Ruicosta

Anyone have experience or know about capital gains tax on the sale of my house in the UK once I become a Portuguese resident?
My UK home has been my only primary home and residence to date but I am due to move to Portugal during December and hopefully gain a Portuguese residency certificate.
as far as I'm aware I become a Portuguese resident for tax purposes from the points I get my residency certificate.
My UK home is going up for sale but will not complete until in the new year at which point I will be a Portuguese resident.
Obviously the answer I'm looking for is to not have to pay capital gains tax in Portugal have it would seem extremely unfair and unreasonable considering it's my only UK home as opposed to an investment.
Any help would be a load of my mind.
Thanks in advance.

Andyj100

I think that as long as you buy a house in Portugal within the period allowed (18 months?) you should be OK. I think it would be worthwhile seeking advice so that you can make helpful statements and declarations to HMRC when you tell them you are no longer UK resident. There is a risk you will have to pay CGT within 30 days of the sale, but you may be able to reclaim that.

If the worst comes to the worst, if you are non-resident when the house is sold, and it was your primary residence and not rented out, and bearing in mind that only the post 2014 gain is liable for CGT for non residents, and you retain your CGT allowance, it's probably not as frightening as it may appear at first sight.

I used an advisor, Watts Woollett, who charged a couple of hundred quid. For me the saving was very significant as my place had been rented for quite a few years.

Red Eric

If you're transferring your residence to Portugal I think your best bet in safeguarding against PT CGT on the sale of your UK property after the move would be to apply for NHR tax status, assuming you're eligible (ie you haven't been tax resident in Portugal in any of the preceding 5 years).

Portugal does levy CGT on the sale of primary residences and although this could be offset against the purchase of another primary residence, you'd have to re-invest the total proceeds in order to get a complete exemption and you'd also have a limited time in which to complete the purchase of another property.

NHR would exempt you from tax on gains on the sale of foreign property and therefore give you far more freedom in terms of what you could do with the money without incurring any tax at that stage at this end.

Ruicosta

Sorry for late reply.
Really really appreciate you giving this some thought and I'm gonna take on board your suggestions.
Almost feels like a catch-22 and probably quite a rare occurrence until now maybe thanks to brexit?
I'll get legal advice and thanks for the recommendations.
Cheers

liveaboard

This sort of thing happens often, and it's a minefield; take one wrong step and BOOM, you're retirement plan is dead.
Don't sell, or buy, or emigrate, before getting specialist advice on your tax obligations and options.