Proving Main residence for CGT

shopshop

Im just about to sell my home of 22yrs. I've been trying to find out my CGT liability as I have worked overseas and rented house out on/off for about 14yrs.
I contacted HMRC who eventually thot I could only get relief for 3yrs since Id been overseas.
It's going to be quite a steep bill over £10k according to my meagre calculations and understanding of 1 page on HMRC website. I couldnt even afford to buy my own house. 
Have sought advice from accounts (paying 1 who just crunched numbers and didnt know the reliefs). Another disagrees with the HMRCs interpretation of only 3yrs relief. They say it has been my main home and thus I should not be paying any CGT.
But if i get this wrong, I dont want to to be hit with a big bill in 6mths.
It seems totally open to whatever interpretation one wants to put on it. One page on HMRC site says if youve been overseas no need to pay any CGT. Then on another page you can only get relief for 3yrs
So anyone with any similar experience, would very much appreciate. Proving it's been my main residence, my home - seems to be the key. Thku

_Penny_Dreadful

shopshop said:

Im just about to sell my home of 22yrs. I've been trying to find out my CGT liability as I have worked overseas and rented house out on/off for about 14yrs.
I contacted HMRC who eventually thot I could only get relief for 3yrs since Id been overseas.
It's going to be quite a steep bill over £10k according to my meagre calculations and understanding of 1 page on HMRC website. I couldnt even afford to buy my own house. 
Have sought advice from accounts (paying 1 who just crunched numbers and didnt know the reliefs). Another disagrees with the HMRCs interpretation of only 3yrs relief. They say it has been my main home and thus I should not be paying any CGT.
But if i get this wrong, I dont want to to be hit with a big bill in 6mths.
It seems totally open to whatever interpretation one wants to put on it. One page on HMRC site says if youve been overseas no need to pay any CGT. Then on another page you can only get relief for 3yrs
So anyone with any similar experience, would very much appreciate. Proving it's been my main residence, my home - seems to be the key. Thku

When you worked overseas did the employer you were working for in the UK require you to go and work overseas? 

theartfullodger

You'll know that CGT needs declaring and paying within 60 days of sale.

Over £10k bill for CGT?  You're lucky, I've had more (sold 3.5 houses in past few years#.

The country needs the tax income.

Bookworm105

PRR claims can include various periods of absence during your ownership, those periods each have their own criteria and is is very possible for you to have a combination of periods which get relief, including some which may overlap. Note however you must have lived in the UK property as main home both before (condition A ) and after (condition B ) the period except the specific instance in relation to b) where your contract of employment prevented you from returning before the house was sold (ie you sold it whilst still working abroad).
CG65046 - Private residence relief: periods of absence: conditions - HMRC internal manual - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

CG65030 - Private residence relief: periods of absence: introduction - HMRC internal manual - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

For sake of simplicity I will assume a) this is the only property you own in the UK and b) your tax status remains as UK domiciled & resident at point of sale.

1. Full relief for the time you lived in it as your UK main residence, plus, by virtue of that fact, you also get the final 9 months added to that occupation period, irrespective of whether you live there, rent it out, or leave it vacant in those 9 months.

2. Full relief for the time period your were working abroad and only returned to the UK for personal holidays. The requirement is that all your duties of employment must have been performed abroad, (you cannot have a mix of UK and overseas performed duties).
Note there is no requirement under this section for your decision to work aboard to be required/imposed by your UK employer. You could leave your job and start a new one with the same or a different employer abroad. The requirement is where you perform the duties, not who employs you.
Also note there is no requirement that overseas accommodation has to have been provided by your employer. 
See: Taxation of chargeable gain act 1992 section 223 para 3 b
Taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992 (legislation.gov.uk)

3. Full relief for up to a total of up to 3 years of the entire ownership period during which you were absent for "any reason".  But note this does not allow you to rent it out during those periods and continue to claim PRR on it (if it was let and you lived elsewhere then there is no longer any relief for letting, the separate letting relief has been abolished and there is an overriding condition that a PPR property must remain available for use as a home, which it cannot be if it is let and the reason for your absence, whether UK or overseas, is not work related) 

See: Taxation of chargeable gain act 1992 section 223 para 3 a

4. Full relief for a period of up to 4 years where your contract of employment required you to work at a location where it was impractical for you to live in the original residence. 
See: Taxation of chargeable gain act 1992 section 223 para 3 c

During your period of ownership therefore you can therefore have a mix of the above, this is illustrated here: 

CG65065 - Private residence relief: example: several periods of absence for different reasons - HMRC internal manual - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

so to answer your question you need to set out the precise timeline, measured in months, not years, to see if there are any unrelieved periods upon which CGT will be due.
Note if you owned more than one property simultaneously you can only claim PRR on one of them at a time.