For an international buyer, stamp duty land tax is usually the largest single cost of buying in London after the price itself, and the one most often misjudged. The headline rates are simple enough. What changes the bill is the two surcharges that can sit on top of them, and both turn on facts about you rather than about the property.
This is a summary of the rules as they stand on gov.uk at the start of October 2026, for residential purchases in England by individuals. Scotland and Wales have their own taxes, and buying through a company is treated differently.
The standard bands
Since 1 April 2025, stamp duty on a residential purchase in England or Northern Ireland is charged in slices: nothing on the first £125,000, 2% on the portion from £125,001 to £250,000, 5% from £250,001 to £925,000, 10% from £925,001 to £1.5 million, and 12% on everything above £1.5 million. First-time buyer relief does not apply to purchases above £500,000, so it rarely matters in prime London.
Two surcharges that stack
The higher rates for additional dwellings. A surcharge of 5% is added to every band if, once the purchase completes, you will own more than one residential property worth £40,000 or more anywhere in the world. That last phrase matters for international buyers: a family home in Paris, Dubai or New York counts. Married couples and civil partners are treated together, so if either of you would pay the higher rates, the whole purchase does. If the London home replaces your main residence and you sell the previous one within three years, you can claim the surcharge back.
The non-UK resident surcharge. A further 2% applies, again on every band, if you were not present in the UK for at least 183 days in the 12 months before the purchase. If you buy jointly and any one buyer is non-resident on that test, all buyers are treated as non-resident. The surcharge can be reclaimed if you then spend at least 183 days in the UK in any continuous 365-day period within the two years after the purchase. Time limits apply to the claim.
A worked example at £3 million
On a purchase price of £3,000,000, the bill at standard rates is £273,750, an effective rate of about 9.1%. The figures below are our own arithmetic on the gov.uk rates.
- UK resident, replacing a main home: £273,750 (about 9.1%)
- Non-UK resident, no other property anywhere: £333,750 (about 11.1%)
- UK resident who will own another home: £423,750 (about 14.1%)
- Non-UK resident who will own another home: £483,750 (about 16.1%)
The gap between the first and last lines is £210,000 on the same house. That is why residence and ownership need to be established with a solicitor before an offer is made, not after, and why the timing of a move to London can matter as much as the timing of the purchase.
An annual charge to factor in from 2028
From April 2028, owners of homes in England valued at £2 million or more are due to pay a High Value Council Tax Surcharge on top of ordinary council tax. Under the government's proposals published on 19 May 2026, the annual charge would be £2,500 for homes valued at £2 million to £2.5 million, £3,500 up to £3.5 million, £5,000 up to £5 million and £7,500 above that, based on 2026 values. It falls on the owner rather than the occupier. The consultation closed on 14 July; the detail could still change.
The market you would be buying into
For buyers, conditions are as favourable as they have been for some time. LonRes reported that in August achieved prices in prime London were 7.0% lower than a year earlier, buyers secured an average discount of 10.4% to the asking price, and half the stock on the market had been reduced at least once.
The Budget on 28 October may change some of the above, or none of it. We will not speculate. Whatever is announced, the rules on the date your purchase completes are the ones that apply, and they should be checked with a UK solicitor and tax adviser at the time. Nothing here is legal or tax advice.
Dolce Vita advises buyers and sellers across the UK from Mayfair, and helps clients buy abroad through partner agencies. If you already own in London and are weighing a sale alongside a purchase, Request a valuation; we acknowledge the same working day and return a written valuation within 24 to 48 hours.
Chris Dawson, Co-Founder
Sources: HMRC, Stamp Duty Land Tax: residential property rates (gov.uk); Higher rates of SDLT when buying an additional residential property (gov.uk, updated 1 April 2025); Rates of SDLT for non-UK residents (gov.uk, updated 1 April 2025). MHCLG, High Value Council Tax Surcharge consultation, 19 May 2026. LonRes prime London figures for August 2026, 17 September 2026. Office for Budget Responsibility, 2026. Worked examples calculated by Dolce Vita from the published rates.