Capital Gains Rollovers

There are circumstances in which taxable capital gains can be deferred or attached to other assets, which is described as a ‘rollover’.

This results in CGT not being immediately payable. Under a CGT rollover relief scenario, the capital gains consequences are not dealt with until the replacement asset is disposed of, or some other CGT event occurs.

When available, rollover relief in some instances allows the pre-CGT status to be preserved, or otherwise to keep the cost base and CGT status of a transferred asset.

Categories of rollover relief include asset swaps, or when the formal ownership of a CGT asset is changed, but the underlying ownership hasn’t changed.

When Can CGT Rollovers Relief Be Claimed?

Rollovers are available under various conditions:

• marriage or relationship breakdown
• loss, destruction or compulsory acquisition
• scrip for scrip rollovers
• demergers
• other replacement-asset rollovers
• other same-asset rollovers

Small Business Rollovers

The small business rollover allows the deferral of a capital gain made from the disposal of an active asset.

The deferral is for up to two years for the acquisition of a replacement asset.

See in detail: Small business rollover

Further information

• Rollovers – ATO
• Applying the small business restructure rollover
• LCG 2016/2 Small Business Restructure Roll-over: consequences of a roll-over
• LCG 2016/3 Small Business Restructure Roll-over: genuine restructure of an ongoing business and related matters.
• Article: Board of Taxation Review of CGT Restructure Rollovers – BDO
• Capital gains tax concessions for small business

This page was last modified on 2021-06-18