Offset losses on shares against gain on property

I have a capital gain on property which I have already reported and paid tax on. I now have a small capital loss on listed foreign shares which I want to use to offset this gain a little. Gains and losses on shares are taxed at different rates so how does the calculation work? I am a basic rate tax payer and made £30,000 gain after the allowance so paid £5400 in tax at 18%. If I now make a £10,000 loss on shares at 10% does the new combined figure get used and some kind of blended rate or do I simply have the £1,000 loss (£10,000 at 10%) subtracted from the £5,400 already paid to leave a reduction of £1,000 claimed back through self assessment?

The tax on gains is at different rates depending what is sold. Losses are set against gains and reduce the net gain chargeable at relevant rates. If your property gains and share losses are in 23-24 (arising post 5/4/2023) you will have property gains for the year of £36k and share losses of £10k leaving a net gain (after annual exemption £6k) of £20k. taxable @ 18% as arising on the property. Allocate the loss in the most beneficial fashion rate-wise so if instead you had: Property gain £30k, share gain £6k & share losses £10k the loss and annual exemption go against property gain. You still have a net gain after annual exemption of £20k but that is taxed £14k re property @ 18% & £6k re shares @ 10%

Hi Jon Carr,

You can see an example below of how to calculate your Capital Gains Tax liability in a year in which you have:  

•  a capital gain on the sale of residential property                                        
•  a capital loss on the sale of shares                                                                                                                     

Example 1– gains of the year exceed losses of the year

Thank you.

It would be good if we can get a specific clarification here from HMRC Admin. The examples in the linked page don't really represent the scenario that was asked about and Alan Webb's response is suggesting a very specific course of action. The scenario I would like to understand is as follows (assuming negligible other income for sake of clarity). Property Sale in (say) August: Net Gain £13000 Share Trading Activity up to August: Total losses £10000, Total Gains £5000 across a number of purchases and sales. The proposed approach above would suggest that upon submission of the CGT form for disposal of second home within the 60 day period the following is valid: In August/September/ November submit a zero tax liability based on the below: Capital Gain: £13,000 from property Capital Loss: £10000 from shares Net Gain £3000 Less personal allowance of £3000 CGT Due = zero In the following annual tax return report £5000 capital gain from shares (assuming no further taxable events) Net Gain £5000 as losses were assigned previously CGT Due = £500 (at 10%) Now comparing this with just submitting the property sale with no offset or CGT allowance assigned would result in CGT of £1800 in August and £200 in the tax return (£10000 gain less £5000 loss less£3000 allowance all at 18%)

Hi,
This forum is for general queries only and is intended to help you self-serve. We are unable to provide specific advice tailored to individual circumstances. 
You may wish to contact our Capital Gains Tax team:
CGT: general enquiries 
Alternatively, you may want to consider seeking professional advice. 
Thank You

Thanks for your reply. I am not looking for a specific response to this example. I am looking for guidance and thought an example would be the clearest way. Specifically, I am asking if the suggestion in the post earlier is valid i.e. With a number of share trades over the year some will result in gains and some in losses. Can these losses be offset against the capital gain mid-year upon sale of a second property? Thank You

Hi. yes, in year losses can be used for this and these are used before any annual exempt amount.
Thank you.

Hi P4ulo - yes you can offset losses, but bear in mind that your question asks about offsetting mid-year "upon sale of a 2nd property". My understanding is that you will have had to incur that loss prior to the sale if you want to offset it at sale; otherwise you complete your CGT at house sale and then subsequently claim for your losses when you do your final tax return. That's been my experience this summer as my share disposals (at a loss) were a week after the house sale so I could not reduce my CGT at that point and will have to wait until end of tax year to claim and get a refund.