Reporting of Capital Gains when no tax is due

Somerset_Alan

Sorry if this is the wrong sub-forum for this question, but I can't find one for CGT.

I don't do self-assessment; my tax is all taken through PAYE.  I have sold some shares, where the total realised is more than the £3,000 exempted band, but the total gain after purchase costs are deducted remains below £3,000.

a) Do I still need to report these gains to HMRC?

b) If so, how? 

c) What if, next year, say, I were to sell some more, realising less than £3,000 even without deducting costs.  Do the reporting requirements apply to any sale, no matter how small?

d) And finally, what if, next year, I were to sell some shares at a profit of more than £3,000, and some other shares at a loss which brings the total gains for the year below £3,000?  What are the reporting requirements then?   

The information in .gov all relates to people who are doing self-assessment returns and doesn't help me. 

eskbanker

https://www.gov.uk/capital-gains-tax/reporting-and-paying-capital-gains-tax seems clear to me:

If your total taxable gains are above your allowance, you’ll need to report and pay Capital Gains Tax.

so if your gains don't exceed your allowance then no reporting necessary.

Likewise, for those who do need to report, https://www.gov.uk/report-and-pay-your-capital-gains-tax/if-you-have-other-capital-gains-to-report seems self-explanatory about the distinction between self-assessers and others:

If your capital gain is not from a UK residential property sold after 6 April 2020, you can report your gain:

• in a Self Assessment tax return
• using the ‘real time’ Capital Gains Tax service

alamest

From what HMRC sets out, the reporting side is mainly about two thresholds:

• if your total gains for the tax year go over the CGT allowance, or

• if your total disposal proceeds are more than 4× that allowance, even when no tax ends up due.

If you’re under both of those, HMRC generally don’t require a CGT report. Each tax year is looked at separately, so small sales next year would use the same tests again.

That’s just the general rule as I understand it, CGT can get quite specific to an individual’s situation, so it’s always worth double-checking the HMRC guidance or asking them directly if anything feels borderline.

Somerset_Alan

Thank you both, eskbanker and alamest.

It seems a lot more straightforward than I thought.  

TMSG

The second rule mentioned by @alamest has changed after they lowered the allowance from IIRC £12400. Total proceeds are now set at £50k but you only have to report if registered for self assessment. For you this has no relevance either way as you're not doing SA per your OP.

See this for details: https://www.gov.uk/capital-gains-tax/work-out-need-to-pay

Quote:

You still need to report your gains in your tax return if both of the following apply:

• the total amount you sold the assets for was more than £50,000
• you’re registered for Self Assessment

These rules apply from the 2023 to 2024 tax year onwards.