What is the history of the Capital Gains Tax annual exempt amount?

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The Capital Gains Tax Annual Exempt Amount (AEA) shields a certain level of gains from CGT each year. Here is the history of the AEA for individuals from 2015 onwards. 2015/16: GBP11,100. 2016/17: GBP11,100. 2017/18: GBP11,300. 2018/19: GBP11,700. 2019/20: GBP12,000. 2020/21: GBP12,300. 2021/22: GBP12,300. 2022/23: GBP12,300 -- the peak. 2023/24: GBP6,000 -- cut by 51% in one step (announced Autumn Statement 2022). 2024/25: GBP3,000 -- cut by a further 50%. 2025/26: GBP3,000. 2026/27: GBP3,000. The reductions were announced by then-Chancellor Jeremy Hunt in November 2022 as part of a package to raise tax revenues. The stated rationale was that the GBP12,300 AEA was more than twice the average in comparable countries. The practical impact is significant: an investor with GBP15,000 of gains in 2022/23 would have paid CGT on GBP2,700 (GBP15,000 minus GBP12,300 AEA). In 2026/27 the same investor pays CGT on GBP12,000 (GBP15,000 minus GBP3,000 AEA) -- nearly 4.5 times as much taxable gain. This makes tax-loss harvesting (realising capital losses to offset gains) and timing of asset disposals more valuable than before. Strategies to make the most of the reduced AEA include: using a spouse or civil partner's unused AEA (each person gets GBP3,000 separately), bed and ISA (selling and repurchasing within an ISA to shelter future gains), and spreading disposals across tax years to use the AEA each year. CGT rates in 2026/27: 10% basic rate, 20% higher/additional rate on most assets; 18% and 24% on residential property; 18% BADR rate on qualifying business assets (subject to GBP1 million lifetime limit).

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