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Can I use apportionment back to 1988 when considering capital gains tax?

Question:
I bought a property in 1988, and lived in it as my main residence until 2005. I became non-resident in 2005, and rented out the property with UK tax paid on rental income. I then sold a 54% interest to a family member, but retained principal residence status in 2012. The property was rented out and UK tax paid on rental income. I wish to sell the retained interest in future. Can I use apportionment back to 1988 when considering capital gains tax (CGT)?

Arthur Weller replies:
As I understand it, you are currently non-UK resident, so only the gain from April 2015 until the date of sale is liable to CGT. If you look at www.gov.uk/guidance/capital-gains-tax-for-non-residents-calculating-taxable-gain-or-loss, you can see that you can use apportionment to calculate the taxable gain.

I bought a property in 1988, and lived in it as my main residence until 2005. I became non-resident in 2005, and rented out the property with UK tax paid on rental income. I then sold a 54% interest to a family member, but retained principal
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This question was first printed in Tax Insider in December 2017.