Stamp duty land tax (SDLT) or stamp duty, as it is still widely and wrongly referred to, has been the subject of a manifesto promise by the Conservative party, which plans to introduce a 3% surcharge on the purchase of new homes by non-residents, so it seems like an opportune moment to look at existing, as well as proposed, SDLT surcharges.

To start with the basics, SDLT is the tax on purchases and other acquisitions of an interest in land, typically the purchase of homes or commercial property or the grant of a lease. It was introduced in December 2003 to replace stamp duty on such transactions.