Buying a home in England or Wales from abroad

Buying from abroad at a glance

Will I pay the 2% surcharge if I live abroad?

It depends on days, not on your passport. For Stamp Duty, you count as not UK resident if you were in the UK for fewer than 183 days in the 12 months before you buy. A day counts if you were in the UK at the end of it, and days anywhere in the UK count, including Scotland and Northern Ireland. So a British citizen who has lived in Dubai for two years usually pays the surcharge, and a foreign national who has lived in London all year usually does not. Being British does not help, and the Statutory Residence Test used for income tax does not apply.

If you are buying with other people and any one of you is not UK resident under this test, all of you pay the surcharge. There is one exception: a married couple or civil partners buying together, who are not separated, are both treated as UK resident if one of them is.

The 2% is added to every band, on top of the rates you would pay anyway, including first-time buyer relief and the higher rates for additional homes. On a whole purchase that works out at 2% of the price.

Here is what a UK resident pays at five prices, set against Wales. If you live abroad and buy in England, add 2% of the price. In Wales the figure is the same either way.

An estimate for an individual buying a home in England or Northern Ireland. This is not tax advice: HMRC is the authority on what you owe.

When we act on your purchase in England, we file the Stamp Duty return and pay HMRC from the money you send us. Try other prices with our stamp duty calculator.

• Crown employees posted abroad (for example civil servants, the armed forces and diplomats) can count as present in the UK for this test. Tell us if this applies to you.
• A home you own abroad still counts as a home: it can stop first-time buyer relief and can bring in the higher rates. Our stamp duty calculator covers the higher rates.
• Buying through a company formed outside the UK brings in other rules, including registering the company on the Register of Overseas Entities at Companies House before it buys.

How do I get the 2% back if I move to the UK?

You can claim the surcharge back if you spend at least 183 days in the UK in any continuous 365 days inside a set window. The window starts 364 days before the completion date and ends 365 days after it. If you are buying with others, every buyer must be a person (not a company) and every buyer must meet the test, though each can use a different 365 days.

The refund is claimed by amending the Stamp Duty return. HMRC’s deadline is two years from completion: complete on 1 December 2026 and the last day is 1 December 2028. For your own purchase, take your completion date and count two years on to the same day.

Because the deadline runs from completion, not from the day you meet the test, someone who moves to the UK late in the window has less time to claim. Keep a record of your travel dates from the start.

Is Wales different for a buyer who lives abroad?

Yes. Wales charges Land Transaction Tax instead of Stamp Duty, and it has no surcharge for buyers who live abroad. The 2% applies only to homes in England and Northern Ireland. In Wales you pay the main rates if this will be your only home, or usually the higher rates if you will own another one, here or abroad, unless the new home replaces your main home. Wales has no first-time buyer relief either. The return goes to the Welsh Revenue Authority, not HMRC. The worked table above shows both, price by price. For a Welsh purchase, our Land Transaction Tax calculator is linked below.

55 of the 811 quote requests for a purchase we received were for a home in Wales (website quote requests, 2 Sep–29 Oct 2026).

Which lenders lend to buyers living outside the UK?

Lenders set their own rules on where you live, and they differ a lot. Below is what three lenders publish for brokers, in our words, with the date we checked. Rules change often, and they are not advice on which mortgage to choose: a mortgage broker can tell you which lenders fit you. We confirm what your lender needs when we receive its instructions.

From each lender’s published broker criteria, checked 29 October 2026. Lenders change their rules; we confirm what applies when we receive your mortgage instructions.

Sources: Nationwide Intermediary, borrower types, Nationwide Intermediary, general criteria, NatWest Intermediary Solutions, HSBC UK for Intermediaries.

Do I need to fly to the UK to sign?

Usually not. Most of a purchase is done by email and post. The documents that need care are the deeds: with a mortgage, the mortgage deed and, if you are buying with someone or the transfer has promises from you, the transfer (TR1). A deed for land in England or Wales follows English law on how it is signed, even if you sign it abroad.

Each signature on a deed needs a witness who is physically there when you sign. A video call is not enough, even if you sign electronically. The witness must not be another party to the deed. HM Land Registry says a husband, wife, civil partner or someone you live with is better avoided as a witness, and advises a witness aged 18 or over.

If you cannot sign yourself, you can give someone in the UK a power of attorney to sign for you. The power itself must be signed as a deed, in front of a witness. A power made under another country’s law also needs a certified copy, a translation if it is not in English or Welsh, and a written opinion from a lawyer in that country that it is valid. Tell us early: a late power of attorney can hold up exchange.

How is my identity checked from abroad?

The anti-money laundering rules make us check the identity of every client and, where needed, where the money comes from, wherever you live. Living abroad does not remove the check. Tell us at the start where you live, so we can tell you what we need from you. Identity checks appear on your quote as “Verification of Identity and AML Checks”, per person, in the disbursements.

Form ID1 is different. HM Land Registry uses it for someone in the deal who has no conveyancer acting for them, for example a seller who has no conveyancer. If that person lives abroad and a UK conveyancer cannot check their identity, a lawyer or notary qualified in the country where they live signs section B. They send proof that they are allowed to practise, plus a certified English or Welsh translation if needed. The form must be signed no more than 3 months before it is sent to HM Land Registry.

Part of my deposit is coming from family abroad. What changes?

28 of the 208 purchase quote requests with a gifted deposit said the gift comes from outside the UK (website quote requests, 2 Sep–29 Oct 2026). A gift from abroad needs more checking than a UK gift, because the money’s trail runs through another country’s banks. It has its own line on your quote, “Gifted Deposit Check (from outside the UK)”, in place of the “Gifted Deposit Check” for a UK gift. Both are on our fees page. Some lenders also have their own rules on gifts from abroad (see the table above). What the giver sends, and when, is on our gifted deposits page, and what counts as proof for your own money is on our source of funds page: both are linked below.

When does money from abroad need to reach you?

Your deposit must reach our client account at least one working day before exchange, and the rest at least one working day before completion. Money sent from abroad can take longer to arrive than a UK transfer, and banks may hold a large payment for checks, so send it early. Sending money on the day by same-day bank transfer appears on your quote as “Telegraphic Transfer Fee (Per Transfer)”.

Selling a UK home while you live abroad: what is different?

The same signing and identity rules apply when you sell. One deadline is special: if you do not live in the UK, you must report the sale of a UK home to HMRC within 60 days of completion, even if there is no tax to pay or you made a loss. GOV.UK explains it in Capital Gains Tax for non-residents: UK residential property.

Where do purchases from abroad get held up?

• A late power of attorney. If you cannot sign the deeds yourself, the power must be signed as a deed in front of a witness, and a power made under another country’s law needs more papers. A late one can hold up exchange, so tell us early.
• Money that arrives late. Money sent from abroad can take longer than a UK transfer, and banks may hold a large payment for checks. Your deposit must reach us at least one working day before exchange.
• A lender’s rules on where you live. Some lenders want every borrower living in the UK; others limit gifts from abroad. Check with a mortgage broker before you apply.
• Stamp Duty worked out for a UK resident. Our quotes assume you live in the UK, so tell us if you live abroad and we can account for the 2%.
• Moving to the UK late in the refund window. The two years to claim the 2% back run from completion, so keep a record of your travel dates from the start.

What will it cost?

Buying a residential property: our fee range is in the box below, with the disbursements listed separately. Our fee may be higher if anyone involved is abroad, or more identity or source-of-funds checks are needed. Your quote shows any extra line before you instruct us.

Only with a gift: Gifted Deposit Check (from outside the UK), or Gifted Deposit Check for a UK gift. Only if they apply: Dealing with Leasehold, New Build Property and Shared Ownership. With a mortgage, our fee includes the Mortgage Handling/Admin Fee and the Lender Portal Management Fee. Each of these is on our fees page.

Stamp Duty Land Tax (England) or Land Transaction Tax (Wales) and the HM Land Registry fee are government charges: they sit in their own box and are never added to our fees. We give you a written, itemised quote before you instruct us.

Moving to the UK on a visa as well? Our immigration team advises on visas and settlement. For the steps of a purchase with us, see our buying a house guide.

What happens next

• Buying a house: the whole process with us
• Stamp duty calculator
• Gifted deposits, including gifts from abroad
• Buying through a UK limited company
• More buyer situations, explained