Use the postcode area, purchase price and buyer position to see whether the purchase falls under SDLT, LBTT or LTT, then carry the right tax figure into the wider mortgage and moving-cost plan.
England and Northern Ireland
Standard residential SDLT starts at £125,000
Scotland
First-time buyer relief can raise the LBTT nil-rate band to £175,000
Wales
Higher residential LTT rates changed on 11 December 2024
Check First
This is the fastest way to stop an England-style SDLT assumption leaking into a Scottish or Welsh purchase budget.
Use the outward postcode, purchase price and buyer position to identify the tax system and estimate the likely bill.
Use the outward code only, not the full postcode.
Buyer position
Start with the postcode area
Enter the outward code first so the checker can identify whether the purchase falls under SDLT, LBTT or LTT.
Country Rules
The main risk is carrying one nation’s thresholds and higher-rate logic into another nation’s purchase.
Residential purchases use SDLT. Standard residential tax starts at £125,000, first-time buyer relief can apply up to a £500,000 purchase price, and additional properties usually pay 5 percentage points above the standard residential rates.
Residential purchases use LBTT. The standard nil-rate band is £145,000, first-time buyer relief can raise that to £175,000, and Additional Dwelling Supplement is charged at 8% where it applies.
Residential purchases use LTT. The main residential threshold is £225,000, and higher residential purchases use a separate rate table rather than a flat SDLT-style top-up.
| Nation | Main residential threshold | First-time buyer position | Additional-property position |
|---|---|---|---|
| England and Northern Ireland | £125,000 | 0% up to £300,000 and 5% on the slice from £300,001 to £500,000, provided the purchase price is no more than £500,000. | Usually 5 percentage points above the standard residential SDLT rates. |
| Scotland | £145,000 | First-time buyer relief can raise the nil-rate band to £175,000 where ADS is not due. | ADS is 8% of the purchase price where the supplement applies. |
| Wales | £225,000 | The main residential LTT bands apply rather than separate SDLT-style first-time buyer relief bands. | A separate higher residential LTT rate table applies, with current rates in force from 11 December 2024. |
Use Cases
The checker is most useful when the tax system itself is unclear, or when the buyer position changes the tax outcome materially.
If you normally think in SDLT but the purchase is in Scotland or Wales, this checker stops the wrong threshold or higher-rate assumption getting into the budget.
Changing the buyer position can materially change the bill. This is the quickest way to pressure-test those differences before you ask your conveyancer for the final number.
Mortgage affordability on its own is not enough. Use the tax estimate alongside deposit, fees, surveys and removals before you decide what offer range is still comfortable.
Final Checks
A postcode area gets you to the right tax system, but it does not replace the transaction-specific checks that happen before completion.
Higher-rate treatment can change if the purchase is replacing the buyer’s main residence. That is one of the most important reasons not to rely on the headline additional-property result alone.
Mixed-use property, linked transactions, special reliefs and other non-standard structures can move the final bill away from the simple residential estimate.
SDLT, LBTT and LTT do not all operate on the same timetable. England and Northern Ireland require SDLT filing and payment within 14 days of completion, while Wales and Scotland use their own deadlines and return rules.
The outward postcode is enough to identify the broad tax system, but it does not replace the legal review of the title, property type or transaction date that sets the final liability.
Next Tools
Once the tax figure is in the budget, the next step is usually total cost planning, affordability or first-time buyer route planning.
Add legal fees, surveys, removals and mortgage-related costs around the tax figure.
Check whether the mortgage still works once the wider purchase budget is realistic.
Use the deeper SDLT route if the purchase is in England or Northern Ireland and you need a more focused tax page.
Move here if the tax question sits inside a wider first-home planning decision.
Enter the outward part of the postcode, such as M1, SW1A, EH1, CF10 or BT1. The checker uses that area to identify which tax system applies to the purchase.
It identifies whether the purchase falls under SDLT, LBTT or LTT and estimates the residential property tax using the current published bands for the nation and buyer position you select.
England and Northern Ireland use SDLT, Scotland uses LBTT and Wales uses LTT. The thresholds, first-time buyer treatment and higher-rate rules are not the same across those tax systems.
No. The postcode area helps identify the tax system, but the final bill can still change because of reliefs, mixed-use treatment, contract date, linked transactions or replacement-main-residence rules.