We provide lots of information for anyone looking to pay less capital gains tax. A selection of our latest CGT articles are listed below.

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The new CGT rules that apply from April 2008 are of concern for many investors. We've produced lots of articles and Q&A's that address the 2008 changes as well as more general capital gains tax planning articles.

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Pay Less Capital Gains Tax Using a bare trust to reduce CGT There are different types of trusts. Bare trusts are completely different for tax purposes from discretionary trusts. In this article we look at exactly how bare trusts operate and most importantly how you can use them to reduce CGT . . . keep reading Tax structuring for international professional services - case study Many members are interested in the various options for structuring an international professional services business. In this article we look at the income tax, corporation tax and capital gains tax implications of the various structuring options, including using a UK or offshore company. . . . keep reading Investing in commercial property tax efficiently Investing in commercial property is still popular, even given the current economic climate. In this article we look at the income tax, capital gains tax and inheritance tax implications of investing in commercial property . . . keep reading Splitting a company's activities to reduce tax Companies frequently generate more than one source of income. You may have started a trade of X and then later gradually moved into new and completely separate areas whilst still retaining the original trade. You may also use the company to purchase investment assets (eg property or shares). In this article we look at tax planning options to separate the diffent trading/investment elements in the company . . . keep reading Capital gains tax and offshore foundations The tax treatment of capital gains which arise to offshore foundations is a complex and uncertain area. It's made more complex by the fact that there is no definitive guidance on exactly how a foundation is treated for UK tax purposes. Strictly speaking it is treated as a corporate vehicle but it displays some of the characteristics of a trust. This has led to a certain degree of overlapping in the provisions. In this article we look at how the capital gains tax anti avoidance rules could apply to offshore foundations. . . . keep reading Tax position on the remittance of pre 2008 capital gains Following a post in our forum we've looked in detail at the position of capital gains that arise before April 2008 but are subject to the remittance basis. In this article we analyse the tax provisions to assess how remittances after April 2008 will be treated . . . keep reading AIM shares & IHT relief Following a request on our forum we've looked at the position of AIM shares and when they will qualify for 100% inheritance tax relief. This article looks at the rules which govern when you'll qualify for inheritance tax relief including the differences for shares gifted during your lifetime and shares held at the date of death . . . keep reading When individuals can still qualify for indexation relief after April 2008 It's well known that for individuals, indexation relief has been withdrawn for disposals after April 2008. In this article we look at the one occasion when individuals can still sell after April 2008 and qualify for indexation relief . . . keep reading How renting your property to your company could increase your CGT bill Holding your property personally and renting it to your company used to be a common and pretty effective way of reducing capital gains tax on a future disposal. Under the old taper relief rules you could reduce your CGT charge to 10% on a future disposal of the property. However Entrepreneurs Relief is not so generous. This article looks at how CGT applies on a disposal of a property rented to your trading company and how to minimise CGT . . . keep reading How non doms can invest in UK property tax efficiently under the new remittance rules Many non doms are asking how to hold and invest in UK property tax efficiently, given the changes to the remittance basis of tax. In this article we look at a couple of options to invest in UK property tax efficiently using offshore trusts . . . keep reading Watch out for massive tax increases on selling your business in 2010 If you own a trading company that you're considering selling you should be aware of how the planned tax changes from 6 April 2010 could impact on your tax bill. This article looks at how the changes announced in the 2009 Budget could substantially increase your tax charge on the sale of your business . . . keep reading The changes to the tax treatment of furnished holiday lettings from 2010 and what these mean for you The 2009 Budget announced a number of tax changes to the furnished holiday letting rules. This article looks at exactly what the changes are and what they mean for you . . . keep reading Using an offshore trust to buy a UK property to reduce UK tax 'Can I use an offshore trust to buy a UK property and save UK tax?' - It's a common question that we're asked, particularly by non doms who may already have an offshore structure in place. In this article we'll look at the key UK tax implications of using an offshore trust to purchase a UK property. . . . keep reading Reducing CGT, IHT and income tax on a property investment portfolio by using mortgages Although the property prices have reduced significantly in the last few months many buy to let ('BTL') landlords will still be faced with a large potential inheritance tax charge given the value of their BTL portfolios. This article looks at the use of debt to get a 'triple whammy' and reduce inheritance tax, capital gains tax and income tax . . . keep reading Case study:Avoiding inheritance tax and capital gains tax on property Making use of the available inheritance tax ('IHT') and capital gains tax reliefs is crucial in avoiding or reducing tax.This article looks at a simple case study showing how by maximising the benefit of the interaction from CGT and IHT reliefs you can completely avoid inheritance tax and future capital gains tax . . . keep reading Case Study: Restructuring a property purchase to avoid income tax and CGT It's often the case that someone purchases a property for someone else to occupy. Examples include parents buying for their children, or parents buying for an elderly relative. This article looks at a case study of a typical scenario focusing on how it could be structured to avoid both CGT and income tax . . . keep reading Carrying back capital gains tax losses on futures and options for up to two years Usually capital losses can only be either offset against other current year gains, or carried forward for offset against future capital gains. This article looks at when this will not apply and when losses on derivatives such as options, futures and CFD's can be carried back for up to two years . . . keep reading Loss on sale of land & UK tax With the reducing property prices there will be many properties sold at a loss. Usually this would generate a capital loss for tax purposes, however it's worthwhile noting that there is a special relief available to reduce any previous inheritance tax charge. This article looks at how this relief operates . . . keep reading Rental losses and using a property company to reduce income tax & CGT Using a company to hold property is usually not tax efficient, at least not in terms of any capital gains. The flat 18% rate of CGT is much better than a 21/22%+ rate of corporation tax combined with a potential 25% income tax charge on extraction. For larger gains the 29.75% effective rate of corporation tax on gains above £300K makes it even less attractive. This article looks at how property companies can be very effective in reducing tax when there are rental losses. . . . keep reading Beneficial ownership, receiving a share of the proceeds and reducing capital gains tax When looking at the capital gains tax position on the disposal of property, the beneficial interest can have a significant impact. CGT follows primarily the beneficial, as opposed to the legal interest. So the legal title holder is not necessarily the one subject to CGT on the disposal. Good examples of this are bare trustees and nominees. This article looks at ownership of property and tax planning from the splitting of beneficial and legal interests, particularly where there is to be a share of the proceeds of sale . . . keep reading Investments in OEICS and UK Tax Many investors, particularly non doms may look to invest funds in open ended investment companies ('OEICS') located offshore. Primarily this will be for commercial purposes as frequently overseas investment schemes will operate through an OEIC. This article looks at the UK tax position of investments in OEICS . . . keep reading UK tax on foreign currency exchange For anyone owning overseas assets it's worthwhile noting that as well as capital gains tax on overseas assets (eg property or shares) you may also need to consider the capital gains tax position of the overseas currency itself. This article looks at the capital gains tax position of foreign currency . . . keep reading Crystallising Capital Gains Offshore Tax-Free If you're non UK resident it makes sense to make the most of your non UK residence status. One of the main benefits of non UK residence is the capital gains tax exemption providing you're abroad for at least 5 complete tax years. This article looks at the options for crystallizing capital gains offshore free of UK tax, aside from actually selling assets whilst non resident . . . keep reading How non doms can avoid CGT by leaving overseas assets to a spouse This is an issue that was raised by one of our members. The changes as from April 2008 mean that non doms can no longer gift overseas assets to their spouses and avoid the remittance tax rules if they subsequently then bring the gifted cash or asset back into the UK. However what if the non dom dies and leaves the overseas assets or cash to his wife in his will? This article looks at the tax positon in such a case . . . keep reading Should you sell company assets or shares to reduce taxes on the sale of your company in 2009? For any company owners looking to sell up there are two broad options. Firstly they could sell their shares in the company. Alternatively they could arrange for the company to sell the business and they could then extract the proceeds from the company. Which route they choose will have a significant impact on the amount of tax they will pay. This article looks at the tax effects of these two options in 2009 and how Entrepreneurs Relief and the CGT rules impact on the decision. . . . keep reading Transferring shares to the next generation and avoiding capital gains tax and inheritance tax Many people want to pass assets and in particular shares or other business assets onto their children. This could be in the hope of avoiding inheritance tax or simply as a means to give children a 'good start' in life. Any transfer of shares will however have tax implications and these should be carefully considered. This article looks at the transfer of shares and reducing capital gains and inheritance tax . . . keep reading Entrepreneurs relief for non doms and the remittance basis Entrepreneurs Relief applies to the disposal of trading businesses and also shares in certain trading companies. It can apply to non UK domiciliaries selling overseas businesses or shares in overseas trading companies. This article looks at how Entrepreneurs Relief applies to non domiciliaries when they are taxed on the arising basis or the remittance basis. . . . keep reading Selling UK business assets as a non UK resident free of UK capital gains tax It's well known that anyone moving abroad and becoming non UK resident can avoid UK capital gains tax ('CGT') providing they remain abroad for at least five complete tax years. However this doesn't apply where UK assets are used for the purposes of a UK trade. This article looks at how this applies, what type of business assets could be caught and when/how to avoid the rule . . . keep reading Using an LLP to maximise Entrepreneurs Relief and reduce capital gains tax The new Entrepreneurs Relief provisions provide anyone selling a trading business with a significant reduction in their capital gains tax liability. Many business owners will look to establish businesses using a company but is this always the best structure? This article looks at the advantages of using an LLP in terms of maximising Entrepreneurs Relief and reducing capital gains tax . . . keep reading Selling property at a loss: Making the most of your property losses to reduce tax With the current financial crisis and the drop in property prices there may well be many property investors selling surplus property at a loss on the original purchase price. In this article we'll look at how losses on the sale of property are calculated, how to make the most of them and any special rules that apply to these losses. |Image1| . . . keep reading More

Capital Gains Tax Questions

If you require specific guidance on capital gains tax, you can submit a question via our Capital Gains Tax Questions section. For a brief overview of capital gains tax follow this link CGT overview

Capital Gains Tax articles