Using the CGT discount

September 15, 2015 10:55 pm | Published by | Categorised in:

A capital gain is a profit made from the sale of an asset. Your capital gain is calculated as the difference between what you paid for the asset and what you eventually sold it for. A capital gain is considered by the ATO as part of your assessable income and is taxed at your marginal rate.

There is, however, a discount that may be applied to capital gains. If you have held the asset for over twelve months, you may be eligible for a 50% discount on the CGT. The CGT discount is also available to trusts and superannuation funds, although for superannuation funds the discount is only 33.3%. The discount is not available to companies.

Of course, there are occasions where you may have to dispose of an asset for less than you originally paid for it. Unfortunately, you are unable to use ‘capital losses’ to reduce your assessable income. However, you are able to carry the loss over to the subsequent income year and use it to offset future CGT liabilities.