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.
Key facts
- ADS is 8% of the whole price since 5 December 2024; it was 6% before.
- It applies from £40,000, when the buyer will own another home worth £40,000 or more anywhere in the world.
- Replacing a main home: no ADS if the old one sold in the 36 months before; a refund if it sells within 36 months after.
- Companies always pay ADS.
- There is no ADS in England: its surcharge is the 5% higher rates of SDLT.
What is the Additional Dwelling Supplement, and when does it apply?
ADS is an extra charge within LBTT on buyers of a home who will own more than one. For a buyer who is an individual buying one home, when all of these hold at the end of the effective date (Schedule 2A to the 2013 Act):
- The price is £40,000 or more.
- The buyer owns another dwelling, or a share of one, worth £40,000 or more, anywhere in the world. A spouse, civil partner or cohabitant’s home counts, and if one of several joint buyers owns another home, ADS applies to the whole purchase.
- The new home does not replace the buyer’s main home (see below).
Residence and nationality do not matter, and neither does what the home is for: a holiday home, a buy to let and a home for a relative are treated alike.
When is ADS not charged?
- The price is below £40,000.
- The buyer owns no other dwelling worth £40,000 or more. Since 1 April 2024 a share in a jointly owned home counts only if the share itself is worth £40,000 or more.
- The new home replaces the buyer’s main home, sold in the 36 months before (see below).
A gift of a dwelling is exempt from LBTT, so it pays no ADS. Gifted and inherited dwellings still count towards the homes a buyer owns when they buy another. Revenue Scotland’s ADS guidance sets out the other cases, with worked examples.
When was ADS introduced, and how has it changed?
ADS started on 1 April 2016, at 3% of the price. Revenue Scotland lists each rate by date:
| Purchases from | ADS rate |
|---|---|
| 1 April 2016 | 3% |
| 25 January 2019 | 4% |
| 16 December 2022 | 6% |
| 5 December 2024 | 8% |
The Scottish Budget 2026-27 left it unchanged.
Do companies pay ADS?
Yes, on almost every purchase of a dwelling for £40,000 or more, even when the company owns no other home. The same goes for most other non-individuals, such as certain trusts. The calculator works out the bill for an individual buyer.
How much is ADS?
8% of the whole price since 5 December 2024, on top of LBTT at the normal rates. It was 6% before. Purchases whose contracts were made on or before 4 December 2024 kept the old rate even if they settled later.
| Price | LBTT | ADS | Total tax | Owns no other home |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| £200,000 | £1,100 | £16,000 | £17,100 | £1,100 |
| £300,000 | £4,600 | £24,000 | £28,600 | £4,600 |
| £500,000 | £23,350 | £40,000 | £63,350 | £23,350 |
The full bill on a £300,000 second home:
| Line | Kind | Amount | Estimate range | Share of price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Additional Dwelling Supplement (ADS) | Tax | £24,000 | 8.00% | |
| Land and Buildings Transaction Tax | Tax | £4,600 | 1.53% | |
| Solicitor's conveyancing fee (market rate) | Fee, estimate | £1,100 | £900 to £3,000 | 0.37% |
| Registers of Scotland registration fee | Fee | £530 | 0.18% | |
| Taxes | £28,600 | 9.53% | ||
| Fees, typical | £1,630 | £1,430 to £3,530 | 0.54% | |
| Total on top of the price | £30,230 | £30,030 to £32,130 | 10.08% |
What does a second home cost at different prices?
| Price | Taxes | Fees, typical | Total on top | Estimate range | Share of price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £100,000 | £8,000 | £1,240 | £9,240 | £9,040 to £11,140 | 9.24% |
| £150,000 | £12,100 | £1,360 | £13,460 | £13,260 to £15,360 | 8.97% |
| £200,000 | £17,100 | £1,500 | £18,600 | £18,400 to £20,500 | 9.30% |
| £250,000 | £22,100 | £1,630 | £23,730 | £23,530 to £25,630 | 9.49% |
| £300,000 | £28,600 | £1,630 | £30,230 | £30,030 to £32,130 | 10.08% |
| £400,000 | £45,350 | £1,760 | £47,110 | £46,910 to £49,010 | 11.78% |
| £500,000 | £63,350 | £1,760 | £65,110 | £64,910 to £67,010 | 13.02% |
What if the new home replaces your main home?
Two routes, both with a 36-month window since 1 April 2024 (it was 18 months before):
- Old main home sold in the 36 months before the purchase: no ADS. On a £300,000 home the tax is £4,600.
- Old main home sold after the purchase: ADS is paid at settlement, and can be claimed back if the old main home sells within 36 months.
How do you claim ADS back?
Through Revenue Scotland’s online repayment claim portal; paper claims are no longer accepted. The solicitor who filed the original return can amend it instead. The old home must have been every buyer’s main residence during the 36 months before the new purchase, and a claim made more than 12 months after the return’s filing date needs proof of the sale, such as a copy of the disposition or a solicitor’s letter.
How does ADS compare with England and Wales?
On a £300,000 second home, the total purchase tax is £28,600 in Scotland, £20,000 in England and £19,950 in Wales. Scotland’s 8% is the highest of the three surcharges; England adds 5% to its normal bands. See second homes in England and second homes in Wales.
What this guide does not cover
- Companies, trusts and inherited shares in more detail.
- Buying several homes at once, and annexes.
- The other exceptions in Schedule 2A, for example after a divorce.
Questions people ask
How much is the Additional Dwelling Supplement?
8% of the whole price since 5 December 2024: £16,000 on a £200,000 home, £24,000 on £300,000. LBTT is due on top at the normal rates.
Can you claim back the Additional Dwelling Supplement?
Yes, if the new home replaced your main home and you sell the old main home within 36 months of buying. Claim online through Revenue Scotland's repayment portal; after 12 months from the return's filing date, proof of the sale is needed.
Do married couples pay ADS if one of them owns a home?
Usually yes. Homes owned by a spouse, civil partner or cohabitant living with the buyer count as the buyer's, and if any one of several joint buyers owns another home, ADS applies to the whole purchase.
Does England have the Additional Dwelling Supplement?
No. ADS is Scottish. England and Northern Ireland charge buyers who own another home 5% higher rates of Stamp Duty Land Tax; Wales has its own higher rates of Land Transaction Tax.
Does ADS apply to a buy to let or holiday home?
Yes. What the new home is for does not matter: if the buyer will own another home worth £40,000 or more at the end of the effective date, ADS applies.
Sources
- How to claim a repayment of Additional Dwelling SupplementRevenue Scotland
- Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (Scotland) Act 2013, Schedule 2Alegislation.gov.uk
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