How much stamp duty do landlords pay in the UK?

Landlords buying an additional dwelling in England or Northern Ireland pay the standard residential SDLT rates plus a 5% surcharge on the whole price, applied from the first pound. On a £250,000 buy-to-let that means the standard charge plus £12,500 of surcharge.

What are the current SDLT bands?

For standard residential purchases from April 2025: 0% up to £125,000, 2% from £125,001 to £250,000, 5% from £250,001 to £925,000, 10% from £925,001 to £1.5m and 12% above £1.5m. The additional-property surcharge adds 5% to every band.

Does first-time buyer relief apply to buy-to-let?

No. First-time buyer relief only applies where you intend to occupy the property as your only or main residence. Any purchase of a rental property is charged at standard rates, plus the additional-dwelling surcharge if you already own residential property anywhere in the world.

Can I reclaim the additional 5% surcharge?

Yes, if the surcharge was paid because you had not yet sold your previous main residence. You can usually claim a refund from HMRC if you sell that former home within three years of the new purchase, and the claim must be made within 12 months of the sale or of the SDLT return filing date, whichever is later.

Does this calculator work for Scotland and Wales?

No. Scotland uses Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) with an Additional Dwelling Supplement, and Wales uses Land Transaction Tax (LTT) with higher residential rates. This calculator covers England and Northern Ireland only.

When is stamp duty due?

The SDLT return and payment are due within 14 days of completion. In practice your conveyancer files the return and pays HMRC from completion funds, so budget the cash alongside your deposit rather than expecting to add it to the mortgage.

Stamp duty (SDLT) calculator

Work out the stamp duty land tax due on a property purchase in England or Northern Ireland, including the 5% additional-dwelling surcharge that applies to buy-to-let and second homes.

By the NestIQ Wealth editorial teamPublished August 2026Last reviewed August 2026

Purchase details

Purchase price

Agreed price, not the mortgage amount

Buyer type

Stamp duty due

£15,000

Total SDLT

6.00%

Effective rate

£0 – £125,000 at 5%£6,250

£125,000 – £250,000 at 7%£8,750

Total payable£15,000

England and Northern Ireland only. Estimates exclude reliefs for multiple dwellings, mixed-use and non-resident surcharges. Confirm figures with your conveyancer.

Assumptions & sources

Every figure above is calculated from the inputs you entered using the rules below. Tap a reference to read the primary source.

Rate bands[1]
Current residential SDLT bands for England and Northern Ireland, charged slice by slice.
Additional property surcharge[2]
Higher rates applied where you own another residential property at completion.
First-time buyer relief[3]
Relief thresholds applied only where every buyer qualifies.
Scotland and Wales[4]
LBTT and LTT are devolved and use different bands — check the relevant authority.

[1]Stamp Duty Land Tax: residential property ratesGOV.UK — Standard SDLT bands and thresholds
[2]SDLT manual: higher rates for additional dwellingsHMRC — Additional-property surcharge rules
[3]Stamp Duty Land Tax relief for first-time buyersGOV.UK — First-time buyer relief thresholds
[4]Land and Buildings Transaction Tax and Land Transaction TaxRevenue Scotland / Welsh Revenue Authority — Devolved equivalents outside England and Northern Ireland

Read how we verify and refresh these figures in our data methodology.

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About the publisher

This page is published by NestIQ Wealth, a UK property management and compliance platform used by self-managing landlords to track statutory deadlines, store certificates with full version history, and evidence compliance per property. Our guidance is written by the team that builds those compliance rules into the product, so the dates, cycles and penalties here are the same ones the software enforces.

•Researched from primary sources. Every rule is checked against legislation.gov.uk, GOV.UK guidance and the responsible regulator — never rewritten from other blogs. See how we source our data.
•Reviewed as the law changes. Pages carry a visible review date and are revisited when legislation, deadlines or penalty levels move.
•No hidden commission. We are not paid to refer you to contractors, brokers or agents. Costs quoted are illustrative market ranges, not quotes or offers.
•Guidance, not regulated advice. Nothing here is legal, tax or financial advice. For decisions specific to your circumstances, speak to a solicitor, accountant or qualified adviser.

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