Stamp Duty Time Machine
Enter a price and buyer type to see what stamp duty would have cost at every rate regime since 2020, from the COVID holiday through the September 2022 mini-Budget thresholds to today. The biggest jump for most buyers came on 1 April 2025, when the temporary thresholds expired.
The rate regimes since 2020
England and Northern Ireland SDLT has moved through five distinct regimes since 2020. The time machine above applies each regime's actual statutory rules to your price, so the bars are directly comparable. These are the rules behind them.
| Regime | Standard nil-rate | FTB nil-rate / cliff | Additional surcharge |
|---|---|---|---|
| COVID holiday peak (Jul 2020 – Jun 2021) | £500,000 | n/a (holiday) | 3% |
| After the COVID holiday (Oct 2021 – Sep 2022) | £125,000 | £300,000 / £500,000 | 3% |
| Mini-Budget holiday (Sep 2022 – Oct 2024) | £250,000 | £425,000 / £625,000 | 3% |
| Final months before reversion (Nov 2024 – Mar 2025) | £250,000 | £425,000 / £625,000 | 5% |
| Today (from 1 Apr 2025) | £125,000 | £300,000 / £500,000 | 5% |
When the standard nil-rate band is £125,000 a 2% band applies between £125,000 and £250,000; during the £250,000 and £500,000 holidays that 2% band did not exist. The marginal rates above the nil-rate band (5%, 10%, 12%) have been unchanged since the December 2014 reform.
Why 1 April 2025 is the line that matters
For most buyers, the single biggest change in recent years was the expiry of the September 2022 mini-Budget thresholds on 1 April 2025. The standard nil-rate band fell from £250,000 to £125,000, and a 2% band reappeared between £125,000 and £250,000. A purchase at or above £250,000 therefore costs £2,500 more in SDLT today than it would have on 31 March 2025.
First-time buyers saw a sharper change. The FTB nil-rate band dropped from £425,000 to £300,000 and the relief cliff fell from £625,000 to £500,000. A first-time buyer purchasing at £425,000 paid no SDLT before 1 April 2025; the same purchase now costs £6,250.
The additional-property surcharge is a separate change: it rose from 3% to 5% on 31 October 2024, several months before the threshold reversion. A second-home or buy-to-let buyer felt that increase first, then the nil-rate reversion on top.
A note on the “January 2023 reversion” myth
Some calculators show a stamp duty change in late 2022 or early 2023. There was none. When the rest of the September 2022 mini-Budget was reversed in October 2022, the SDLT cut was deliberately kept in place as a temporary measure. The thresholds stayed at £250,000 (standard) and £425,000 (first-time buyer) for two and a half years, until they finally expired on 1 April 2025.
The time machine reflects that: the mini-Budget regime runs unbroken from September 2022 to October 2024, when the only intervening change was the additional-property surcharge rising to 5%.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much more is stamp duty now than before April 2025?
For a standard buyer, up to £2,500 more: the nil-rate band fell from £250,000 to £125,000 and a 2% band returned between £125,000 and £250,000. A purchase at or above £250,000 pays the full £2,500 extra.
First-time buyers were hit harder. The FTB nil-rate band fell from £425,000 to £300,000, so an FTB buying at £425,000 went from £0 to £6,250.
What were the stamp duty rates during the COVID holiday?
From 8 July 2020 to 30 June 2021 the nil-rate band was £500,000, so most buyers under £500,000 paid no standard SDLT. It tapered to £250,000 from 1 July 2021 and returned to £125,000 from 1 October 2021. The 3% additional-property surcharge still applied on top.
Did stamp duty thresholds revert in January 2023?
No. The September 2022 mini-Budget SDLT cut was kept as a temporary measure and did not expire until 1 April 2025. There was no January 2023 reversion.