Stamp duty receipts for the April to June 2025 are £4.6 billion, according to HMRC data released this week – £0.4 billion higher than the same period last year.
The latest figures take the total paid in stamp duty for the first six months of 2025 to £6.6 billion – up from £5.4 billion over the same period last year, according to an analysis by Coventry Building Society.
HMRC said of the totals:
“Higher receipts in February to March 2025 compared to previous years are driven by a combination of increased transaction levels prior to the change to residential Stamp Duty Land Tax thresholds from April 2025 and higher rates of Stamp Duty Land Tax surcharge for additional properties.
“Higher receipts in April 2025 compared to April 2024 is mainly due to the decrease in thresholds for residential main rates and First Time Buyers’ Relief effective from 1 April 2025.”
On a monthly basis, the increase in tax rose from £918 million in May to £1,055 million in June – up from £1,018 million a year earlier. The increase is ‘a reasonable sign’ the impact of the stamp duty changes is finally starting to ease, according to Lansdown Hargreaves head of personal finance Sarah Coles.
She commented:
“There are some signs of a little more strength in the months since – particularly in the summer – especially as mortgage rates fell. However, it’s early days yet, and much will depend on mortgage rates continuing to fall and boost affordability.
“Anyone with one eye on potential tax hikes in the autumn Budget might be interested in how resilient the market has seemed to be in the wake of the stamp duty tweaks. However, they will also be aware of how important a robust property market is for sentiment, so nobody will be in a huge rush to pile tax onto the homebuying process.”
