When does the stamp duty holiday in England and Northern Ireland end?

The government is being urged to extend the stamp duty holiday, when the chancellor sets out the Budget on Wednesday.

The tax has been suspended on the first £500,000 of all property sales in England and Northern Ireland since July.

The government temporarily increased the amount at which stamp duty is paid to £500,000, for property sales in England and Northern Ireland.

The measure is currently due to last until 31 March 2021.

It means anyone completing a purchase on a main residence costing up to £500,000 before that date would not pay any stamp duty. More expensive properties would only be taxed on their value above that amount.

The move was aimed at helping buyers who might have taken a financial hit because of Covid.

It was also intended to boost a property market hit by lockdown, which had seen house prices fall for four months in a row.

It could save buyers as much as £15,000, if they were buying a property of £500,000 or more.

In short, because it's expensive.

The government's annual take from stamp duty is about £12bn, according to the latest figures released by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).

That's roughly equivalent to 2% of the Treasury's total tax take.

The nine-month stamp duty holiday to end in England and Northern Ireland - from July 2020 to March 2021 - will cost the Treasury an estimated £3.8bn.

Some movers are worried that, because buying a house can take months, they may be unable to complete their purchase before the end of March.

The following suggestions have been put forward by MPs:

If the property purchased is your main home - and the sale is completed before 31 March - you won't pay any stamp duty at all if it costs £500,000 or less.

The next portion of the property's price (£500,001 to £925,000) will be taxed at 5%, and the £575,000 after that (£925,001 to £1.5m) at 10%.

The remaining amount (over £1.5m) will be taxed at 12%. You can calculate how much you are liable to pay here.

Before the announcement, stamp duty in England and Northern Ireland was paid on property sold for £125,000 or more. First-time buyers did not pay any stamp duty up to £300,000.

Landlords and second-home buyers are also eligible for the tax cut, but will still have to pay the additional 3% of stamp duty they were charged under the previous rules.

In Scotland, the normal rates on Land and Buildings Transaction Tax are:

However, until the end of March, the threshold at which the tax starts to be paid has been raised to £250,000, under measures brought in by the Scottish government.

Scottish landlords pay an extra 4% Land and Buildings Transaction Tax on top of standard rates.

In Wales, the normal rates on Land Transaction Tax are:

However, the Welsh government also introduced a temporary relief on the first tier, meaning that until the end of March people buying their main homes in Wales costing less than £250,000 will not pay any tax.

Welsh landlords pay an extra 4% Land Transaction Tax on top of standard rates.