In the last tax year, only 369,000 taxpayers paid capital gains tax (CGT), a decrease of 40,000 from the previous year. This resulted in a £2.5bn drop in revenue, down to £14.4bn. Despite the overall reduction, CGT from residential property sales rose to £1.6bn.
High-income individuals had a significant impact, with those earning £5 million or more contributing 41% of total CGT payments, despite representing just 1% of all CGT taxpayers. Furthermore, 44% of CGT was paid by people earning over £150,000.
London and the South East continued to dominate, providing 50% of the CGT payments, mirroring trends from previous years. The remaining regions in the UK had a more even distribution of CGT liability.
Age-wise, taxpayers aged 55 to 64 were the largest contributors, generating £26.7bn in gains and paying £4.7bn in CGT. Notably, a thousand taxpayers aged 15 or younger collectively paid £5m in CGT.
While the total number of taxpayers and gains decreased, specific segments, such as high-income earners and certain age groups, contributed significantly to the CGT revenue.
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