Rates read 22 October 2026 from HM Revenue & Customs
First-Time Buyer Stamp Duty (SDLT)
In England and Northern Ireland a first-time buyer pays no SDLT up to £300,000, and 5% on the portion from £300,001 to £500,000. Above £500,000 the relief disappears completely and the standard rates apply to the whole price.
These are the rates for a purchase completing on or after 1 April 2025. If yours completed earlier, the rates were different — the main SDLT calculator has a date selector that applies the right bands for 2022–24 and 2024–25.
Work it out
Enter the amount. Commas are fine.
The bands
| Portion of the price | Rate |
|---|---|
| £0 – £300,000 | 0% |
| £300,001 – £500,000 | 5% |
The £500,000 cliff
This is the trap in the relief. At £500,000 the most you pay is 5% of £200,000 — £10,000. At £500,001 you lose the relief on the entire price and pay standard SDLT, about £15,000 — roughly £5,000 more for one extra pound of price. The relief is not tapered; it stops.
Who counts as a first-time buyer
Everyone buying the property must be a first-time buyer — GOV.UK says you are eligible only if you and anyone else you are buying with are first-time buyers. If one of you has owned a home before, the relief is not available.
Before 1 April 2025 the thresholds were higher
For purchases completing between 23 September 2022 and 31 March 2025 the relief ran to £425,000 at 0% and £625,000 at 5%, and disappeared above £625,000. GOV.UK publishes that table separately; if you are checking an older purchase, use those figures, not the ones on this page.
Source: HM Revenue & Customs — Stamp Duty Land Tax: residential property rates (first-time buyer section), read 22 October 2026. England and Northern Ireland only. Scotland has a different first-time buyer relief and Wales has none.