Free tool
Stamp duty calculator for landlords
England & NI · additional property · purchase price £300,000
Stamp Duty Land Tax
£20,000
Effective rate 6.7% of the purchase price
| Up to £125,000 | 5% | £6,250 |
| £125,001 to £250,000 | 7% | £8,750 |
| £250,001 to £925,000 | 10% | £5,000 |
The additional-property rates add £15,000 compared with buying the same property as your main home. You can reclaim this if you’re replacing your main residence and sell the old one within 36 months.
After completion, HouseFile keeps track of each certificate’s expiry date for the new property.
Every property gets its own file, with a reminder before any certificate expires. When you share documents with your tenant, you'll see when they open each one.
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Why landlords pay more than the headline rates
If you already own a home, a buy-to-let is taxed at the additional-property rates, so this calculator starts there. In England and Northern Ireland, that's been an extra 5% on every band since 31 October 2024. A £300,000 buy-to-let costs £20,000 in SDLT. Bought as your main home, the same property would cost £5,000.
Each slice of the price is taxed at its own rate, which is why the breakdown above shows each band. The surcharge applies to the whole price. England and Northern Ireland add 5% to every band, Scotland adds 8% of the full price as the Additional Dwelling Supplement, and Wales uses a separate, higher table.
Three nations, three different taxes
Stamp Duty Land Tax applies only in England and Northern Ireland. Scotland has Land and Buildings Transaction Tax and Wales has Land Transaction Tax. Scotland's nil band is £145,000, and its 8% supplement on the full price is the steepest of the three. Wales has the highest standard nil band, £225,000, but no first-time buyer relief, and its higher rates reach 17%.
Buyers who aren't UK resident pay a further 2% in England and Northern Ireland. You count as non-resident if you spent fewer than 183 days in the UK in the 12 months before buying.
The 36-month refund rule
You pay the surcharge up front if you still own another home when you complete. Under SDLT, if the new property replaces your main residence and you sell the old one within 36 months, you can reclaim it. There's no refund when you add to a portfolio, so count the surcharge in your yield from the start.
Rates verified against gov.uk, revenue.scot and gov.wales, August 2026. General guidance, not tax advice. Complex cases (six or more dwellings, mixed-use, company purchases, trusts) have their own rules, so take professional advice.
Common questions
How much is stamp duty on a buy-to-let property in 2026?
In England and Northern Ireland, you pay the standard SDLT rates plus 5% on every band. On a £300,000 buy-to-let that’s £20,000: £5,000 at the standard rates and £15,000 of surcharge. The surcharge has been 5% since 31 October 2024, and the nil-rate band went back to £125,000 on 1 April 2025.
What is the stamp duty surcharge for second homes and buy-to-lets?
England and Northern Ireland add 5% to every SDLT band. Scotland adds the Additional Dwelling Supplement, 8% of the whole price, on top of LBTT. Wales has a separate higher-rates table for LTT, running from 5% to 17%. In all three, the extra applies from £40,000.
Can I get the additional-property surcharge refunded?
Yes, if you bought a new main home before selling your old one. Sell the old one within 36 months of buying the new one and you can claim the surcharge back from HMRC. Scotland and Wales have similar refunds, with their own time limits.
Is stamp duty different in Scotland and Wales?
Yes, they’re separate taxes with their own bands. Scotland has Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT), with a nil band to £145,000 and the 8% ADS on additional properties. Wales has Land Transaction Tax (LTT), with a nil band to £225,000, its own higher rates for additional properties and no first-time buyer relief.
Do limited companies pay the stamp duty surcharge?
Yes. A company pays the additional-property rates even on its first residential purchase. Under SDLT, a company buying a home for more than £500,000 can pay a flat 17% instead, unless a relief applies, such as the one for property rental businesses. Take specific tax advice before buying through a company.
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