Main residence exemption lost for foreign residents – 30th June 2020 deadline

The new rules

The new rules exclude foreign residents from accessing the main residence exemption and apply to CGT events that occur from 9 May 2017 onwards.

Under the new rules, if you are a non-resident for tax purposes at the time you sell your main residence, you will no longer be able to access the main residence exemption and you will need to pay CGT on any gain you make (subject to transitional rules and an exclusion). These new rules apply regardless of whether you were an Australian resident for part of the time you owned the property and no apportionment applies – the exemption simply does or does not apply depending on your residency status for tax purposes at the time the CGT event is triggered.

However, if you are a resident of Australia at the time of the CGT event, then you may be able to access the main residence exemption, even if you have been a non-resident for some or most of the ownership period. For example, an expat who maintains their main residence in Australia could return to Australia, become a resident for tax purposes again, then sell the property and if applicable, access the main residence exemption (the new rules contain provisions that will deny the exemption where someone attempts to avoid the new rules by deliberately structuring their affairs to access the exemption – for example, transferring the property to a related party).

The new rules do not impact on Australian tax residents.

The transitional rules until 30 June 2020

Transitional rules are in place for non-resident taxpayers who would have been able to access the main residence exemption prior to the changes. The transitional rules enable someone who held property continuously from 9 May 2017 to apply the existing rules if the CGT event occurs on or before 30 June 2020. This gives non-residents a limited period of time to sell their property and obtain some tax relief under the main residence rules.

Courtesy of Knowledge Shop news