The numbers behind it
Standard LBTT is sliced, so each rate applies only to the part of the price inside its band. ADS is not sliced: it is 8% of the whole price, charged as one line on top.
Standard residential LBTT, 2026/27
0% to £145,000 · 2% £145,001–£250,000 · 5% £250,001–£325,000 · 10% £325,001–£750,000 · 12% above £750,000. First-time buyer relief lifts the nil-rate to £175,000, but it cannot apply alongside ADS.
ADS rate history
3% from April 2016 · 4% from 25 January 2019 · 6% from 16 December 2022 · 8% from 5 December 2024. The rate that applies is the one in force on the day you complete, with transitional rules for contracts already exchanged.
Worked example
A £250,000 buy-to-let: standard LBTT is £2,100 (2% of the £105,000 between £145,000 and £250,000). ADS is 8% of £250,000, so £20,000. Total £22,100, or 8.84% of the price.
Built for the question people actually have: what does the surcharge cost me?
Whole price, not bands
The mechanic most UK calculators get wrong for Scotland. ADS is 8% of the full price as a single line. That is why it is so much bigger than England's surcharge on the same house.
The £40,000 threshold
Under £40,000 there is no ADS. At £40,000 it applies to all of it. The tool switches the moment you cross the line.
Replacing your main home
Sell first and there is no ADS. Buy first and there is, but you reclaim it if the old home goes within 36 months. Pick your situation and the result explains which applies.
Joint buyers
One buyer with another home means ADS on the whole price. Couples are treated as one unit. The toggle handles it.
LBTT included
You never pay ADS on its own. The standard LBTT is worked out alongside so you see the real cheque, and the all-in cash needed with the price.
No signup, nothing tracked
Runs in your browser. Nothing you type leaves the page.
Buying a first or only home in Scotland instead?
The full LBTT calculator covers first-time buyer relief, the standard bands and a side-by-side with England's SDLT and Wales's LTT.
How the Additional Dwelling Supplement works
ADS is part of Land and Buildings Transaction Tax, the Scottish replacement for stamp duty administered by Revenue Scotland. It applies when you buy a residential property for £40,000 or more and, at the end of the day of completion, you own two or more dwellings anywhere in the world. It is charged at 8% of the whole purchase price, on top of whatever standard LBTT is due, and it is paid with the LBTT return, normally by your solicitor within 30 days of completion.
The rate has risen three times since ADS arrived in April 2016, most recently from 6% to 8% for transactions completing on or after 5 December 2024. Purchases where missives were concluded before that date kept the old rate under transitional rules. The 2026/27 Scottish Budget left both the rate and the £40,000 threshold unchanged.
Replacing your main residence
The most common reason people pay ADS is timing rather than a second home. If you complete on a new main residence before the sale of your old one goes through, you own two dwellings that day and ADS is due. You can reclaim it in full from Revenue Scotland if you sell the old property within 36 months of completing on the new one, provided the old home was your only or main residence at some point in the 36 months before the purchase and the new one becomes your main residence. Sell on or before completion day and no ADS arises at all.
Joint buyers, couples and inherited property
ADS looks at every buyer. If one of two joint purchasers already owns a flat, ADS is due on the whole purchase price of the new property, not half of it. Married couples, civil partners and cohabitants are treated as a single economic unit, so your partner's property counts as yours even if they are not on the title. A dwelling worth under £40,000, or a share of one below that value, is ignored. Inherited property counts once you own it, with a relief where you inherited a share in the 36 months before buying.
Where ADS does not apply
Purchases under £40,000. Non-residential and mixed-use property. Buying six or more dwellings in one transaction, which is treated as non-residential. Companies and other non-individuals pay ADS on every residential purchase, since they cannot have a main residence to replace. Relief also exists for purchases by local authorities and registered social landlords.
What this tool does not do
It does not model the first-time buyer relief, because that relief cannot apply where ADS is due. It does not cover the multiple dwellings relief calculation for a purchase of two to five properties, nor the transitional rules for contracts exchanged before a rate change. For those, or for a property with a non-residential element, take advice from your solicitor.
Common questions about ADS
What is the Additional Dwelling Supplement?
How is ADS calculated?
Is there a minimum price for ADS?
Do I pay ADS if I am replacing my main home?
How do I reclaim ADS?
Does ADS apply to joint buyers?
Is ADS charged on inherited or gifted property?
How is ADS different from the second-home surcharge in England?
Track the property and the mortgage in the bigger picture
WealthR tracks each property's value, mortgage balance and equity alongside your investments and pensions, with buy-to-let cash flow and yield, so you see your net worth rather than a pile of statements. Free to start.