Non-resident stamp duty, explained with real numbers

Since 1 April 2021, anyone buying residential property in England or Northern Ireland who doesn't count as UK resident pays an extra 2% stamp duty land tax (SDLT). It's charged on top of every other rate, so it stacks with the 5% surcharge for additional properties that almost every buy-to-let already pays. Scotland and Wales have their own land taxes and no equivalent surcharge.

Who counts as non-resident

For SDLT, an individual is non-UK resident if they were in the UK for fewer than 183 days during the 12 months before the purchase. This is its own test: it isn't the same as your income tax residence, so you can be UK resident for one and not the other.

If you buy with someone else and any buyer is non-resident, the whole purchase is treated as non-resident. The exception is married couples and civil partners: if either spouse is UK resident, you're both treated as UK resident.

Buying through a limited company doesn't get you out of it. A UK company counts as non-resident for the surcharge if it's a close company (most small property companies are) controlled by non-UK residents. That covers the typical expat SPV.

What it costs on a typical buy-to-let

Here's a £175,000 buy-to-let in England, bought as an additional property (the usual case for a landlord, and automatic for a company):

Because the 2% applies from the first pound, the extra cost is simply 2% of the price. On a £175,000 property that's £3,500. It stings, but it's modest next to the foreign-buyer surcharges some other countries charge.

The surcharge also applies if it would be your only property, and even with first-time buyer relief. On the same price as a sole residence, a UK resident pays £1,000 and a non-resident pays £4,500.

Getting it refunded

If you move to the UK after buying, you may be able to claim the surcharge back. You need to have been in the UK for at least 183 days during any continuous 365-day period that falls within the window starting 364 days before the purchase and ending 365 days after it. The claim must be made within two years of the purchase. Read the full rules on GOV.UK before relying on a refund.

What this means if you're buying from abroad

Budget for the surcharge from the start rather than hoping to avoid it: for most expat buyers it's a fixed 2% of the price. Then compare structures on what you'd actually keep each year, because the surcharge applies whether you buy personally or through a company. The analyser includes a non-resident toggle, and the example below opens with it switched on.