Update 24 April 2026: The Government has released a statement saying that they will work on legislation so that no one is newly brought into SDLT as a result of the Renters’ Rights Act. This new legislation will work retrospectively to 1 May 2026.
To read more about this, you can see the Government statement here: https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2026-04-22/hcws1535
The original article, correct at the time of publishing, can be found below:
Most of our property-owning clients are now well aware of the headline changes the Renters’ Rights Act will bring when it comes into force in England on 1 May 2026. However, there is a lesser-known knock-on effect for tenants when it comes to Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT).
SDLT applies not just to property purchases but also to leases, based on the total rent payable over the lease term. Under the current system, this has rarely been an issue for residential tenants because most short-term assured shorthold tenancies simply do not generate enough cumulative rent to cross the £125,000 threshold at which SDLT kicks in.
However, once the Act converts existing and new tenancies into periodic tenancies that roll on indefinitely, that changes because SDLT treats such a tenancy as a single, ever-lengthening lease, with the total rent accumulating year on year until the threshold is eventually crossed.
For most tenants paying average rents, the threshold will take well over a decade to reach, and the tax itself (1% on the excess above £125,000) will often be modest when it does. Tenants in London and other high-rent areas will reach that point sooner.
In terms of compliance, once the threshold is first crossed, the tenant has just 14 days to file an SDLT return and pay any tax due, and in every subsequent year, there is a 30-day deadline from the anniversary of the tenancy. These are tight windows; the penalties for missing them can exceed the tax itself, and most tenants will have no idea this obligation even exists.
As a landlord, this is not directly your liability, but it is worth being aware of, especially as your tenants are unlikely to receive any proactive notification from HMRC.
April 6th, 2026
