Capital Gains Tax Receipts Hit £24.3bn Under Streeting
Capital gains tax brought in £24.3bn in 2025-26 after the annual exempt amount was cut to £3,000, up from £13.7bn the year before. Clare Stinton, senior personal finance analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said the levy is proving to be a "decent cash machine for the taxman".
The rise was almost 80% and took receipts to more than three times the 2017-18 level. The Office for Budget Responsibility predicted capital gains tax receipts will reach £35bn in 2030-31, extending a climb that has accelerated as the allowance was reduced from £12,300 until 2022-23 to £6,000 and then to £3,000.
Clare Stinton and the allowance cut
The lower allowance means more gains are being pushed into the tax system. Higher-rate taxpayers now pay 24% on their gains after the October 2024 budget, while basic-rate taxpayers pay 18% on the lower rate depending on the size of the gain and their taxable income.
Stinton’s comment came as more taxpayers are being drawn into capital gains tax, not only those with the largest investment portfolios. The tax applies to profits from investments not held in an Isa, property that is not a main home, and most personal possessions worth £6,000 or more apart from a car.
Wes Streeting and Isa limits
Wes Streeting said plans for a wealth tax would "make the system fairer and mean higher bills for many of those affected". His remarks sit against a system where legitimate allowances still shape how much tax people can owe on a gain.
UK residents aged 18-plus can invest up to £20,000 each per tax year in an Isa, and parents can fund a junior Isa with up to £9,000 per child per tax year. Elsa Littlewood, tax partner at BDO, said those limits amount to "making a total of £58,000 for a family of four".
Elsa Littlewood on losses
Investors can also offset losses against taxable gains in 2026-27 or later years if they claim through their tax return. Littlewood said: "So matching gains and losses can cut the overall tax bill."
That gives affected savers a practical route to limit liability before returns are filed, especially now that the annual exempt amount has dropped to £3,000 and more gains fall into charge. The figure that matters most for planning is the gain itself, because the threshold no longer shelters the level of profit it once did.
