Buying a house in Scotland (2026): every cost on top of the price
A buyer in Scotland pays Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) in bands from 0% to 12%, plus a solicitor and a Registers of Scotland fee; the seller pays for the Home Report and the searches. A buyer who owns no other home pays £2,100 of LBTT on a £250,000 home, a first-time buyer £1,500, and a buyer who already owns a home adds 8% of the price in Additional Dwelling Supplement.
Key facts
- LBTT bands: 0% to £145,000, 2% to £250,000, 5% to £325,000, 10% to £750,000, 12% above.
- First-time buyers pay nothing up to £175,000, at any price.
- The Additional Dwelling Supplement is 8% of the whole price for a buyer who will own another home.
- The seller pays for the Home Report and the searches, not the buyer.
- No surcharge for buyers who live outside the UK.
What do you pay on top of the price in Scotland?
Three costs fall on the buyer: one tax and two fees. Two costs that a buyer pays in England fall on the seller in Scotland.
| Cost | What it is | Who pays |
|---|---|---|
| Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) | The purchase tax, set by bands and the buyer’s situation | Buyer |
| Additional Dwelling Supplement (ADS) | 8% of the price, when the buyer will own another home | Buyer |
| Solicitor | The legal work, from the offer to registration | Buyer (market price) |
| Registers of Scotland fee | Registering the buyer as owner, fixed by price | Buyer |
| Home Report | Survey, valuation, questionnaire and energy report | Seller |
| Searches | Property enquiry certificate and legal report | Seller |
For a buyer who will own no other home, a £250,000 home costs:
| Line | Kind | Amount | Estimate range | Share of price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Land and Buildings Transaction Tax | Tax | £2,100 | 0.84% | |
| Solicitor's conveyancing fee (market rate) | Fee, estimate | £1,100 | £900 to £3,000 | 0.44% |
| Registers of Scotland registration fee | Fee | £530 | 0.21% | |
| Taxes | £2,100 | 0.84% | ||
| Fees, typical | £1,630 | £1,430 to £3,530 | 0.65% | |
| Total on top of the price | £3,730 | £3,530 to £5,630 | 1.49% |
How much is LBTT in Scotland in 2026?
LBTT is worked out in slices: each rate applies only to the part of the price inside its band. Nothing is due on the first £145,000:
Land and Buildings Transaction Tax
Charged in bands on the price: each slice is taxed at its own rate, rounded down to the whole unit.
| Slice of the value | Rate on that slice |
|---|---|
| up to £145,000 | 0% |
| £145,000 to £250,000 | 2% |
| £250,000 to £325,000 | 5% |
| £325,000 to £750,000 | 10% |
| over £750,000 | 12% |
Applies when except when the buyer is a first-time buyer, the buyer owns no other home and it is for your main home.
So a £250,000 home pays £2,100, and a £350,000 home £8,350. The LBTT guide has the return, the deadline and how LBTT differs from stamp duty.
How does the buyer’s situation change the bill?
On a £250,000 home:
| Buyer | LBTT and ADS | Guide |
|---|---|---|
| Owns no other home | £2,100 | LBTT |
| First-time buyer (nothing up to £175,000) | £1,500 | First-time buyers |
| Already owns a home | £22,100 | Additional Dwelling Supplement |
| Not UK resident, owns no other home | £2,100 |
What does buying cost at different prices?
| Price | Taxes | Fees, typical | Total on top | Estimate range | Share of price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £145,000 | £0 | £1,360 | £1,360 | £1,160 to £3,260 | 0.94% |
| £200,000 | £1,100 | £1,500 | £2,600 | £2,400 to £4,500 | 1.30% |
| £250,000 | £2,100 | £1,630 | £3,730 | £3,530 to £5,630 | 1.49% |
| £300,000 | £4,600 | £1,630 | £6,230 | £6,030 to £8,130 | 2.08% |
| £400,000 | £13,350 | £1,760 | £15,110 | £14,910 to £17,010 | 3.78% |
| £500,000 | £23,350 | £1,760 | £25,110 | £24,910 to £27,010 | 5.02% |
| £750,000 | £48,350 | £2,030 | £50,380 | £50,180 to £52,280 | 6.72% |
| £1,000,000 | £78,350 | £2,030 | £80,380 | £80,180 to £82,280 | 8.04% |
How much are the solicitor and the Registers of Scotland fee?
- Solicitor. No survey of Scottish purchase fees alone is published. Firms’ published prices run from about £900 to about £3,000 including VAT, which is the calculator’s range. reallymoving’s index put the average conveyancing cost for a home mover buying and selling in Scotland at £2,543 including VAT in the second quarter of 2026 (a secondary source).
- Registers of Scotland. The Land Register fee is fixed by the Registers of Scotland (Fees) Order 2014, on the price or the value, whichever is higher:
Registers of Scotland registration fee
A fixed amount set by the band the price falls in.
| Value | Amount |
|---|---|
| up to £50,000 | £80 |
| £50,000 to £100,000 | £140 |
| £100,000 to £150,000 | £260 |
| £150,000 to £200,000 | £400 |
| £200,000 to £300,000 | £530 |
| £300,000 to £500,000 | £660 |
| £500,000 to £700,000 | £800 |
| £700,000 to £1,000,000 | £930 |
| £1,000,000 to £2,000,000 | £1,100 |
| £2,000,000 to £3,000,000 | £3,300 |
| £3,000,000 to £5,000,000 | £5,500 |
| over £5,000,000 | £8,250 |
Applies to every purchase.
The fee to register the disposition (the deed transferring the home) in the Land Register, on the price or the value, whichever is higher.
What is the buying process in Scotland, step by step?
| Step | What happens | Money |
|---|---|---|
| Viewing | The seller provides the Home Report within nine days of a request | None for the buyer |
| Offer | The buyer’s solicitor sends a written offer, often by a closing date the seller sets | |
| Missives | The solicitors exchange letters on the terms; once concluded, the contract is binding | |
| Settlement (date of entry) | The price is paid and the keys handed over | Balance of the price; solicitor’s bill |
| Within 30 days of the day after the effective date | LBTT return and payment to Revenue Scotland | LBTT and any ADS |
| After settlement | The solicitor registers the disposition in the Land Register | Registers of Scotland fee |
A return is needed for most purchases of £40,000 or more, even when no LBTT is due.
When does buying a house in Scotland become legally binding?
When the missives are concluded: once both sides accept the terms in the solicitors’ letters, there is a binding contract. Pulling out after that can make the buyer liable for damages, mygov.scot warns.
How does Scotland compare with England?
For a buyer who owns no other home, LBTT is a little lower than England’s stamp duty on a £250,000 home and higher on dearer homes. First-time buyers pay less in England; buyers living abroad pay less in Scotland; buyers who already own a home pay more in Scotland, where ADS is 8% against England’s 5%. Scotland or England puts them side by side.
What this section does not cover
- Companies, which always pay ADS, and buying several homes in one transaction.
- Leases, and mixed-use or non-residential property.
- The buyer’s own survey, mortgage fees (a standard security adds a registration fee) and moving costs.
Taxes and fees
- Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (2026): LBTT rates, bands and the return
Land and Buildings Transaction Tax is the purchase tax in Scotland. A buyer who owns no other home pays nothing on the first £145,000, then 2%, 5%, 10% and 12% on the slices above: £2,100 on a £250,000 home and £23,350 on a £500,000 home. First-time buyers get a higher nil band, and a buyer who will own another home adds the 8% Additional Dwelling Supplement.
Buyer situations
- Additional Dwelling Supplement (2026): ADS on a second home in Scotland, and the refund
The Additional Dwelling Supplement is 8% of the whole price, paid on top of LBTT, by a buyer who will own another home worth £40,000 or more: £24,000 on a £300,000 home. It is not charged when the new home replaces a main home sold in the 36 months before, and it can be claimed back if the old main home sells within 36 months after.
- First-time buyers in Scotland (2026): LBTT relief and what it saves
First-time buyers in Scotland pay no Land and Buildings Transaction Tax on the first £175,000, instead of £145,000, at any price. The relief saves up to £600: a first-time buyer pays £1,500 on a £250,000 home, against £2,100 for other buyers who own no home. England is cheaper for first-time buyers, even above £500,000 where its relief stops.
Questions people ask
How much does it cost to buy a house in Scotland on top of the price?
On a £250,000 home, a buyer who owns no other home pays £2,100 of LBTT and a £530 Registers of Scotland fee, plus the solicitor's fee. The seller pays for the Home Report and the searches.
Is there stamp duty in Scotland?
Not under that name. Since 1 April 2015 Scotland has charged Land and Buildings Transaction Tax instead of Stamp Duty Land Tax, with its own bands, run by Revenue Scotland.
Who pays for the Home Report in Scotland?
The seller. A seller or selling agent must give a buyer the Home Report within nine days of being asked: a survey and valuation, a property questionnaire and an energy report.
Can foreigners buy property in Scotland?
Yes. LBTT has no surcharge for buyers who live outside the UK and does not look at nationality. Owning a home anywhere else does matter: it brings in the 8% Additional Dwelling Supplement.
How is buying a house in Scotland different from England?
The tax is LBTT, not stamp duty; the seller provides a Home Report; offers are made by letter from a solicitor, often by a closing date; and the deal is binding once the missives are concluded, which is earlier than exchange in England.
Sources
- Home Report (seller provides within nine days)mygov.scot (Scottish Government)
- Making an offer (solicitor's letter, closing dates, missives)mygov.scot (Scottish Government)
- Registers of Scotland (Fees) Order 2014, Schedule 1, Table of Feeslegislation.gov.uk
- Client guide to the Scottish Standard Clauses (seller pays for the searches), professional bodyScottish Conveyancers Forum (Law Society of Scotland)
Behind the figures
Every amount on this page is worked out by the engine from rule files that cite these pages.
- Which?: Conveyancing, what it is and what it costs (29 May 2026)Secondary source
- The Land Registration Fee Order 2024 (SI 2024/931)Official source
- Revenue Scotland: LBTT updates (ADS 8% from 5 December 2024)Official source