Capital Gains Tax and Stamp Duty
The Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) has recently been consulting on Capital Gains Tax and Stamp Duty. UKSA and ShareSoc have submitted joint responses to each of these consultations.
- Capital Gains Tax (CGT)
Our view is that CGT:
- needs to be simplified.
- is unfair to individual investors in shares versus collectives.
- inhibits rational investment decisions.
- We believe that CGT could be made:
- fairer
- easier to work out
- easier to administer
- easier to collect.
A copy of our full submission to the OTS can be found here.
- Stamp Duty
Our view is that:
- The original rationale for stamp duty (the cost of the wax seal etc) is not just of historical interest. In this age of electronic transactions, these costs are no longer incurred and the original justification for the charge is no longer valid.
- Stamp Duty tax is levied on an unfair basis at present. Many of those that invest (for example high-frequency traders) do not pay it. Nor is stamp duty paid on overseas shares. This adds to the cost of investing in shares in the UK quoted market for individual investors. This is not only unfair but perverse.
We would like stamp duty STS to be set at a lower rate (say, 0.05%) and applied to all trades including high frequency trading, contracts for difference and spread betting.
A copy of our full response to the OTS can be found here.
