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Buying a new home

What is Stamp Duty?

Stamp duty explained

Get to grips with the basics on Stamp Duty and find out all you need to know, including if you need to pay it and when.

  1. What is Stamp Duty?

    Stamp Duty is a type of tax you pay when buying a property or piece of land in the UK. It has different names depending where you buy. In England and Northern Ireland it’s called ‘Stamp Duty Land Tax’, in Scotland it’s called ‘Land and Buildings Transaction Tax’ and in Wales ‘Land Transaction Tax’.

  2. How Stamp Duty works

    There are several rate bands for Stamp Duty. The tax is calculated on the part of the property purchase price falling within each band.

    Find out how much Stamp Duty you'll pay using our table below.

  3. How much is Stamp Duty?

    How much Stamp Duty you will pay depends on the purchase price you pay and whether the property is a residential property or not. Whether or not you're a first time buyer affects the rate of Stamp Duty you pay, as does where you’re buying in the UK.

  4. How do I pay Stamp Duty?

    You need to pay Stamp Duty within fourteen days of buying a property or piece of land. It is possible to add Stamp Duty to your mortgage, but it's important to note that this will incur interest over the duration of the mortgage term, and will also affect your loan to value ratio (LTV). 

Check how much Stamp Duty you'll pay

When you buy a home the following rates will apply to the relevant proportion of the purchase price.

Second home Stamp Duty costs

Paying Stamp Duty

Do you have questions about when you pay Stamp Duty, how you pay it and how you can claim a stamp duty refund? Look no further than our guide to paying Stamp Duty.

Stamp Duty FAQs

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