The short answer
If you bought a new main home before selling your previous one, you'll have paid stamp duty at the higher "additional property" rates — an extra 5 percentage points on top of the standard bands. That surcharge was always meant to be temporary: once your old home sells, you can reclaim it directly from HMRC. It costs nothing to do yourself, there's no need to involve a claims company, and the whole process is built around information you'll already have from your solicitor.
Not sure you paid the surcharge in the first place?
This guide assumes you already know you paid the 5% additional-property surcharge because you completed on your new home before your old one sold. If you want to double-check how much that surcharge added to your bill, or you're not sure whether it applied to you, our full second-home stamp duty guide covers the rates and worked examples.
Read Stamp Duty for Second Homes & Buy-to-Let →This guide covers Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT), which applies in England and Northern Ireland, and is reclaimed through HMRC. Scotland's equivalent surcharge (the Additional Dwelling Supplement, part of LBTT) is reclaimed through Revenue Scotland instead, with an 18-month selling window rather than 3 years. Wales's surcharge (part of LTT) is reclaimed through the Welsh Revenue Authority. The principle is the same everywhere — sell your old home within the deadline and reclaim the surcharge — but the forms, authority and exact time limits differ by nation, so if you're in Scotland or Wales, check the relevant point below rather than following the HMRC process itself.
Do you qualify for a refund?
You can claim back the surcharge if all of the following apply:
- You paid the higher rates because, at the time you completed on your new main home, you still owned your previous main residence
- You've since sold that previous main residence
- The sale completed within 3 years of buying your new home
If exceptional circumstances outside your control — for example, government-imposed restrictions — genuinely prevented you from selling within that 3-year window, HMRC can still accept a claim after you eventually sell, but you'll need to include a written explanation of what happened alongside your claim.
The deadline: this is the part people miss
This is the single most important detail in this guide, because missing it can mean losing a refund that's rightfully yours. For homes sold on or after 29 October 2018, HMRC must receive your claim by whichever of these two dates is later:
- 12 months after the date you sold your previous main home, or
- 12 months after the filing date of the SDLT return for your new home
In practice, the sale-date deadline is almost always the one that matters, since SDLT returns are typically filed within 14 days of completing on a purchase. The safest approach is simple: treat your claim as due within 12 months of your old home's completion date, and don't leave it until the last minute — gathering paperwork and submitting online can take longer than you'd expect if anything is missing.
If your previous home sold on or before 28 October 2018, different, older deadlines apply (3 months after the sale, or 12 months after the filing date, whichever is later) — by 2026 this will only affect a small number of long-delayed claims.
What you'll need before you start
The online claim form has no save-and-resume function, so it's worth having everything ready before you begin:
- Your own details, and the main buyer's details if that's someone else
- The effective date of your new home's purchase (usually the completion date) and its SDLT unique transaction reference number — found on your original SDLT return or the certificate your solicitor gave you
- The effective date, address, and buyer's name for the sale of your previous home
- The amount of SDLT you originally paid, and the refund amount you're claiming
- The bank account and sort code you want the refund paid into
If a solicitor or agent is claiming on your behalf rather than you doing it yourself, they'll also need a signed authority from you and a consent letter, usually uploaded as a JPEG or PDF.
How to actually submit your claim
Online (usually quicker)
HMRC's online service is the most direct route. Gather everything above first, since the form can't be saved partway through.
- Complete the digital refund request on GOV.UK
- No fee to use it
- You'll need to complete it in one sitting
By post
If you'd rather not use the online form, you can post a paper claim instead.
- Complete form SDLT16
- Post to: BT — Stamp Duty Land Tax, HM Revenue and Customs, BX9 1HD
- Keep a copy for your records before posting
Search "apply for a refund of the higher rates of Stamp Duty Land Tax" on GOV.UK to reach the current online form and the downloadable SDLT16, since HMRC occasionally moves or renames these pages.
What happens after you submit
HMRC doesn't publish a fixed processing time for these claims. Many correctly-completed applications are dealt with within a matter of weeks, but it can take longer if anything needs querying — an incorrect reference number or a mismatched name is the most common reason for delay. Double-check every figure and date against your original SDLT paperwork before you submit, and if you haven't heard anything after a reasonable period, you can contact HMRC's Stamp Duty Land Tax helpline to check progress.
Do you really need a claims company?
Claiming it yourself
- No fee — you keep 100% of the refund
- You already hold most of the information needed
- The online form is built for individuals to use directly
Using a claims company
- Typically charges a percentage of the refund, sometimes a substantial one
- Doesn't speed up HMRC's own processing
- Only genuinely useful if your situation is unusually complicated and you'd rather pay for that to be handled
For the straightforward case — you bought before selling, and your old home has now sold within the 3-year window — there's very little a claims company does that you can't do yourself directly with HMRC, for free.
Official source
GOV.UK — "Apply for a refund of the higher rates of Stamp Duty Land Tax" is the official guidance and the source for the eligibility rules and deadlines in this article. Always check it directly for the current form and any rule changes since publication.
Frequently asked questions
How long do I have to claim back the stamp duty surcharge?
If you sold your previous main home on or after 29 October 2018, HMRC must receive your claim by whichever is later: 12 months after the date you sold your old home, or 12 months after the filing date of the SDLT return for your new home. In practice the sale-date deadline is usually the one that matters, since most SDLT returns are filed within 14 days of completion.
What if I couldn't sell my old home within 3 years?
The normal rule requires you to sell your previous main residence within 3 years of buying the new one to qualify for a refund. If exceptional circumstances outside your control — such as government-imposed restrictions — genuinely prevented you from selling within that window, HMRC may still accept a claim after you do sell, but you'll need to provide a written explanation of what happened alongside your claim.
Do I need to pay a claims company to get my stamp duty refund?
No. Claiming directly from HMRC yourself, either online or by post, costs nothing — there's no government fee. Claims management companies that offer to do this for you typically charge a percentage of the refund, sometimes a substantial one, for a process that's genuinely straightforward to do yourself with your own paperwork.
What information do I need before I start my claim?
Gather: your details and the main buyer's details if that's someone else; the effective date of your new home's purchase and its SDLT unique transaction reference number (from your original SDLT return or certificate); the effective date, address, and buyer's name for the sale of your old home; the amount of SDLT you originally paid and the refund amount you're claiming; and the bank account and sort code the refund should be paid into.
How long does HMRC take to pay out the refund?
HMRC doesn't publish a fixed processing time for these claims. Many complete, correctly-filed applications are dealt with within a matter of weeks, but it can take longer if HMRC needs to query anything, so it's worth double-checking every detail before you submit and following up if you haven't heard anything after a reasonable period.
This guide is for general information and doesn't constitute financial or legal advice. Stamp Duty Land Tax rules, deadlines and processes are set by HMRC and can change; always confirm your specific situation and the current process directly on GOV.UK or with a solicitor or conveyancer before submitting a claim.