Australia Capital Gains Calculator

Capital gains in Australia are added to your assessable income and taxed at your marginal rate - there's no separate capital gains tax rate. The big concession: assets held more than 12 months get a 50% CGT discount, meaning only half the gain is included in income. So an asset sold for a $20,000 gain after holding 18 months adds $10,000 to your income; sold after 6 months adds the full $20,000.

On a $50,000 gain held 2 years at a 37% marginal rate: included gain $25,000, tax $9,250 = effective 18.5% on the full gain. The same gain held 6 months: tax $18,500 = 37%. The 12-month threshold creates strong incentive to hold investments past the year mark.

Your primary home is fully exempt from CGT under the main residence exemption. You can have only one main residence at a time (with limited 6-year overlap allowance for moving and renting out an old home). Using your home for income (renting a room, running a business) reduces the exemption proportionally based on space used and time used.

Foreign residents lost the main residence exemption from 2019 onwards - if you become a non-resident before selling your Australian home, you owe CGT on the entire gain since 1985 (when CGT was introduced). Many expats rushed to sell before mid-2020 transition rules ended. Always check residency status before disposing of your home if you've lived overseas.

Cost base = purchase price + acquisition costs (stamp duty, conveyancing) + holding costs in some circumstances + improvement costs. For investment property, cost base also includes building depreciation claimed (which is then 'recaptured' on sale). Records spanning 20+ years matter for properties held a long time.

Capital losses carry forward indefinitely against future capital gains (cannot offset other income). The 50% discount applies before applying losses - so a $50k gain offset by a $20k loss = $30k net gain, then 50% discount on that. Active trading and margin lending complicate matters; many traders accidentally lose discount eligibility by inadvertent share lending arrangements.

Crypto-to-crypto trades trigger CGT events on the disposed asset. Crypto received as payment for services is income, not capital. ATO has data-matching agreements with Australian exchanges; non-disclosure is high-risk. Keep detailed records of every transaction - trading date, AUD value at trade time, fees paid.

Foreign property and shares are CGT assets for Australian tax residents. Currency conversion at acquisition and sale dates affects the AUD-denominated gain. Foreign tax paid on the gain may be creditable against Australian tax to avoid double taxation. The [Australia Income Tax Calculator](/australia-income-tax-calculator) handles the income flow-through.