Calculate Stamp Duty Land Tax for first-time buyers in England. Find your SDLT saving under first-time buyer relief and the net SDLT payable on your purchase.
First-time buyers in England pay no Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) on the first £425,000 of a property's purchase price, and 5% on any amount between £425,001 and £625,000. If the property costs more than £625,000, first-time buyer relief is not available and standard SDLT rates apply. This relief applies from 23 September 2022 (previously the threshold was £300,000).
A first-time buyer is someone who has never owned a residential property before — in the UK or abroad. All buyers in a joint purchase must be first-time buyers to claim the relief. If one buyer has previously owned a property, neither buyer can claim the relief. You must intend to occupy the property as your main residence.
No — first-time buyer SDLT relief applies only in England and Northern Ireland. Scotland has its own Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) with a first-time buyer relief offering a higher nil-rate band. Wales has Land Transaction Tax (LTT) with no specific first-time buyer discount, though lower house prices mean many Welsh buyers pay little or no LTT anyway.
Yes — Help to Buy equity loans and first-time buyer SDLT relief can be used together on the same purchase. The SDLT is calculated on the full purchase price (not the net amount after the equity loan), so the relief still applies if the price is £425,000 or below. Many new-build purchases combine both schemes.
If you are buying with another person and even one of you has previously owned a property, the first-time buyer relief does not apply to the purchase. This affects couples where one partner is a repeat buyer. In this case, standard SDLT rates apply. It may sometimes be advantageous for only the first-time buyer to be on the title, but this has significant legal and mortgage implications — seek independent legal advice.