HMRC requires Capital Gains Tax due on UK residential property to be reported and paid within 60 days of completion. Non-UK residents must report disposals of UK property or land within the deadline even if no UK tax is payable.
UK and Australia property planning
UK Expat Property Sale Tax Checklist.
When you are selling property and have ties to both the UK and Australia, residency, capital gains tax, reporting deadlines, exchange rates and the destination of the proceeds can all matter at the same time.
Before the sale moves too far
Get the two tax systems into the same conversation.
A property sale can look straightforward until UK and Australian residency, CGT, foreign tax credits, currency and retirement planning are considered together.
This checklist is designed to help you get organised before you sell so you can have better conversations with your accountant, solicitor and financial adviser. It is a starting point, not a substitute for personal tax or legal advice.
UK Expat Property Sale Tax Checklist
Prepare the facts before the sale, then coordinate the tax and wealth decisions.
Priority review items are prompts to raise early. The correct tax treatment depends on residency, ownership history, property type and the facts of the transaction.
Overall progress0 of 39 items0% complete
Priority review0 of 21 itemsItems that may affect reporting, tax or settlement timing
01
Confirm your residency position
02
Gather the property records
03
Work through the tax questions before you sell
04
UK reporting and payment deadlines
05
Australian tax and reporting coordination
06
If you are selling Australian property while non-resident
07
Plan what happens to the proceeds
08
Coordinate the adviser team
0/39 prepared
Use the remaining items to identify the information and professional input still required before or after the sale.
Cross-border deadline checkpoints
Two rules worth having on the calendar.
These are general reference points only. Your accountant or tax adviser should confirm what applies to the actual property and residency position.
If you are an Australian tax resident, foreign gains and qualifying foreign tax paid may need to be reflected in the Australian return. A foreign income tax offset can be available subject to the Australian rules and treaty position.
For relevant Australian property transactions, the foreign resident capital gains withholding regime uses a 15% withholding rate and the previous $750,000 threshold has been removed for acquisitions from 1 January 2025. Australian resident vendors generally use an ATO clearance certificate to prevent withholding.
Tax rules and reporting processes can change. Confirm the current position for the year of sale before acting.
UK expat advice
Connect property, pensions, Australian super, currency and retirement decisions.
Explore the UK expat pathway →UK pension information
Organise scheme information and compare transfer and non-transfer questions separately from the property sale.
Prepare for a UK pension review →Retirement and proceeds
Decide how sale proceeds should fit with debt, super, investments and retirement income after tax is understood.
Explore retirement planning →
Continue the UK expat cluster
Prepare the UK pension information you may need →
Connect sale proceeds to wealth management →
Review estate and succession considerations →
Discuss the cross-border picture with AMGENT →
UK expat property FAQ
Common questions before a cross-border property sale.
Potentially, yes. The answer depends on tax residency, ownership and the nature of the property. The Australia-UK tax treaty and foreign tax offset rules can also matter, so the same transaction should be reviewed across both systems.
HMRC generally requires Capital Gains Tax due on UK residential property to be reported and paid within 60 days of completion. Non-UK residents must report disposals of UK property or land within the relevant deadline even where no UK tax is payable.
Useful records include ownership documents, original purchase and settlement information, improvement costs, legal and selling costs, rental records, historic valuations where relevant, sale documents, tax calculations and evidence of tax paid.
Not automatically. Currency, tax reserves, debt, investment timing, superannuation and retirement needs should be considered before deciding where the proceeds should sit and in which currency.
Coordinate the timing and tax modelling rather than assuming the property sale and pension decision are unrelated. The correct sequence depends on the facts and should be reviewed with the relevant specialists.
Bring the cross-border picture together
Property is one part of the plan.
Use the checklist to organise the facts, then connect the sale to pensions, Australian super, retirement, estate planning and the destination of the proceeds.
General information and preparation tool only
This checklist does not determine tax residency, calculate a tax liability, provide UK or Australian tax advice, or recommend a property, pension, currency or investment transaction. Cross-border tax and legal matters may require appropriately qualified specialists in both jurisdictions.