Timing of disposal for capital gains tax

Copyright © 2026 LexisNexis
Produced by a Tolley Personal Tax expert
Personal Tax
Guidance
tag-icon Year-end tax planning

Timing of disposal for capital gains tax

Copyright © 2026 LexisNexis
Produced by a Tolley Personal Tax expert
Personal Tax
Guidance
tag-icon Year-end tax planning
imgtext

Date of disposal

The date of the disposal determines the period in which the gain is subject to capital gains tax (CGT). When the rates of CGT change, the determination of the date of disposal can also affect the rate of CGT that applies to the gain.

For the rates of CGT, see the Introduction to capital gains tax guidance note.

The rules for determining the date of disposal vary according to the type of disposal made.

Type of disposal

Under contract

Where an asset is disposed of and acquired under a contract, the time of the disposal and acquisition is the time when that contract is made, ie the date contracts are exchanged. It is not the date of the completion of the contract, or time of the conveyance or transfer of the asset (if different). However, if the contract is never completed, the disposal never takes place.

In the case of a conditional contract, the time of disposal and acquisition is the time when the condition is satisfied. This applies

Continue reading the full document
To gain access to additional expert tax guidance, workflow tools, generative tax AI, and tax research, register for a free trial of Tolley+™
TAKE A FREE TRIAL NOW
Powered by Tolley+™
  • 20 Feb 2026 15:00

Home/ Tolley Tax Guidance/ Personal Tax / Year end tax planning

Popular Articles

Personal Tax

Inter-spouse transfer

Inter-spouse transferIntroductionWhen a chargeable asset is transferred between two spouses or civil partners, there is a disposal by the transferor spouse / civil partner and an acquisition by the transferee spouse / civil partner for capital gains tax purposes. For simplicity, spouses and civil

14 Jul 2020 12:01 | Produced by Tolley Read more Read more
Corporation Tax

Indexation allowance and rebasing

Indexation allowance and rebasingThis guidance note explains the general rules surrounding the availability of indexation allowance (which was frozen at December 2017) on the disposal of company assets and provides information on the rebasing rules for assets held on 31 March 1982. For an overview

14 Jul 2020 11:59 | Produced by Tolley Read more Read more
Employment Tax

Income tax paid on behalf of employee

Income tax paid on behalf of employeeIntroductionEmployers may wish to make payments of employment income to an employee / director without the employee suffering a tax or NIC cost on that pay. In other words, the employer wants to pay an amount net of tax and NIC. In some instances, often with

14 Jul 2020 11:58 | Produced by Tolley in association with Paul Tew Read more Read more