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Scotland LBTT Calculator (2026/27)
Work out the Land and Buildings Transaction Tax you'll pay in Scotland — for first-time buyers, home movers, and additional properties. Figures update as you type.
LBTT you'll pay
| Band | Rate | Tax |
|---|
How Land and Buildings Transaction Tax works
Scotland replaced UK stamp duty with LBTT in April 2015. It is collected by Revenue Scotland, not HMRC, and its bands are meaningfully different from English SDLT — the nil-rate band is higher but the rates climb sooner.
Like SDLT it is marginal: each rate applies only to the portion of the price within its band.
Standard residential rates (2026/27)
| Portion of price | Rate |
|---|---|
| Up to £145,000 | 0% |
| £145,001 – £250,000 | 2% |
| £250,001 – £325,000 | 5% |
| £325,001 – £750,000 | 10% |
| Above £750,000 | 12% |
First-time buyer relief
First-time buyers in Scotland get a raised nil-rate band of £175,000 rather than a separate rate schedule. Above that the standard bands apply as normal, so the relief is worth a maximum of £600 — considerably less generous than the English equivalent, and it does not disappear at a cliff edge.
The Additional Dwelling Supplement
Scotland's second-home surcharge is the ADS at 8%, and it works differently from the English surcharge in a way that catches people out: it is charged on the whole purchase price, not added to each band. On a £250,000 second home that is £20,000 of ADS on top of the standard LBTT.
- It applies where the price is £40,000 or more and you end up owning more than one dwelling.
- It is repayable if you sell your previous main residence within 18 months.
- At 8% it is the highest headline second-home surcharge of the three UK systems.
Worked examples
| Portion of price | Rate |
|---|---|
| £200,000, standard buyer | £1,100 |
| £200,000, first-time buyer | £500 |
| £200,000, additional property | £17,100 |
| £350,000, standard buyer | £8,350 |
The practical points
- LBTT is administered by Revenue Scotland; the return is normally filed by your solicitor on completion.
- Scotland's lower £145,000 nil band means tax starts earlier than in Wales but later than in England.
- Because ADS is charged on the whole price rather than per band, a second-home purchase just above £40,000 carries a disproportionately large bill.
Frequently asked questions
How is LBTT calculated in Scotland?
LBTT is marginal (2026/27): 0% up to £145,000, 2% to £250,000, 5% to £325,000, 10% to £750,000 and 12% above. Each rate applies only to the slice of price within its band.
Do first-time buyers pay LBTT?
First-time buyer relief raises the nil-rate band from £145,000 to £175,000, so a first home up to £175,000 pays no LBTT.
What is the Additional Dwelling Supplement?
ADS is an 8% surcharge on the whole price for second homes and buy-to-let in Scotland (raised from 6% in December 2024), on top of standard LBTT.
Related guides and calculators
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