HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has established a “Real Time” Capital Gains Tax Service to facilitate the reporting of the sale of CGT-eligible assets by individuals. This removes the necessity for the individual in question to sign up for self-assessment if they would not be required to file a self-assessment tax return under any other circumstances. HMRC can be notified of any gains made on shares or other assets with the help of the Real-Time CGT Service. However, there is one exception: you cannot use this service to report capital gains on UK property; instead, you must utilize the HMRC service to “Report and pay your Capital Gains Tax” designed for this purpose.

Accountants and Tax Agents cannot use this service to submit CGT returns on your behalf. First, you must create an account for yourself on the HMRC Government Gateway.  Next, you ensure you have all relevant information about the asset you sold at your fingertips. That covers the acquisition price, costs of buying and selling the asset, and sales proceeds. You are required to calculate Capital Gains, prepare a document in either the PDF or JPEG file format, and attach it to the Report submitted to HMRC. This document must include the details of the gain that was incurred and the estimated tax that needs to be paid.

HMRC will provide you with a reference number and confirmation of your report submission and contact you with a confirmation of the tax due, a payment reference, and details on how to make that payment.