A first-time buyer in England or Northern Ireland pays no Stamp Duty on the first £300,000 of a home worth up to £500,000, then 5% on the slice above £300,000. Buy for more than £500,000 and the relief vanishes — standard rates apply to the whole price. Here is how it works, with worked examples.
Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) applies when you buy a home in England or Northern Ireland. Qualifying first-time buyers get a more generous set of bands than everyone else, provided the purchase price is £500,000 or less:
| Portion of price | First-time buyer rate |
|---|---|
| £0 – £300,000 | 0% |
| £300,001 – £500,000 | 5% |
| Over £500,000 | Relief lost — standard rates apply |
If you are not a first-time buyer — or the home costs more than £500,000 — these are the standard residential SDLT bands that apply to your main home:
| Portion of price | Standard rate |
|---|---|
| £0 – £125,000 | 0% |
| £125,001 – £250,000 | 2% |
| £250,001 – £925,000 | 5% |
| £925,001 – £1,500,000 | 10% |
| Over £1,500,000 | 12% |
An additional 5% surcharge stacks on top of every band if you are buying a second home or buy-to-let — but a first-time buyer purchasing their only home never pays the surcharge.
SDLT is a "slice" tax: each band only applies to the part of the price that falls inside it.
| Purchase price | First-time buyer SDLT | Standard SDLT |
|---|---|---|
| £250,000 | £0 | £2,500 |
| £300,000 | £0 | £5,000 |
| £400,000 | £5,000 | £10,000 |
| £500,000 | £10,000 | £15,000 |
| £600,000 | £20,000 (no relief) | £20,000 |
Take the £400,000 example: a first-time buyer pays 0% on the first £300,000 and 5% on the next £100,000 = £5,000, exactly half the £10,000 a standard buyer pays. At £600,000 the relief is gone, so a first-time buyer pays the same £20,000 as anyone else: 0% to £125,000, 2% on the next £125,000 (£2,500) and 5% on the £350,000 above £250,000 (£17,500). To check the duty on your own price — including the second-home surcharge — try the stamp duty calculator at ukcalculator.com.
To claim the relief you must never have owned a residential property anywhere in the world — including by inheritance — and you must intend to occupy the home as your only or main residence. If you buy jointly, every buyer has to be a first-time buyer; one previous owner in the group disqualifies the whole purchase.
SDLT only covers England and Northern Ireland. Scotland charges Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT), which has its own first-time buyer relief raising the nil-rate band to £175,000. Wales charges Land Transaction Tax (LTT), which has no first-time buyer relief but a higher £225,000 standard nil-rate band. So the figures here do not apply to a Scottish or Welsh purchase.
The first-time buyer thresholds and standard bands are published in the GOV.UK Stamp Duty Land Tax residential rates guidance and the relief for first-time buyers page.
Not on the first £300,000 of a home costing up to £500,000. You then pay 5% on the part between £300,000 and £500,000. Above £500,000 the relief is lost and standard rates apply.
£5,000 — 0% on the first £300,000 and 5% on the remaining £100,000. A non-first-time buyer pays £10,000.
You must never have owned a residential property anywhere in the world and must live in the home as your main residence. For joint purchases, every buyer must qualify.
No. Scotland uses LBTT (first-time buyer nil-rate band £175,000) and Wales uses LTT (no first-time buyer relief). SDLT covers England and Northern Ireland only.
