Frequently Asked Questions

Yes. HMRC treats crypto as a capital asset, not a currency.

This means the following can all trigger Capital Gains Tax:

• Selling crypto for cash
• Swapping one cryptocurrency for another
• Using crypto to buy goods or services
• Gifting crypto (except to a spouse)

If your total gains in the year exceed the £3,000 annual exempt amount, you'll owe CGT at 18% or 24% depending on your income.

Some crypto activity — like staking rewards, mining income, and certain DeFi transactions — may be treated as income rather than capital gains and taxed differently.

HMRC requires you to keep records of every transaction. This falls under our £199 Advanced Tax Return.

If your side hustle income is over £1,000 in a tax year, yes — you'll need to declare it on a Self Assessment return.

The £1,000 Trading Allowance means you don't pay tax on the first £1,000 of self-employment or casual income, but once you exceed that you need to register and file.

It doesn't matter whether you're being paid in cash, through PayPal, via platforms like Etsy, Vinted, or Deliveroo, or in any other way — if it's income for a service or goods you're selling, it counts.

HMRC has been increasingly active in tracking income through digital platforms, so it's worth getting it right.

Yes, dividends are taxable above the annual Dividend Allowance, which is £500 for 2025/26.

Dividends within an ISA are always tax-free.

If your dividends exceed the allowance, the rate you pay depends on your income band:

• 8.75% for basic-rate taxpayers
• 33.75% for higher-rate taxpayers
• 39.35% for additional-rate taxpayers

Dividend income needs to be declared on your Self Assessment return. Your investment platform or company should provide a dividend certificate or statement showing what you received.

It depends on how much interest you received and what type of taxpayer you are.

For 2025/26, the Personal Savings Allowance is:

• £1,000 for basic-rate taxpayers
• £500 for higher-rate taxpayers
• Nothing for additional-rate taxpayers (income over £125,140)

Interest from ISAs is always tax-free and never needs to be declared.

If your savings interest exceeds your allowance, you'll need to declare the excess on your Self Assessment return. Banks report interest to HMRC automatically, so it's worth declaring it correctly even if you think the amount is small.

When you inherit a property, you don't pay Capital Gains Tax at the point of inheritance — that's when Inheritance Tax may apply instead.

CGT only comes into play if you later sell the inherited property and it has increased in value since you inherited it.

The gain is calculated from the probate value — the market value of the property at the date of death — not from what the original owner paid for it. So if the property was valued at £300,000 on probate and you sell it for £340,000, your gain is £40,000, not the full increase from the original purchase price.

A few things worth knowing:

If the property was the deceased's main home and you sell it within a certain period, some Private Residence Relief may be available.

If you rent the property out before selling, CGT applies in the normal way from the date of inheritance.

If there are multiple beneficiaries, each person is taxed on their own share of the gain. Our Joint (£449) or Trio (£598) filing options cover all owners in one service.

You must report and pay any CGT within 60 days of completion.

Message us on live chat and we'll talk through what applies to your situation, or book a call with us if you'd prefer.

Yes. Selling a rental property that was never your main home will trigger Capital Gains Tax on any gain you make.

The gain is calculated as: sale price, minus estate agent and solicitor fees, minus the original purchase price and buying costs, minus any capital improvements made during your ownership.

The first £3,000 of your gain is tax-free (the 2025/26 annual exempt amount). The rest is taxed at 18% if you're a basic-rate taxpayer, or 24% if you're a higher-rate taxpayer.

If the property was at some point your main home before you rented it out, part of the gain may be covered by Private Residence Relief, which could reduce your bill. This is one of the most commonly missed reliefs on rental property sales.

You must report the sale and pay the tax within 60 days of completion. This is a legal requirement and missing the deadline results in automatic HMRC penalties.

We handle rental property CGT returns regularly. Fill in our CGT form to get started, or message us on live chat.

Yes, but only genuine capital improvements — not general maintenance or repairs.

Capital improvements are works that added value to the property or adapted it for a new use. These include: extensions and loft conversions; a new kitchen or bathroom (if it's an upgrade, not a like-for-like replacement); structural alterations; and building a garage or outbuilding.

What doesn't count: repainting, replacing a broken boiler with the same type, routine repairs, or general upkeep. These are maintenance costs and HMRC doesn't allow them as deductions.

To claim improvements, you need receipts or invoices for the work. If you no longer have all the paperwork, we can work with what's available — but the more evidence you have, the better.

The cost of improvements is deducted from your gain, which can reduce your CGT bill significantly on a property you've invested in over the years.

Include any improvement costs when you fill in our CGT form and we'll apply them in the calculation.

If you own a property jointly, each owner is taxed on their share of the gain individually.

Each owner gets their own annual CGT exempt amount (£3,000 for 2025/26), so between two owners you effectively have £6,000 of gains that are tax-free before any CGT is due.

Each owner's gain is also taxed at a rate based on their own income — so if one owner is a basic-rate taxpayer and the other is a higher-rate taxpayer, they'll each pay a different rate on their share. This can work in your favour if the owners are in different income bands.

Ownership is usually split equally (50/50 for married couples), but if you own the property in unequal shares these should be formally documented to ensure HMRC taxes each person on the correct proportion.

For jointly owned property sales, we offer our Joint filing at £449 (two owners) or Trio at £598 (three owners), which covers the full gain calculation and filing for all owners in one service.

If you're unsure how your ownership is split or how the gain should be divided, message us on live chat or book a call with us.