Land Transaction Tax in Wales (2026): rates, bands and the return

What are the LTT rates and bands in 2026?

For a buyer who will own no other home, LTT is charged at the main residential rates. These bands have applied since 10 October 2022, and the Welsh Government’s 2026-27 budget left them unchanged:

Land Transaction Tax

Charged in bands on the price: each slice is taxed at its own rate.

Land Transaction Tax: bands

Slice of the value	Rate on that slice
up to £225,000	0%
£225,000 to £400,000	6%
£400,000 to £750,000	7.5%
£750,000 to £1,500,000	10%
over £1,500,000	12%

Applies when except when the buyer already owns a home, the buyer is not replacing a main home already sold by completion and the price is £40,000 or more.

The rates and bands are set by regulations under the Land Transaction Tax and Anti-avoidance of Devolved Taxes (Wales) Act 2017; the Welsh Revenue Authority collects the tax.

How is LTT worked out?

In slices, as the Act describes (section 27): each rate applies only to the part of the price inside its band, and the slices are added up. A £300,000 home:

• the part up to £225,000 at 0%;
• the rest, up to the £300,000 price, at 6%.

That makes £4,500. Crossing into a higher band never makes the whole price dearer, only the part above the line.

How much LTT do you pay at different prices?

Wales by price: no other home

Price	Taxes	Fees, typical	Total on top	Estimate range	Share of price
£200,000	£0	£1,450	£1,450	£850 to £2,050	0.73%
£225,000	£0	£1,500	£1,500	£900 to £2,100	0.67%
£250,000	£1,500	£1,500	£3,000	£2,400 to £3,600	1.20%
£300,000	£4,500	£1,500	£6,000	£5,400 to £6,600	2.00%
£350,000	£7,500	£1,500	£9,000	£8,400 to £9,600	2.57%
£400,000	£10,500	£1,500	£12,000	£11,400 to £12,600	3.00%
£500,000	£18,000	£1,500	£19,500	£18,900 to £20,100	3.90%
£750,000	£36,750	£1,645	£38,395	£37,795 to £38,995	5.12%
£1,000,000	£61,750	£1,645	£63,395	£62,795 to £63,995	6.34%

The totals include the fees; the taxes column is the LTT.

What changes when you already own a home?

A buyer who will own another home worth £40,000 or more, anywhere in the world, pays the higher residential rates instead, from the first pound and on the whole price, on purchases from £40,000:

LTT higher residential rates

Charged in bands on the price: each slice is taxed at its own rate.

LTT higher residential rates: bands

Slice of the value	Rate on that slice
up to £180,000	5%
£180,000 to £250,000	8.5%
£250,000 to £400,000	10%
£400,000 to £750,000	12.5%
£750,000 to £1,500,000	15%
over £1,500,000	17%

Applies when the buyer already owns a home; the buyer is not replacing a main home already sold by completion; the price is £40,000 or more.

Charged instead of the main rates, on the whole price, from £40,000, when at the end of the completion day you own another home (or a share of one) worth £40,000 or more anywhere in the world; a spouse or civil partner's home counts too. Not charged if the new home replaces your main home and you sold the old one in the 3 years before. If the old one is still unsold at completion, you pay the higher rates and can claim the difference back if you sell it within 3 years.

On a £250,000 home that is £14,950 instead of £1,500, and on a £300,000 home £19,950 instead of £4,500. Replacing a main home sold in the 3 years before keeps the main rates. Second homes in Wales covers the refund when the old home sells later.

Is Land Transaction Tax the same as stamp duty?

It does the same job. Wales took over the tax on 1 April 2018, when LTT replaced Stamp Duty Land Tax there. The differences that change the bill:

	Wales (LTT)	England (SDLT)
Nothing due up to	£225,000	£125,000
First-time buyer relief	None	Yes
Buyers who own another home	A separate table of higher rates	The main rates plus 5%
Buyers who live abroad	No surcharge	2% on top
Who collects it	Welsh Revenue Authority	HM Revenue and Customs
Return due	30 days after completion	14 days after completion

Which tax applies depends on where the property is, not where the buyer lives. Wales or England compares the bills.

Do first-time buyers and non-residents pay less or more?

Neither. Wales has no first-time buyer relief, and no surcharge for buyers who live outside the UK. On a £300,000 home a first-time buyer pays £4,500 and a buyer living abroad £4,500, the same as anyone who owns no other home. See first-time buyers in Wales.

What is the LTT return deadline, and who files it?

• Deadline: the return and the tax are due within 30 days of the day after completion (the effective date).
• Who files: solicitors and conveyancers file online and usually pay from the buyer’s funds. A buyer without one asks the Welsh Revenue Authority for a paper return.
• Nothing to pay: a return is still needed unless a specific exception applies.
• Late: a late return costs £100, then an extra £300 or 5% of the unpaid tax, whichever is greater, at 6 months and again at 12 months. Late tax carries interest.

Can you get a Land Transaction Tax refund?

Yes, in one common case: a buyer who paid the higher rates because the old main home had not sold by completion can claim the difference back if it sells within 3 years. The claim goes to the Welsh Revenue Authority, by amending the return within 12 months of the filing date or by a repayment claim within 4 years. Second homes in Wales explains how. Wales has no refund for buyers who move to the UK after buying, because it has no non-resident surcharge to refund.

Are there exemptions or reliefs from LTT?

A few, and none for first-time buyers. The Welsh Revenue Authority lists reliefs for buying several homes in one transaction (multiple dwellings), for moving property within a group of companies, and for charities. A solicitor or conveyancer claims them on the return. Some transactions need no return at all; the Welsh Revenue Authority’s guide lists them.

What this guide does not cover

• Buying several homes at once (multiple dwellings), linked transactions, leases and mixed-use or non-residential property.
• Companies, which always pay the higher rates.
• Contracts exchanged before 11 December 2024 and completed later, which kept the previous higher rates.

Work out Land Transaction Tax on your purchase