What next?
LBTT is the Scottish equivalent of stamp duty. Here is what usually follows it.
What your result means
LBTT due is the total payable to Revenue Scotland, and it includes the Additional Dwelling Supplement where that applies. Your solicitor files the return and takes the money from completion funds, so it has to be cash in hand alongside the deposit — it cannot be borrowed on the mortgage. The effective rate expresses that total as a percentage of the price, which for a main residence is always below the top band you reach, because each rate bites only on the slice inside its band. Band breakdown shows which slices were taxed at which rate, with ADS listed separately because it is charged differently.
Why this one is different
Scottish rules are applied as Scotland writes them, not as England’s bands with the numbers changed — different thresholds, a different starting rate, and a first-time buyer relief that behaves unlike England’s in both respects. A band-by-band breakdown row shows which slice of the price produced which part of the bill, so the total can be checked line by line against a solicitor’s figure.
ADS is 8% of the whole price, not 8% on the top slice
England’s additional-property surcharge adds five points to each band, so it behaves like the rest of the tax. Scotland’s Additional Dwelling Supplement does not: it is a flat 8% of the entire purchase price the moment the price reaches £40,000, sitting on top of the ordinary LBTT.
On a £300,000 second home that is £24,000 of ADS on top of £4,600 of LBTT — £28,600 in total, against roughly £26,250 for the same purchase in England. Reading across from an English stamp duty figure will understate a Scottish second-home bill badly, which is the most common mistake buyers make here.
How it works
LBTT is charged in slices. The price is cut at each threshold and the band rate applies only to the portion inside that band, then the pieces are added together. First-time buyers use the same table with the nil-rate band lifted from £145,000 to £175,000. Where the buyer will own more than one dwelling after the purchase, the Additional Dwelling Supplement is added — but as a flat 8% of the full price, not band by band.
How to use this calculator
- Enter the purchase price you have agreed.
- Choose who is buying — moving home, first-time buyer, or an additional property.
- Read the total due, the effective rate and the band-by-band breakdown, with ADS shown on its own line.
- Buying in England or Wales instead? Use the stamp duty calculator or the Welsh LTT calculator.
Formula
slice = the portion of the price inside that band, band rate = the standard or first-time-buyer rate, ADS = 8% of the full purchase price where an additional dwelling is being bought at £40,000 or more.
Example calculation
A £250,000 home bought by someone moving house in Scotland:
£105,000 @ 2% = £2,100
LBTT due = £2,100
Effective rate = 0.84% of the price
The same purchase as a first-time buyer costs £1,500, because the nil-rate band moves to £175,000 — the £600 the relief is worth at any price. As a second home it costs £2,100 plus £20,000 of ADS.
Frequently asked questions
Is LBTT the same as stamp duty?＋
No. Stamp Duty Land Tax stopped applying in Scotland in April 2015, when LBTT replaced it. LBTT is set by the Scottish Government and collected by Revenue Scotland, not HMRC, and it has its own thresholds, its own first-time buyer relief and its own additional-property charge.
How much is first-time buyer relief actually worth?＋
£600, and no more. The relief lifts the nil-rate band from £145,000 to £175,000, which is £30,000 taxed at 0% instead of 2%. There is no upper price limit, so a first-time buyer at £600,000 saves the same £600 as one at £180,000 — and every buyer named on the purchase must qualify.
Can I get the ADS back?＋
Yes, if you were replacing your main residence and the old one sells within 36 months of completing on the new one. The reclaim goes to Revenue Scotland rather than through your solicitor, and the refund is paid to you. It is a refund, not an exemption — the 8% is paid at completion first.
When is LBTT due?＋
The return must be filed and the tax paid within 30 days of the effective date, which is normally completion. In practice your solicitor submits it through the Revenue Scotland portal and settles it from completion funds, so the money needs to be with them before completion day.
Does the ADS apply if I already own a property abroad?＋
Yes. ADS is triggered by owning one or more residential properties anywhere in the world at the end of the day of the purchase, not just in Scotland — unless you are replacing your only or main residence under the rules.
Are the rates different for non-residents?＋
No. Scotland has no equivalent of the 2% non-UK-resident surcharge that applies to SDLT in England and Northern Ireland. A non-resident buying in Scotland pays the same LBTT as a resident, plus ADS if the property is an additional dwelling.
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Assumptions & limitations
Every figure here comes from a simplified model. Keep these limits in mind when reading your result:
- Scotland only. England and Northern Ireland charge SDLT and Wales charges LTT, each with different thresholds and reliefs.
- Residential purchases. Non-residential and mixed-use transactions, and the LBTT charged on the rent element of a commercial lease, use different rate tables and are not covered.
- Rates are those in force at August 2026: residential bands unchanged since 2018, ADS at 8% since 5 December 2024. The Scottish Government can change them at any Budget — check the date stamp below.
- Assumes a single dwelling and no relief beyond first-time buyer relief. Multiple Dwellings Relief, charities relief and group relief are not modelled.
- ADS is applied whenever the additional-property option is chosen and the price is at least £40,000. Whether you are in fact replacing a main residence, and so can reclaim it, is a question of fact this tool cannot answer.