Foreigners buying properties in England will be forced to pay three per cent more in stamp duty than the UK residents, if the Conservatives win the general election.
The party claims it will help people get on the housing ladder by taking the heat out of the property market, the BBC reported.
The government was already planning a one per cent hike for foreign buyers.
Labour is also proposing a levy on “overseas companies buying housing”, and wants to give local people “first dibs” on homes built in their area.
Currently, foreign individuals and companies can buy homes as easily as the UK residents, but there are longstanding concerns about properties being bought as investments and standing empty, particularly in upmarket areas of London.
Conservatives quote a study saying 13 per cent of homes in London were bought by overseas buyers between 2014 and 2016.
Research last year by the King’s College Business School suggested foreign buyers did not just push up prices at the high-end of the property market, but there was a “trickle down” effect to less expensive properties, and that cities outside London also felt the effect, said the BBC Report.
The Conservatives are now proposing a surcharge of three per cent to be paid in addition to all other stamp duty charges.