LTT calculator for Wales

Wales charges LTT. It has the highest nil-rate band in the UK at £225,000, no first-time buyer relief, and a completely separate band table for additional properties.

Rates for 2026/27, verified 7 August 2026 against Land Transaction Tax rates and bands

What kind of purchase?
Wales has no first-time buyer relief — the £225,000 nil-rate band applies to everyone.
£7,500LTT on a £350,000 purchase
Effective rate
2.14%
Total cost
£357,500
How this was worked out — Land Transaction Tax
BandPortion of priceRateTax
£0 to £225,000£225,0000%£0
£225,000 to £350,000£125,0006%£7,500
Total LTTPayable to Welsh Revenue Authority£7,500
The same purchase elsewhere in the UK
WhereTaxDifference
Wales£7,500
England and Northern Ireland£7,500Same
Scotland£8,350+£850

Wales charges Land Transaction Tax

LTT replaced Stamp Duty Land Tax in Wales in April 2018 and is collected by the Welsh Revenue Authority. If you are buying a Welsh property, SDLT does not apply at all — and an England-shaped stamp duty calculator will give you the wrong figure.

The highest nil-rate band in the UK

Wales charges nothing on the first £225,000 of a purchase, the most generous starting point of the four nations. England's nil-rate band stops at £125,000 and Scotland's at £145,000. On a £225,000 purchase a Welsh buyer pays nothing while an English buyer pays £2,000.

No first-time buyer relief — and why it usually does not matter

Wales is the only UK nation with no first-time buyer relief. That sounds worse than it is: because the nil-rate band is already £225,000, most Welsh first-time buyers pay no LTT anyway. The median Welsh house price sits below that threshold, so a relief would be redundant for the majority of purchases.

Higher rates use a completely separate table

This is where Wales differs most sharply. England adds 5 points to each band and Scotland charges a flat 8% supplement. Wales replaced its old flat 4% surcharge on 11 December 2024 with an entirely separate band table running from 5% to 17%.

Crucially, the higher rates have no nil-rate band. A £150,000 buy-to-let that would attract no LTT as a main home is charged 5% from the first pound — £7,500. The higher rates apply from £40,000.

LTT rates for 2026/27

Main residential rates — from 10 October 2022
Portion of the price Rate
£0 to £225,000 0%
£225,000 to £400,000 6%
£400,000 to £750,000 7.5%
£750,000 to £1,500,000 10%
£1,500,000 and above 12%
Higher residential rates — from 11 December 2024
Portion of the price Rate
£0 to £180,000 5%
£180,000 to £250,000 8.5%
£250,000 to £400,000 10%
£400,000 to £750,000 12.5%
£750,000 to £1,500,000 15%
£1,500,000 and above 17%
Wales compared with England at common prices
Price Wales (LTT) England (SDLT) Wales, second home
£180,000 £0 £1,100 £9,000
£225,000 £0 £2,000 £12,825
£300,000 £4,500 £5,000 £19,950
£450,000 £14,250 £12,500 £36,200
£700,000 £33,000 £25,000 £67,450

What this calculator does not cover

  • Non-residential and mixed-use property, which has separate bands.
  • Leases, where LTT can apply to the net present value of the rent.
  • Multiple dwellings relief and the other reliefs claimed on the return.
  • Local council tax premiums. Several Welsh councils charge up to 300% council tax on second homes and long-term empty properties. That is not LTT, but it is a much larger annual cost than the purchase tax for many second-home buyers.

An LTT return must be filed and the tax paid within 30 days of completion.

Frequently asked questions

Do first-time buyers pay LTT in Wales?

There is no specific first-time buyer relief in Wales, but the £225,000 nil-rate band is the highest in the UK, so most Welsh first-time buyers pay nothing regardless. Above £225,000 a first-time buyer pays the same as anyone else moving home.

How much extra is LTT on a second home in Wales?

Wales uses a completely separate higher-rate band table rather than adding a surcharge. It starts at 5% from the first pound — there is no nil-rate band — and rises to 17% above £1.5m. That makes cheap buy-to-lets relatively more expensive in Wales than elsewhere.

Is Wales cheaper than England for stamp duty?

Below about £400,000 usually yes, because of the higher nil-rate band. Above that England often works out cheaper, since Wales charges 6% from £225,000 while England is still at 2% until £250,000 and 5% thereafter. The comparison table in the calculator shows both.

When did the Welsh higher rates change?

On 11 December 2024, when the flat 4% surcharge was replaced by the current banded higher rates of 5% to 17%. Guidance written before that date is out of date, which is worth knowing if you are reading older articles.

Do I pay LTT or SDLT if I live in England but buy in Wales?

LTT. The tax follows where the property is, not where the buyer lives. A Welsh property is always LTT even if every party to the transaction is English.

Tax year 2026/27 · How we calculate · All rates and sources · What changed