You must pay the higher Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) rates when you buy a residential property (or a part of one) for £40,000 or more, if all the following apply:

• it will not be the only residential property worth £40,000 or more that you own (or part own) anywhere in the world
• you have not sold or given away your previous main home
• no one else has a lease on it which has more than 21 years left to run

Find out about the higher rates for trusts, companies and partnerships in this guide.

There is also information in this guide about certain circumstances when the higher rates do not apply.

Find more information about Scottish transactions or Welsh transactions.

Who the higher rates apply to

You may have to pay the higher rates even if you intend to live in the property you’re buying (and regardless of whether or not you already own a residential property).

This is because the rules do not apply only to you (the buyer), but also to anyone you’re married to or buying with.

If you’re married or in a civil partnership

The rules apply to you both as if you were buying the property together, even if you’re not.

If either of you individually have to pay the higher rates, you must pay the higher rates for the transaction as a whole (unless you’re permanently separated).

Buying with someone else

The rules apply to each person (and their spouse) who is buying the property.

If any of you individually have to pay the higher rates, you must pay the higher rates for the transaction as a whole.

If you’re buying as a trustee

The rules may apply to the beneficiary of the trust and not to you, depending on the type of trust it is.

What property the higher rates apply to

When you know who the rules apply to, you should work out how many residential properties each of you will own at the end of the day of your new purchase.

If any of you will own, or part own more than one residential property worth £40,000 or more, you will have to pay the higher rates on your new purchase (unless there is another reason why the higher rates do not apply).

Include any residential property that:

• is owned on behalf of children under the age of 18 (parents are treated as the owners even if the property is held through a trust and they are not the trustees)
• you have an interest in as the beneficiary of a trust

Include your current home, if you still own it at the end of the day you buy your new home.

The higher rates

The higher rates from 31 October 2024 to 31 March 2025

Property or lease premium or transfer value	SDLT rate
Up to £250,000	5%
The next £675,000 (the portion from £250,001 to £925,000)	10%
The next £575,000 (the portion from £925,001 to £1.5 million)	15%
The remaining amount (the portion above £1.5 million)	17%

The higher rates from 1 April 2025

Property or lease premium or transfer value	SDLT rate
Up to £125,000	5%
The next £125,000 (the portion from £125,001 to £250,000)	7%
The next £675,000 (the portion from £250,001 to £925,000)	10%
The next £575,000 (the portion from £925,001 to £1.5 million)	15%
The remaining amount (the portion above £1.5 million)	17%

Example

FindThere outwere moredifferent about previous thresholds and rates for residential properties before 31 October 2024.

For non-UK residents, with effect from 1 April 2021 the rates are increased by 2%.

You will pay the higher rates on everything you give for the purchase, this is called the ‘consideration’.

When the higher rates do not apply

The higher rates do not apply to certain people, property and transactions.

People

Do not include anyone who will both:

• use your new property as their main home
• have sold or given away the last main home they owned before you buy your new home (or on the same day)

Property

Do not include property (or part of a property) if any of the following apply:

• the property is worth less than £40,000
• it’s a mixture of residential and non-residential (like a shop with a flat above it)
• it’s ‘moveable’ like a caravan, houseboat or mobile home (unless it has become a permanent fixture)

The rules also do not apply to property you lease if either:

• your lease is for 7 years or less (on the date it was granted)
• the lease is owned by someone else and it has more than 21 years left

Transactions

If you’re transferring ownership (or part ownership) of a residential property to your spouse, the higher rates do not apply as long as no one else is involved in the transfer.

If you want to increase the amount of a property that you already own, you do not have to pay the higher rates when all the following apply:

• you already own 25% or more
• the dwelling has been your only or main home for the previous 3 years
• if you’re extending a lease, your lease still has 21 years or more left to run

Reliefs you may qualify for

You may qualify for a ‘relief’ that reduces the amount of SDLT you have to pay.

Check what reliefs are available.

Prior to 1 June 2024, if you bought 6 or more properties, you could choose to pay either the:

• non-residential rates of SDLT (not the higher rates)
• higher rates using multiple dwellings relief

If you’re buying 6 or more properties on or after 1 June 2024, the non-residential rates of SDLT (not the higher rates) will apply.

What you need to do

Send your return

Your SDLT return must be sent to HMRC within 14 days of the ‘effective date’ of the purchase.

Pay your bill

You can pay your SDLT bill as soon as your return has been sent to HMRC.

When and how to get a refund

If you sell or give away your previous main home within 3 years of buying your new home you can apply for a refund of the higher SDLT rate part of your Stamp Duty bill.

You cannot get a refund if:

• you or your spouse still own any part of your previous home
• the higher rates still apply to you for another reason

Properties sold on or before 28 October 2018

If you sold your previous main residence on 28 October 2018 or earlier, a refund must be claimed within whichever comes later out of:

• 3 months of the sale of the previous main residence
• 12 months of the filing date of the SDLT return relating to the new residence

Properties sold on or after 29 October 2018

If you sold your previous main residence on 29 October 2018 or later, a refund must be claimed within 12 months of whichever comes later out of the:

• sale of the previous main residence
• filing date of the SDLT return relating to the new residence

Exceptional circumstances

You may still be able to apply for a refund, if you purchased your new home on or after 1 January 2017 and were unable to sell your previous home within 3 years. To be able to get the refund, the delay in selling must be because of exceptional circumstances. These may be, but are not limited to:

• the impact of government imposed restrictions preventing the sale
• an action taken by a public authority preventing the sale

Once the reason has ended, you must sell the previous home to be able to apply for a refund.

Trusts, companies and partnerships

Trusts

If you’re a trustee buying on behalf of a bare trust, the beneficiary of the trust will be treated as the buyer.

The beneficiary will also be treated as the buyer if a trust holds property and the beneficiary is entitled to either:

• occupy the property for life
• receive income from the property

If the beneficiary is under 18, the child’s parents are treated as the buyers (even if they are not the trustees) unless the child is covered by the Mental Capacity Act 2005 or the Mental Capacity Act (Northern Ireland) 2016.

You (the trustee) will be treated as the buyer if it either:

• is not a bare trust
• does not give the beneficiary a right to occupy a property for life or receive income from it

If a trustee buys a property but none of these apply (for example, it’s a discretionary trust), the purchase is treated as if it were made by a company rather than an individual.

Companies

Companies must pay the higher rates for any residential property they buy if the:

• property is £40,000 or more
• interest they buy is not subject to a lease which has more than 21 years left

If the property costs more than £500,000, the 17% higher threshold SDLT rate for corporate bodies may apply instead.

Partnerships

You have to pay the higher rates if your partnership already owns a residential property and you purchase another residential property for your partnership.

If you’re a partner but are buying on your own behalf, the rules do not apply to the other partners unless they are your spouse.

You will not have to pay the higher rates if you buy a property for yourself and your only additional properties are used for your partnership’s trade.

SDLT rates for non-UK residents

There is a 2% surcharge on residential properties in England and Northern Ireland bought by non-UK residents on or after 1 April 2021. The 2% surcharge applies on top of all other residential rates of SDLT including the higher rates for additional dwellings.

More information is available on the rates for non-UK residents.

More information

More detailed information is available in HMRC’s Stamp Duty Land Tax manual about:

• what is the definition of a ‘dwelling’
• when 2 or more properties count as one
• what is a main residence
• what ‘disposing of your main residence’ means
• if you’re divorced or permanently separated
• buying more than one property
• if you have no beneficial ownership in a property
• inherited property