transaction reference number (UTRN)

      It's 11 characters long and found on your submission receipt if you have filed online, or on your paper stamp duty return.

    • Pay online or by phone banking?

      Just as you might move money to a pal's account, you can transfer the money online or by phone using HM Revenue & Customs' bank details. Bacs payments normally take three working days, so take this into account and don't miss the deadline, while CHAPS payments usually arrive on the same working day.

    • Other ways to pay

      If you don't have online or phone banking set up, you can pay by debit card (but not credit card), by cheque or cash in most banks, and by cheque in post office branches or by post – though the last two options will require you to present a payslip.

  • How do I pay land and buildings transaction tax in Scotland?

    Again your solicitor is likely to do this for you. Here you need to pay Revenue Scotland, and you have 30 days to pay up.

    If your solicitor doesn't do this for you, here's how you can do it yourself...

    • Submit an online return registering the transaction

      You'll need to go to Revenue Scotland's site to do this. Because of coronavirus, it's not currently possible to submit a paper return.

    • Find your transaction reference

      It's 13 characters long, beginning with 'RS'. You can find it on the receipt for your online return.

    • Pay online or by phone banking

      Just as you might move money to a pal's account, you can transfer the money online or by phone using Revenue Scotland's bank details. You can use Faster Payments, Bacs or CHAPS. Remember, if you're using Bacs, the transfer could take three working days, so don't miss your payment date.

    • Other ways to pay

      Because of coronavirus, Revenue Scotland is not currently accepting post, including cheques, so you'll need to pay your LBTT using one of the methods described above.

  • How do I pay land transaction tax in Wales?

    In Wales, land transaction tax is paid to the Welsh Revenue Authority. This is payable within 30 days of you completing on your property.

    If you have a solicitor, they'll usually file your return and pay the tax on your behalf if you ask them to and add the amount to the sum you pay them.

    If you need to pay land transaction tax yourself, here's how to do it...

    • First you need to submit a return registering the transaction

      You'll need to go to the Welsh Revenue Authority's (WRA) site and submit a paper tax return registering the transaction. Even though it's referred to as a 'paper' return, you can actually submit it online – and since the coronavirus pandemic started, it's been recommended that you submit it this way (rather than via post).
    • Find your unique transaction reference number (UTRN)

      After you've submitted your paper return, you will not be given a UTRN immediately. It will be sent to you once your return has been processed by the WRA.

      If you've not got enough time to wait for your UTRN to be issued, you can instead use the following payment reference number: "Postcode of land \ surname of buyer". For example: "CF379EH \ Bloggs".
    • Pay online

      Just as you might move money to a pal's account, you can transfer the money online or by phone using the WRA's bank details. You can use Faster Payments, Bacs or CHAPS. Remember to include the reference (as explained above) in the payment reference section.

      If using BACS, the WRA must have your payment four working days before the payment due date, so that it can be processed.
    • Pay by cheque

      The WRA is not currently accepting payments via cheque because of coronavirus, so you should pay your land transaction tax via one of the methods described above.

Can I add stamp duty to my mortgage?

The simple answer here is that it's best that you don't, but many people find that they have to.

To add the cost of stamp duty to your loan means a bigger mortgage debt. So, say you needed a £180,000 mortgage to purchase a house costing £300,000, but wanted to add the stamp duty, you'd need to request borrowing of £185,000 (in England, Wales or Northern Ireland), then use your 'extra' deposit money to pay the stamp duty.

There are two main things to consider here. Firstly, as mortgages tend to be taken out over a long term (25 years or more), that's normally how long the stamp duty borrowing will last too. Over a 25-year term at a rate of 5%, that extra £5,000 borrowing will cost about £8,500 in interest, so it's vital to be aware of the cost.

Secondly, this could affect your loan-to-value ratio (LTV) – the measure of how much of a property's value you are borrowing. The most competitive deals require a maximum LTV of 60% – yet in the example above, adding the stamp duty would push you from 60% to almost 62%, so be careful – speak to a mortgage broker to see if it's the right decision.

Ready to get a mortgage? We've lots more guides, tools & tips to help…

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