CG14260 - Computation: rules determining date of disposal

TCGA92/S28, TCGA92/S246, TCGA92/S22 (2) & TCGA92/S71 (1)

The rules governing the date of a disposal depend on the nature of the disposal.

• If the disposal is made under an unconditional contract the date of disposal is the date the contract is made. It is not the later date when the asset is conveyed or transferred to the purchaser.
• If the contract is conditional the date of disposal is the date all of the conditions are satisfied.
• Contracts are covered in more detail in CG14261+.
• Where land is acquired under compulsory purchase powers the date of disposal is the date when the compensation is agreed or determined by a Tribunal (the disposal date remains the same even if this amount is varied on appeal). Where the authority entered onto the land in a year prior to the introduction of Self Assessment the date of disposal is the earlier of the date on which the amount of compensation is agreed or determined or the date on which the authority entered onto the land.
• A debt is disposed of when it is repaid, assigned or extinguished.
• The date of a disposal by gift (including a gift in settlement) is the date when the beneficial ownership passes. To be effective the transfer must be in the form required by general law for the particular type of asset. In the case of a gift of a chattel, the gift is effective when the chattel is delivered. See CG35700+ for gifts in settlement.
• The date of a disposal within paragraphs (a) to (d) of TCGA92/S22 (1) is the date when the capital sum is received. See CG12960.
• In the case of a transfer by trustees to a beneficiary, there has been a disposal at the date when the beneficiary became absolutely entitled to the asset. See CG37000+. The actual transfer to the beneficiary is not a further disposal.