Australian Capital Gains Tax Calculator 2026-27

How the ATO Calculates Capital Gains Tax in 2026-27

The Australian Capital Gains Tax (CGT) calculator uses the 2026-27 tax brackets published by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) to estimate the CGT payable on disposal of investment properties, shares, cryptocurrency, and other capital assets. CGT in Australia is not a separate tax — it is an additional component of your income tax, added to your assessable income for the year the CGT event occurred.

The gross capital gain equals the sale price minus the cost base. The cost base includes the original purchase price, incidental acquisition costs (stamp duty, legal fees, conveyancing), any capital improvements made during ownership, and incidental disposal costs (agent commission, advertising, legal fees at sale). According to the ATO (ato.gov.au), ongoing expenses such as loan interest, council rates, insurance, and general repairs are not part of the cost base for investors — though they may already be deducted as rental expenses.

The 50% CGT Discount: Who Qualifies in 2026-27

The 50% CGT discount is one of the most significant tax concessions for Australian individual investors. Introduced on 21 September 1999, the discount is available to individuals, trust beneficiaries, and (under modified rules) SMSFs. Companies do not qualify. To access the discount, you must have held the asset for more than 12 months before the CGT event. For property, the 12-month clock starts on the contract exchange date — not settlement. For shares, it starts on the trade date.

The practical impact is substantial. For an individual on the 32% marginal rate (including Medicare levy) in 2026-27, the effective CGT rate on a long-term gain is just 16%. At the top 47% marginal rate, the effective long-term rate is 23.5%. Short-term gains held under 12 months attract the full marginal rate — a meaningful difference that makes the holding period decision financially significant.

For SMSFs in accumulation phase, the discount is one-third (33.33%), so two-thirds of the gain is included in assessable income. Combined with the 15% fund tax rate, the effective CGT rate for an SMSF on a long-term gain is approximately 10%. Assets held in pension phase attract zero CGT as fund income is fully tax-exempt in that phase.

2026-27 Australian Tax Brackets and Effective CGT Rates

The 2026-27 individual income tax rates updated under the Stage 3 tax cuts schedule are used in this calculator. Capital gains are stacked on top of other income and the marginal rate applied to the gain depends on which bracket the total income falls into. Source: ATO (ato.gov.au).

CGT Rules for Property, Shares, and Cryptocurrency

Investment property is the most common CGT asset for Australians. The cost base includes purchase price, stamp duty, conveyancing and legal fees, and capital improvements such as structural renovations, extensions, and new fixtures. Ongoing deductions (interest, rates, depreciation) do not reduce the cost base. If the property was your main residence at any point, a partial main residence exemption may apply under section 118-110 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997. Full exemption applies when the home was always your primary residence.

For listed shares and ETFs, each parcel has its own cost base including brokerage. The 50% discount is calculated per parcel held over 12 months. Dividend reinvestment plan (DRP) shares have their own separate cost base and their own 12-month clock. The ATO allows specific identification or first-in-first-out matching to determine which parcels are sold.

Cryptocurrency is treated as a capital asset by the ATO, not as currency. Every disposal — converting to AUD, swapping for another coin, or spending crypto on goods — is a CGT event. The cost base is the AUD value at acquisition plus transaction fees. The ATO receives data from Australian exchanges directly through data-matching programs. The 50% discount applies for crypto held more than 12 months. Last updated: July 2026. Source: ato.gov.au — Crypto asset investments.

Tips to Legally Reduce Your CGT Bill

There are several ATO-approved strategies Australian investors use to minimise CGT. Holding assets for at least 12 months before disposal is the most impactful single decision — it halves the taxable gain for individuals. Timing a sale in a year when your other income is lower (for example, during a career break or before retirement) can reduce the marginal rate applied to the gain. Offsetting capital gains with any realised capital losses from the same year or carried-forward losses reduces the net gain before the discount is applied.

Super contributions in the year of sale can reduce taxable income, potentially dropping you into a lower bracket where the CGT gain is taxed. The main residence exemption fully shelters the family home from CGT. For property investors, keeping meticulous records of all cost base components — including original stamp duty receipts from settlement years ago — can meaningfully reduce the calculated gain at sale. This calculator provides estimates only and does not account for prior-year losses, LITO, Medicare Levy Surcharge, or small business CGT concessions. Consult a registered tax agent for personalised advice.

Small Business CGT Concessions 2026-27 — 4 Tests & the $1.625M Threshold

Small business owners selling an active business asset can dramatically reduce or eliminate CGT under the ATO Small Business CGT Concessions. To qualify, you must meet the basic conditions: (1) you are a CGT small business entity with aggregated turnover under $2 million, OR your net asset value (you + connected/affiliated entities) is under $6 million; (2) the asset is an "active asset" used in carrying on a business; (3) if a share/trust interest, the entity must satisfy the modified active asset test. Once qualified, you can stack up to four concessions:

• 15-year exemption — fully exempts the gain if you held the asset for 15+ years and are 55+ years old retiring (or permanently incapacitated). Best concession; uses up nothing else.
• 50% active asset reduction — halves the assessable gain after the standard 50% individual discount, taking many gains to 25% of nominal.
• Retirement exemption — exempts up to $500,000 lifetime per individual. If you are under 55, the amount must be paid into super.
• Rollover — defers the gain by 2 years (or until a replacement active asset is acquired and used).

For 2026-27, the CGT cap (the lifetime amount that can be contributed to super under small business CGT concessions without counting toward your non-concessional cap) is $1.865 million. Combined with the standard discount and the four concessions, an eligible small business owner can often dispose of a multi-million-dollar business with little to no net CGT — but the eligibility tests are strict and audit-sensitive. Engage a registered tax agent before any sale negotiation; the structuring decisions must be made before contract signing, not after.

Updated 2026-07-09. Source: Australian Taxation Office — Small business CGT concessions.

CGT for Non-Residents and Temporary Residents — 2026-27 Rules After Property Sale

If you are a foreign or temporary resident of Australia for tax purposes, the CGT rules tighten significantly. The 50% individual discount is not available for non-residents on any portion of a gain accrued while you were a non-resident (since 8 May 2012). For property held continuously by a non-resident, that means the full nominal gain is taxable — no 12-month halving. Per the ATO Tax Residency guidance, the residence status at each day the gain accrued determines the apportionment, so a citizen who moved overseas mid-ownership gets a partial discount only on the resident portion.

Main residence exemption has also been removed for foreign residents since 1 July 2020 (transition period ended 30 June 2020). A non-resident selling their former Australian primary home pays CGT on the full gain — even if they lived in it for 20 years prior. Exception: if you move overseas after sale but exchange contracts before becoming non-resident, the exemption can still apply. For property settlements above AUD $750,000, the buyer must withhold 12.5% of the sale price and remit to the ATO under the foreign resident capital gains withholding rules — even if the seller is actually an Australian resident, unless they produce an ATO clearance certificate.

Temporary residents (most working-holiday visa holders, 457/482 sponsored workers) are exempt from CGT on most foreign assets but pay full CGT on any Australian taxable real property. Always confirm residency status at exchange-of-contracts date, not settlement date — that is the CGT event date under the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997. Cross-check using our Australia income tax calculator for the year-of-sale marginal rate the gain will be added to.

Capital Gains Tax Calculator Australia — 2026-27 Tax Brackets & Stage 3 Cut Impact

Because capital gains stack on top of other income at marginal rates, the 2026-27 individual tax brackets directly change your CGT bill. Per the ATO Australian resident tax rates 2026-27: nil to $18,200 is tax-free; 16% to $45,000; 30% to $135,000; 37% to $190,000; 45% above. The Stage 3 tax cuts (effective 1 July 2024) collapsed the middle 32.5% and 37% brackets into a single 30% band up to $135,000 — a meaningful cut for CGT payers whose gains push total income between $45K-$135K. Practical impact: a $15,000 capital gain (after 50% discount = $7,500 assessable) added to a $65,000 base salary now taxes the CGT slice at 30% (was 32.5% pre-Stage 3), saving $187 on this single trade — and materially more on larger gains. Medicare Levy (2%) still applies on top; Medicare Levy Surcharge (1-1.5%) may apply if you have no private health cover and total income exceeds the surcharge thresholds.

Source: ATO Individual income tax rates 2026-27. Updated 2026-07-09.

Australian CGT Record-Keeping Requirements — 5-Year Rule & Digital Assets

The ATO requires taxpayers to keep CGT records for 5 years after the year the CGT event occurred, per the ATO's official CGT record-keeping guidance. Missing records = the ATO can substitute cost base at zero, so a $200,000 sale with lost purchase records becomes a $200,000 assessable gain regardless of what you actually paid. Required documentation: date of acquisition, purchase price, incidental costs (stamp duty, legal, buyer's agent), improvement costs, holding period evidence, sale documents, and receipts for any capital-cost expenditures. Cryptocurrency transactions specifically require exchange records for every trade — including crypto-to-crypto swaps that most retail investors don't realise are CGT events under Australian tax law. For shares held on ASX, brokers like CommSec and NABtrade retain 7 years of trade history in their portals; download the CSV before switching brokers. For property, keep the original contract of sale (not just the settlement statement) — the exchange date, not settlement, sets the CGT event D1 date.

Updated 2026-07-17. Source: ATO Guidance — Records you need to keep for CGT purposes + ATO Tax Determination TD 2014/26.

Capital Gains Tax Calculator Australia — Quick-Use Worked Example

A typical run with this capital gains tax calculator Australia: a Sydney investor bought BHP shares for $20,000 in March 2023, sold them in April 2026 for $35,000, with $80,000 of other taxable income. Step 1 — gross gain: $35,000 − $20,000 = $15,000. Step 2 — apply the 50% individual CGT discount (held >12 months): assessable gain = $7,500. Step 3 — add to other income: $87,500 total taxable. Step 4 — marginal rate on the $7,500 slice is 30% (the $45,001–$135,000 bracket) plus 2% Medicare levy = 32%. CGT owed: $2,400 on a $15,000 gain.

The same trade inside a company structure: no 50% discount, full $15,000 taxed at the 25% small-business company rate = $3,750. Inside an SMSF (accumulation): one-third discount, $10,000 assessable × 15% super tax = $1,500. The structure decision matters more than the timing for most investors — see ato.gov.au Capital gains tax for the official 2026-27 thresholds before lodging.