Stamp Duty on a £1.5 Million House 2026
Quick answer: standard £91,250. Second home £166,250. The exact top of the 10% band; pound 1,500,001 triggers 12% on every pound above.
By buyer type at £1.5 million
| Buyer type | England + NI (SDLT) | Scotland (LBTT) | Wales (LTT) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard buyer | £91,250 | £133,350 | £102,450 |
| First-time buyer | £91,250 | £130,850 | £102,450 |
| Second home / additional property | £166,250 | £253,350 | £214,950 |
| Non-UK resident (standard) | £121,250 | £133,350 | £102,450 |
| Corporate buyer (15% flat, Sch 4A) | £225,000 | £133,350 + ADS | £214,950 |
How the £91,250 standard SDLT is built
| Band | Rate | Taxable in this band | Tax due |
|---|---|---|---|
| £0 to £125,000 | 0% | £125,000 | £0 |
| £125,001 to £250,000 | 2% | £125,000 | £2,500 |
| £250,001 to £925,000 | 5% | £675,000 | £33,750 |
| £925,001 to £1,500,000 | 10% | £575,000 | £57,500 |
| Total | £91,250 | ||
Effective rate: 6.08%. The 10% band contributes £57,500 (63% of total), the 5% band £33,750 (37% of total). One more pound above £1.5m triggers 12% on that pound.
The 12% top SDLT band and why it has no ceiling
The top SDLT band of 12% applies to every pound above £1,500,000, with no upper limit. A £2m purchase pays £91,250 + 12% on £500k (£60,000) = £151,250. A £5m purchase pays £91,250 + 12% on £3.5m (£420,000) = £511,250. A £10m purchase pays £91,250 + 12% on £8.5m (£1,020,000) = £1,111,250. The marginal cost of every additional pound at this tier is 12p, the highest residential SDLT rate.
The 12% top rate was introduced in December 2014 by the slice-tax reform. Before then the slab tax meant any purchase above £2m paid 7% on the entire price (so a £2m purchase paid £140,000 versus £151,250 today, and a £5m purchase paid £350,000 versus £511,250 today). The reform was deliberately progressive at the top end, raising more from luxury transactions while easing the burden on the £250k-£925k range.
For purchases entering the 12% band see the £2 million page and £5 million page.
The £225,000 corporate SDLT flat charge
Under Schedule 4A of the Finance Act 2003, a residential property purchased by a company, a partnership with a corporate partner, or a collective investment scheme, for more than £500,000, is charged a flat 15% on the entire price. At £1.5m that gives £225,000 in SDLT, a significant uplift versus the standard banded £91,250.
The 15% charge applies whether the buyer is UK or non-UK resident, so it captures both UK trading companies acquiring directors' residential properties and offshore vehicles. Reliefs in Schedule 4A reduce the rate back to standard SDLT in defined commercial scenarios: property-rental business (qualifying conditions in Part 2), property-development trade, employee or partner accommodation, qualifying charity, and farm-house relief. The reliefs each have specific bright-line tests and clawback periods.
The 15% rate runs alongside the Annual Tax on Enveloped Dwellings (ATED) regime, which charges an annual property holding tax on companies owning UK residential property above £500,000. For 2025-26 the ATED rates range from £4,400 per year (£500k-£1m band) to £292,350 per year (£20m+ band). At £1.5m the ATED annual charge is £15,000 unless a relief applies. See companies and SPVs for the full structuring picture.
£1.5m across the UK nations
Scotland LBTT at £1.5m is £133,350 - £42,100 more than England. The differential continues to widen at higher values because the LBTT 12% top rate kicks in at £750,001 (versus £1,500,001 for SDLT), so for the £750k slice between £750k and £1.5m, Scotland buyers pay 12% (£90,000) where England buyers pay 10% (£75,000). The gap is structural and grows monotonically with price.
Wales LTT at £1.5m is £102,450 - £11,200 more than England. Wales's top LTT band (12% from December 2024) starts at £1,500,001, the same as England. So Wales is more expensive than England across the entire taxable range from £225k upward (where England's 0% nil-rate runs only to £125k) but the gap narrows at very high prices where both nations are in the same 12% top rate.
For the Scotland and Wales rate tables see Scotland LBTT and Wales LTT.
The £166,250 second-home figure broken down
A £1.5m second home pays 5% on £125k (£6,250), 7% on £125k (£8,750), 10% on £675k (£67,500), 15% on £575k (£86,250), totalling £166,250. The standard buyer pays £91,250 at the same price, so the additional 5% surcharge contributes £75,000. That £75,000 is reclaimable from HMRC if the second purchase was a replacement main residence and the previous main residence sells within three years of the new completion.
The October 2024 increase from 3% to 5% added £30,000 to this surcharge alone (£45,000 to £75,000). For a high-value buyer in this band, the surcharge increase represented one of the largest single-policy SDLT hits on second-home buyers in the post-2014 reform era.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much is stamp duty on a £1.5 million house in 2026?
Standard £91,250, FTB £91,250, second home £166,250, non-UK resident £121,250, corporate £225,000 (15% flat unless relief).
What happens at £1,500,001?
The 12% top band kicks in on every additional pound. No upper limit.
Is £1.5m the median London 2-bedroom flat price?
Not quite. Per Land Registry data, median Inner London 2-bed flat is £680k-£850k. £1.5m is more aligned with 3-bedroom Kensington flats or 4-bedroom zone-2 houses.
Does the 15% corporate rate apply at £1.5m?
Yes if the buyer is a non-natural person. £225,000 flat rate under Schedule 4A FA 2003. Reliefs reduce back to standard rates in defined commercial scenarios.
How much extra do non-UK residents and second-home buyers stack at £1.5m?
Stacked: 5% + 2% = 7% extra. £91,250 + £105,000 = £196,250 total for a non-UK resident second-home buyer.
Is there ATED on top of the 15% SDLT?
Yes for corporate holdings. ATED 2025-26 at the £1m-£2m band is £15,400 per year unless a Schedule 4A-style relief applies (property rental, development, etc).
Related price points
Not tax advice. Above £1m almost every transaction merits bespoke advice from a chartered tax adviser. The Schedule 4A interactions, ATED, non-resident status and trust structures all turn on facts not visible on the face of the transaction.