Capital gains tax could be about to rise as Chancellor Rishi Sunak seeks to raise funds and decrease Government borrowing, according to a report in the Express.
Speculation of this originally emerged after the publication of a report by the Office for Tax Simplification (OTS), which recommended aligning capital gains tax and income tax rates.
Taxpayers currently face two rates on capital gains tax – basic-rate taxpayers pay 10% and 18% on qualifying assets property respectively, while higher-rate taxpayers pay 20% on assets and 28% on property.
If the Government were to align capital gains tax rates with income tax rates, savers could pay a 45% rate on disposal of a qualifying asset or property they sell for a profit. It would, however, also raise £14 billion a year for the public purse, according to the OTS.
Some experts are concerned about the potential for an increase, including the Taxpayers’ Alliance, a pressure group advocating lower taxes, which said:
“Capital gains tax is a double tax that harms investment, which is precisely what we should avoid if we want to kickstart growth and help create jobs.”
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