This relief will help you to defer capital gains tax (CGT) when you give away chargeable assets or if you sell something subject to CGT for less than its market value. The relief is called Gift Hold-Over Relief and could be claimed if you give away business assets (including certain shares) or sell them for less than they are worth to help the buyer.
Gift Hold-Over Relief means:
- you don’t pay Capital Gains Tax when you give away the assets
- the person you give them to pays Capital Gains tax (if any is due) when they sell (or ‘dispose of’) them
Tax isn’t usually payable on gifts to your husband, wife, civil partner or a charity.
Eligibility
The conditions for claiming relief depend on whether you’re giving away business assets or shares.
If you’re giving away business assets you must:
- be a sole trader or business partner, or have at least 5% of shares and voting rights in a company (known as your ‘personal company’)
- use the assets in your business or personal company
You can usually get partial relief if you used the assets only partly for your business.
If you’re giving away shares the shares must be in a company that’s either:
- not listed on any recognised stock exchange
- your personal company
The company’s main activities must be in trading (e.g. providing goods or services) rather than non-trading activities like investment.
