Guide

How to Report Capital Gains Tax on a UK Property Sale (the 60-Day Return)

Written by James Whitfield · Last checked 18 October 2026 Checked against GOV.UK and HMRC guidance

Quick answer

If you sell a UK home that was not your main home and there is Capital Gains Tax to pay, you file a UK property return online and pay the tax within 60 days of completion.¹ You sign in to a Capital Gains Tax on UK property account, enter the dates, prices, costs and reliefs, and pay using the 14-character reference beginning with X that HMRC gives you.³ If you file Self Assessment, the sale goes on your tax return as well.

Key facts

The 60 days run from completion, not exchange. A sale completing on 14 November 2026 must be reported and paid by 13 January 2027.¹
UK residents only file when there is tax to pay. Non-residents must report every UK property or land sale, even with no tax due.²
2026/27 rates on residential property: 18% within your unused basic-rate band and 24% above it, after the £3,000 allowance.⁵
Joint owners each file for their own share of the gain.¹
The return asks for an estimate of your income for the year, so the 18%/24% split is provisional and is finalised through Self Assessment.

Do you need to file a 60-day return?

Work through these in order. You need a return if every answer is yes:

Is it UK residential property? Houses, flats and buy-to-lets in the UK. Shares, crypto, overseas property and commercial property (for UK residents) are reported through Self Assessment or HMRC's real-time service instead: see how to report other gains.
Did the sale complete on or after 6 April 2020? Earlier sales go through Self Assessment only.
Is there tax to pay? After deducting allowable costs, any Private Residence Relief, losses and your £3,000 allowance, is there a taxable gain? If not, a UK resident does not file.¹

Gifts count too. Giving a property to anyone other than your spouse, civil partner or a charity is a disposal at market value, so a 60-day return can be due even though no money changed hands. See gifting property to children.

What information do you need before you start?

GOV.UK lists what the return asks for.¹ Gather it first; the completion statement from your solicitor covers most of the sale figures.

Checklist for the UK property return

Property address and postcode	Title deeds or sale contract
Date you acquired it	Purchase completion statement
Exchange date and completion date of the sale	Sale completion statement
What you paid (or market value if gifted or inherited)	Purchase statement or probate valuation
Sale price (or market value if you gave it away)	Sale statement or valuation
Costs of buying, selling and improving	Invoices, Stamp Duty return, agent's bill
Reliefs you are claiming	Dates you lived there, for Private Residence Relief
Estimate of your 2026/27 taxable income	Payslips, pension and rental figures

Not sure which costs qualify? Our allowable costs guide lists what HMRC accepts and what it does not.

How do you file the return, step by step?

Work out the gain first. Sale price, minus what you paid, minus allowable costs and reliefs, minus losses and the £3,000 allowance. The property CGT calculator does this with 2026/27 rates.⁴
Sign in to the Capital Gains Tax on UK property service from the GOV.UK "Report and pay your Capital Gains Tax" page. If you have never used it, you create your sign-in details and the account the first time.¹
Start a new return for the property and enter the dates, the figures and your share if you owned it jointly.
Enter reliefs and losses. Private Residence Relief for any period it was your main home, the final 9 months, and losses you want to use.
Give your estimated income for the tax year. This decides how much of the gain is charged at 18%.
Check and submit. Keep a digital or printed copy of the return.
Pay by the 60th day using your X reference: online by debit card, through your bank, or by Faster Payments, CHAPS or Bacs to HMRC's account.³
Put the sale on your Self Assessment return for 2026/27 if you file one, by 31 January 2028. The tax already paid is taken into account.

Can't use the online service? You can fill in the online form, print it and post it to HMRC. Allow for postage, because the deadline is the same.¹

Want the whole process on paper first, with a 60-day action plan and a property gain worksheet? get the CGT Survival Pack, £4.99 →

Worked example: a buy-to-let sold in November 2026

Priya exchanges on 31 October 2026 and completes on 14 November 2026. She bought the flat in 2016 for £210,000 and paid £9,500 in Stamp Duty and legal fees. She added a loft bedroom for £15,000. It sells for £320,000 with £5,800 of agent and legal fees. Her salary for 2026/27 is £40,000, so after the £12,570 personal allowance she has £10,270 of basic-rate band left (£37,700 − £27,430).

What Priya enters and pays

Sale price	£320,000
Less purchase price	−£210,000
Less buying costs	−£9,500
Less improvement (loft bedroom)	−£15,000
Less selling costs	−£5,800
Gain	£79,700
Less annual exempt amount	−£3,000
Taxable gain	£76,700
£10,270 at 18%	£1,848.60
£66,430 at 24%	£15,943.20
CGT to pay by 13 January 2027	£17,791.80

If Priya's income for the year turns out higher, less of the gain falls at 18% and the balance is collected through her 2026/27 Self Assessment return; if it is lower, she gets the difference back there.

What happens if you own the property jointly?

Each owner reports and pays on their own share, uses their own £3,000 allowance and their own basic-rate band. If one owner's share produces no tax, that owner does not file (if UK resident), while the other still must. Married couples and civil partners can use this to their advantage before a sale: see CGT between spouses.

Reporting for someone else or for an estate

Attorneys and deputies use their own account and give proof of authority, such as a lasting power of attorney.¹
Executors report the estate's sale through their own account and give the date of death. They cannot pay through the account; HMRC sends payment instructions. Estates pay 24% on the whole gain: see CGT for executors.
Agents, such as accountants, use a separate HMRC route to file for clients.

Can you change a return after filing it?

Yes, for your own returns, through the same account: for example if a final invoice arrives or your income estimate was wrong. GOV.UK says you cannot change a return online for 2023/24 or earlier, or once you have sent your Self Assessment return for that tax year; in those cases the correction goes through Self Assessment.¹ Returns made for someone else are changed on the paper form.

What if you have missed the 60 days?

File and pay as soon as you can. A late return costs £100 straight away, more after 3, 6 and 12 months, and interest runs on unpaid tax from day 61. Our guide to late 60-day return penalties sets out each charge and when an appeal can succeed.

Work out the figure first

Enter your sale price, purchase price, costs and income to see the gain and the 18%/24% split the return will show.

Open the property CGT calculator

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to file a 60-day return if no CGT is due?

Not if you are UK resident. The 60-day return is only needed when there is Capital Gains Tax to pay, so a sale fully covered by Private Residence Relief, the £3,000 allowance or losses does not need one. Non-residents must report every UK property or land disposal, even with no tax to pay.

When does the 60 days start?

From the completion date, not exchange. Exchange decides which tax year the gain falls in, but the 60 days to report and pay run from completion.

Do I still need to put the sale on my Self Assessment return?

Yes, if you file Self Assessment. GOV.UK says you must also include details of the sale on your tax return. The tax you paid with the property return is taken into account, and the final figure is settled through Self Assessment.

Can I file the 60-day return by post?

Yes. HMRC has a paper version: you fill in the online form, print it and post it. You need to allow for post, because the 60-day deadline still applies.

Can I change a 60-day return after filing it?

You can change your own return online through your Capital Gains Tax on UK property account, unless it is for 2023/24 or earlier or you have already sent your Self Assessment return for the same tax year. Returns made for someone else are changed by post.

How do executors pay CGT on an estate property sale?

Personal representatives report through their own account but cannot pay through it. HMRC tells them how to pay after the return is filed.

This page is general information, not tax advice. It reflects GOV.UK guidance as checked on 18 October 2026. If your sale involves partial Private Residence Relief, non-residence or a trust, consider professional advice.

Sources & references

The rates, allowances and rules in this guide are drawn from the official HMRC and GOV.UK sources below, checked for the 2026/27 tax year. Each link opens the relevant government page in a new tab.

Verified against published HMRC and GOV.UK guidance.