Capital Gains Tax

The CGT landscape has tightened sharply: the annual exempt amount is down to £3,000 and a single set of rates now applies across all assets. With far less automatic shelter available, the value of good planning — timing, reliefs, elections and structuring — has never been higher.

CGT Rates and Annual Exemption (2026/27)

For individuals, gains are taxed at 18% to the extent they fall within your remaining basic rate band and 24% above it. Since 30 October 2024 these rates apply to shares, business assets and residential property alike — the old 10%/20% and 18%/28% splits no longer exist.

The annual exempt amount is £3,000 for individuals (£1,500 for most trusts). Your main home generally remains fully exempt under private residence relief.

Selling Property

Private residence relief (PRR) can exempt some or all of the gain on your main home, including certain periods of absence; where you own more than one home, a well-timed nomination can be worth thousands. Lettings relief now applies only in narrow shared-occupation cases, so older planning assumptions need revisiting.

If CGT is due on a UK residential property disposal, you must report and pay within 60 days of completion — miss it and penalties and interest follow. We prepare 60-day property returns and reconcile them with your self assessment, and we plan buy-to-let disposals across tax years to use exemptions, losses and both spouses' rate bands.

Shares and Investments

We plan share disposals around the annual exempt amount, the share identification and 30-day 'bed and breakfast' rules, and no-gain-no-loss transfers between spouses and civil partners — which can double the exemptions and basic rate bands available to a household. Capital losses are claimed, banked and used where they save the most tax.

Selling a Business: Business Asset Disposal Relief

Business Asset Disposal Relief (BADR) taxes qualifying gains at 18% for disposals on or after 6 April 2026 — up from 14% in 2025/26 and 10% before April 2025 — within a £1 million lifetime limit. The conditions around shareholding, officer/employee status and trading activity must be met throughout a qualifying period before disposal, so reviewing your position well ahead of a sale is essential. We also advise on holdover relief for gifts, rollover relief on business asset replacement, and incorporation relief.

Losses, Timing and Elections

Capital losses offset gains in the same year, and unused losses carry forward indefinitely once claimed. Straddling disposals across 5 April, staging a sale, or transferring assets to a spouse before disposal can each cut the bill materially — all standard, HMRC-recognised planning we implement with full documentation.

Non-Resident CGT

Non-residents disposing of UK property or land must file a return within 60 days of completion — generally even where no tax is due. We handle non-resident CGT reporting, rebasing calculations and the interaction with your residence position under the Statutory Residence Test.

What You Get With Acumon

• Clear advice on the current 18%/24% CGT rates across all asset types
• Private residence relief planning, nominations and shared-occupation lettings relief
• 60-day UK property returns prepared, filed and reconciled with self assessment
• Business Asset Disposal Relief reviews well before a sale
• Loss claims, spouse transfers and disposal timing across tax years
• Non-resident CGT compliance on UK property disposals

Why Acumon for Capital Gains Tax?

• Tax specialists with prior HMRC experience
• In-house Chartered Tax Advisor (CTA), qualified by the Chartered Institute of Taxation
• Handles 60-day property returns, self assessment and non-resident CGT reporting

Get a Fixed-Fee Quote

Tell us what you need and we'll come back within one business day with a clear scope and a fixed price — no hourly-rate surprises. Call 020 8567 3451 or use the form and we'll be in touch.