Stamp duty is a tax imposed when you buy land or property that isn’t your main residence or purchase a property over a certain value. This is an extremely complex tax and stamp duty can become payable in many different situations. It is important to consider the impact of stamp duty on your budget as the tax due can be extremely high.
Finding the perfect mortgage yourself can be daunting. At Hello Mortgage we don’t just give you great advice, we also hold your hand throughout the entire process, whether it's buying your first home or releasing equity from your current home.
Our Stamp Duty Calculator is for individuals purchasing property in England and Northern Ireland only.
Scotland and Wales have their own separate property taxes, Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) in Scotland and Land Transaction Tax (LTT) in Wales. So if you're buying outside England or Northern Ireland, you should use the relevant Government website for your tax jurisdiction.
SDLT applies to most residential property purchases over £125,000, with the rate increasing in bands the higher the purchase price.
First-time buyers benefit from a higher nil-rate threshold of £300,000, provided the property costs no more than £500,000.
Buyers purchasing an additional residential property (such as a second home or buy-to-let) pay a 5% surcharge on top of the standard rates — and this surcharge applies to the full purchase price above £40,000, not just the portion above the standard £125,000 nil-rate threshold. This catches many buyers out, as it means even a modestly priced second property can carry a much larger tax bill than expected.
Rates shown are correct for the 2025/26 tax year (effective from 1 April 2025). Rates can change at each Budget, so use our calculator above for an up-to-date estimate.
Your solicitor or conveyancer will confirm how much Stamp Duty is due and will typically ask you to send the amount owing to them before completion. They'll then file the SDLT return with HMRC and forward the payment on your behalf as part of the conveyancing process.
SDLT must be paid and the SDLT return filed within 14 days of the effective date of your purchase (usually the completion date). Even though your solicitor typically handles this for you, the legal responsibility for paying on time rests with you as the buyer, so it's worth confirming with your solicitor that funds are in place well before completion. Stamp duty is paid as one lump sum and is due regardless of how you purchased the property, whether in cash or with a mortgage.
Accurate as of 2025/26 tax year rules. Rates and deadlines are set by HMRC and can change — check gov.uk for the latest guidance.
If you are purchasing a property to let out that is more than £40,000 you will pay an extra 3% on each tier of stamp duty in England.
First time buyers can purchase a buy to let, the stamp duty will be calculated as if they were a home mover. This means you will pay nothing if the property is under £125,000. You will not be able to claim first time buyer rates.
If you buy a leasehold residential property, you will have to pay Stamp Duty on the purchase price of the lease. There may be additional charges if the lease purchased is unassigned (i.e. new), and there is rent to pay over the life of the lease.
Sadly everyone needs to be a first time buyer to apply for first time buyer stamp duty rates. If one of the people being named on the mortgage is not a first time buyer you will pay stamp duty at the standard rate
Not for stamp duty purposes. The rules say “owned” which doesn’t excluded gifted or inherited land or property.
You will pay stamp duty on purchases over £125,001. Use our calculator above to see how much you may be liable for
Not really. What you can do is add the stamp duty onto the mortgage like you would lenders set up fee. That said, it is possible to use less of your deposit towards the purchase and use this to fund the Stamp Duty but we would never recommend this. You should save the stamp duty separately to your deposit.
No, you must pay any stamp duty owned in full within 14 days of the purchase date
If you want to know how much stamp duty you might pay for a purchase in England you should use the above calculator.
The last stamp duty holiday ended on the 30 June 2021 and rates are back to normal for 2021/2022. Typically HMRC don’t change the rates within a tax year which runs form April to March, we haven’t seen any indication as of yet that rats will change for 2022/2023
