Capital Gains Tax in Ireland: How Much CGT Do You Pay?

If you sell shares, an investment property, cryptocurrency, land or another asset for more than it cost you, Capital Gains Tax (CGT) may apply to the profit.

For most gains in Ireland, the current CGT rate is 33%.

But you do not simply pay 33% of the sale price.

CGT is generally calculated on the chargeable gain after allowable acquisition costs, disposal costs, enhancement expenditure, allowable losses, exemptions and reliefs. Individuals also have a €1,270 annual personal exemption.

This guide reflects Revenue rules checked on 30 September 2026. Some assets — especially investment funds, development land, businesses and property qualifying for relief — can have different rules, so use this as a general guide rather than a substitute for advice on a large or unusual transaction.

Capital Gains Tax in Ireland at a glance

The tax payment and the tax return are separate obligations.

That is one of the most important practical points in Irish CGT: you can have to pay the tax months before the return itself is due.

What is Capital Gains Tax?

CGT is a tax on the gain made when you dispose of a chargeable asset.

A disposal does not only mean selling something for cash.

Revenue’s rules can also apply where an asset is:

• sold;
• gifted;
• exchanged;
• transferred;
• or otherwise disposed of.

For a simple sale, the starting calculation is:

Sale proceeds − allowable cost − allowable expenses = chargeable gain.

From the year’s overall gains you then consider allowable losses, reliefs and the individual’s annual exemption before applying the relevant CGT rate.

What assets can CGT apply to?

Revenue lists a wide range of assets that can fall within CGT, including:

• land;
• houses, apartments and commercial buildings;
• shares in Irish or foreign companies;
• goodwill, patents and copyright;
• foreign currency;
• assets of a trade;
• certain foreign life policies and offshore funds;
• antiques, paintings and jewellery;
• and other chargeable assets.

Crypto-assets can also create CGT disposals for individuals in many ordinary investment situations.

The classification matters because not every investment or asset is taxed under the standard CGT system.

For example, many investment funds and ETFs can fall under a separate Irish fund-tax regime rather than ordinary 33% CGT. Our broader Investment Tax in Ireland guide explains the difference.

How is CGT calculated?

For a straightforward asset sale, work through the calculation in this order.

Step 1: Start with the disposal proceeds

This is usually the amount you receive for the asset.

If you gift an asset, sell it below market value to help the buyer, or dispose of an inherited asset, Revenue can require market value to be used instead.

Step 2: Deduct the acquisition cost

This is usually what you paid for the asset.

If you inherited the asset, the relevant acquisition value for a later disposal can be based on the market value used at inheritance rather than what the deceased originally paid.

Step 3: Deduct allowable expenses

Revenue allows certain costs in calculating the gain.

These can include:

• qualifying costs of buying the asset;
• qualifying costs of selling it;
• solicitor or auctioneer fees in relevant cases;
• and capital expenditure that adds value to the asset.

Routine running costs are not automatically allowable simply because they relate to the asset.

Step 4: Combine gains for the tax year

If you have several chargeable gains in one year, they are considered together for the annual CGT calculation.

Step 5: Deduct allowable losses

Allowable capital losses can generally reduce chargeable gains, subject to the rules for the particular assets.

Unused allowable losses can in many cases be carried forward to a later chargeable period.

Step 6: Apply the €1,270 annual exemption

An individual currently has a €1,270 annual personal exemption.

It applies to the year’s gains after losses.

It is not €1,270 per transaction, and it is not a €1,270 tax credit.

Step 7: Apply the CGT rate

For most gains, the standard rate is 33%.

There are other rates for particular types of gains, so do not force every investment into the standard calculation.

Worked example: selling shares for a profit

Suppose you bought direct company shares for €10,000.

You later sell them for €18,000 and have €300 of allowable acquisition/disposal costs in total.

Assume:

• no other gains;
• no allowable losses;
• full €1,270 annual exemption available;
• standard 33% CGT treatment applies.

The calculation is:

• sale proceeds: €18,000
• purchase cost: €10,000
• allowable costs: €300
• chargeable gain: €7,700
• annual exemption: €1,270
• taxable gain: €6,430
• CGT at 33%: €2,121.90

The tax is on the gain after allowable deductions, not on the €18,000 sale proceeds.

The €1,270 exemption: the mistake to avoid

The annual personal exemption is small, but it is frequently misunderstood.

It does not mean:

“I can make €1,270 on every sale tax-free.”

It means an individual can exempt up to €1,270 of total qualifying net gains for the tax year.

If one disposal has already used the full exemption, there is no second €1,270 exemption for another disposal later that year.

The exemption also cannot simply be transferred to a spouse or civil partner.

At a 33% CGT rate, fully using the €1,270 exemption reduces CGT by up to €419.10 compared with having no exemption.

How capital losses work

An allowable capital loss can be valuable because it may reduce a chargeable gain.

Revenue states that an allowable loss can generally be deducted from chargeable gains in the same tax year, subject to exceptions.

If you do not have enough gains to use the loss that year, the loss can generally be carried forward and used against a future chargeable gain.

Example: gain and loss in the same year

Suppose you have:

• a €12,000 chargeable gain on one asset;
• a €4,000 allowable loss on another;
• no other gains or losses;
• full annual exemption available.

The simplified calculation is:

• gain: €12,000
• less allowable loss: €4,000
• net gain: €8,000
• less annual exemption: €1,270
• taxable gain: €6,730
• CGT at 33%: €2,220.90

Loss rules can become more complicated for certain assets, including development land and connected-party transactions, so a loss should not automatically be assumed to be usable.

CGT on shares in Ireland

Direct company shares are a common CGT example.

Revenue says shares acquired on different dates can require specific identification rules.

For shares of the same class acquired on different dates, Revenue’s ordinary rule is first in, first out (FIFO): the oldest shares are generally treated as disposed of first.

That matters because the purchase price attached to the shares being sold determines the gain.

Example: why FIFO matters

Imagine you bought:

• 100 shares at €10;
• later, another 100 shares at €20.

If you then sell 100 shares, you cannot necessarily choose the €20 batch simply because it produces a smaller gain.

Under the ordinary FIFO rule, the first 100 shares acquired are generally treated as the shares sold.

Bonus issues, rights issues, reorganisations and other transactions can create additional rules.

Employee shares add another layer because the acquisition cost may be linked to an earlier employment-tax event. If you receive RSUs or exercise employee options, read our RSU & Share Options Tax in Ireland guide before calculating the later share disposal.

CGT on investment property

An investment property can produce a large capital gain because property values and transaction costs are substantial.

Suppose you:

• bought an investment property for €250,000;
• had €5,000 of allowable acquisition costs;
• spent €10,000 on qualifying capital enhancement expenditure;
• later sold for €350,000;
• had €6,000 of allowable disposal costs.

Ignoring indexation and any other relief:

• sale proceeds: €350,000
• purchase price: €250,000
• acquisition costs: €5,000
• enhancement expenditure: €10,000
• disposal costs: €6,000
• chargeable gain: €79,000
• less annual exemption: €1,270
• taxable gain: €77,730
• CGT at 33%: €25,650.90

The important distinction is between capital costs that Revenue allows in the CGT computation and ordinary running expenses, which can belong to a different tax calculation.

Do you pay CGT when you sell your home?

Often, a person selling their only or main home can qualify for Principal Private Residence (PPR) Relief.

Revenue states that full exemption can apply where, for the entire ownership period, you:

• lived in the property as your main residence;
• and used all of the property as your home.

Qualifying land around the home can also fall within the relief, subject to Revenue’s limits.

The relief can be restricted where:

• you did not occupy the property as your main residence for the full ownership period;
• part of it was not used as your home;
• or the sale includes development value.

There are also specified absences that Revenue can treat as periods of occupation.

So the simple statement “your home is exempt from CGT” is too broad.

The correct question is whether the disposal meets the conditions for full or partial PPR Relief.

CGT when you gift an asset

Giving an asset away can still be a CGT event.

Revenue can require the donor to calculate the gain using the asset’s market value, even though no cash was received.

This creates an important planning point:

a gift can potentially create a CGT liability for the person making the gift and a Capital Acquisitions Tax issue for the person receiving it.

The two taxes look at different sides of the transfer.

For the recipient’s CAT rules, thresholds and gift/inheritance planning, see our Inheritance Tax in Ireland guide and Inheritance & Gift Tax Calculator.

Transfers between spouses or civil partners who meet the conditions are usually exempt from CGT.

What happens when someone dies?

Revenue states that, in general, there is no CGT on the transfer of an asset on death itself.

That does not mean tax disappears permanently.

If a personal representative later sells an asset during the administration period, CGT may arise.

And if a beneficiary inherits an asset and later sells it, the beneficiary can have a CGT calculation based on the relevant acquisition value for the inherited asset.

The inheritance itself may separately create CAT consequences.

CGT on cryptocurrency

Revenue’s guidance states that a sale, transfer or redemption of crypto-assets is most likely to be a disposal for CGT purposes unless the facts amount to a trade.

For an ordinary investor, that means taxable events can be broader than simply converting crypto back to euro.

A disposal can potentially arise when crypto is:

• sold for euro;
• exchanged for another asset;
• transferred in a transaction that amounts to a disposal;
• or used in another transaction where a taxable disposal occurs.

Simple crypto example

Suppose you acquired crypto-assets for €8,000 and later dispose of them for €20,000.

Assuming a straightforward CGT case, no other gains/losses and the full annual exemption:

• gain: €12,000
• less annual exemption: €1,270
• taxable gain: €10,730
• CGT at 33%: €3,540.90

Crypto record keeping can be difficult because frequent transactions can create many individual acquisition and disposal records.

Are ETFs taxed at 33% CGT?

Do not assume so.

An ETF trades on an exchange, but that does not make it the same tax category as an ordinary company share.

Revenue states that ETF taxation depends on where the ETF is domiciled and on the relevant fund rules.

Many Irish and equivalent offshore investment funds can fall under the separate investment-undertaking / offshore-fund regime, including eight-year deemed-disposal rules in relevant cases.

That is why the Compound CGT calculator is deliberately labelled for straightforward CGT disposals.

Use Investment Tax in Ireland before applying ordinary 33% CGT arithmetic to an ETF or fund.

What is exempt from CGT?

Revenue lists a number of exemptions.

Examples include gains on certain:

• betting and lottery winnings;
• prize bonds and sweepstakes;
• government stocks;
• life assurance policies;
• moveable property where the relevant gain does not exceed Revenue’s stated limit;
• animals;
• private motor cars.

There are also exemptions or reliefs for specific relationships and transactions.

A major example is the usual CGT exemption on qualifying transfers between spouses or civil partners.

Do not assume that “tax-free” for one tax automatically means tax-free for every other tax.

Main CGT reliefs

CGT reliefs can materially change the result.

Revenue’s current CGT relief guidance includes areas such as:

• Principal Private Residence Relief;
• Revised Entrepreneur Relief;
• Retirement Relief on qualifying business or farm disposals;
• Farm Restructuring Relief;
• relief for certain property acquired between specified historic dates;
• and certain site transfers from a parent to a child.

These reliefs have detailed conditions.

For a business, farm or valuable property disposal, the relief conditions can matter more than the headline 33% rate.

Indexation relief for older assets

Revenue states that where an asset was owned before 2003, indexation relief may be available.

Indexation uses historical multipliers to adjust certain allowable costs for inflation up to the point allowed by the legislation.

For most modern share or property purchases, this will not be relevant.

For long-held assets, however, ignoring indexation can overstate the gain.

Development land has additional restrictions.

When do you pay CGT in Ireland?

CGT has an unusual payment timetable.

Revenue currently divides disposals into two periods.

Disposal between 1 January and 30 November

CGT must generally be paid by 15 December of the same year.

Disposal between 1 December and 31 December

CGT must generally be paid by 31 January of the following year.

That can create a very short payment window for a December disposal.

Example

You sell shares on 10 November 2026 and make a taxable gain.

The CGT payment deadline is generally 15 December 2026.

You do not wait until your 2027 tax return deadline to pay that CGT.

When do you file the CGT return?

Revenue says the CGT return is due by 31 October of the year following the disposal.

So, for a disposal in 2026, the ordinary filing deadline is:

31 October 2027.

This is separate from the CGT payment deadline.

Revenue also states that a return is required where you disposed of an asset even if no CGT is due because of reliefs or allowable losses.

Late payment can create interest, and late filing can create penalties.

How do you pay CGT?

Revenue says individuals can register and pay CGT through:

• myAccount;
• or ROS, depending on registration circumstances.

The important practical habit is to calculate the liability soon after the disposal rather than leaving it until the following year’s return.

For a disposal late in the year, waiting can mean missing the payment date.

What records should you keep?

CGT is much easier when records are kept from the day an asset is acquired.

For each chargeable asset, keep:

• acquisition date;
• purchase price;
• contract notes;
• legal or broker fees;
• improvement or enhancement invoices;
• disposal date;
• sale proceeds;
• disposal fees;
• share-lot records;
• foreign-exchange calculations where relevant;
• evidence of capital losses;
• and details of reliefs claimed.

For investments, your broker statement is useful but may not contain every tax calculation required under Irish rules.

For property, invoices from years earlier can become important evidence of allowable expenditure when the property is eventually sold.

Common CGT mistakes

1. Applying 33% to the sale price

CGT is generally charged on the taxable gain, not the gross proceeds.

2. Treating €1,270 as a tax credit

It is an exemption from gains, not a direct €1,270 reduction in tax.

3. Using the exemption once per transaction

The €1,270 exemption is annual.

4. Forgetting losses

Allowable losses can reduce the taxable gain and unused losses can matter in future years.

5. Waiting until the tax return is due before paying

The payment deadline can arrive in December or January, long before the following October filing deadline.

6. Assuming every investment uses CGT

Funds and ETFs can fall under different tax regimes.

7. Assuming a gift avoids CGT

A gift can be treated using market value for CGT purposes.

8. Assuming every home sale is fully exempt

PPR Relief has conditions and can be restricted.

A practical CGT checklist

Before completing a disposal, work through these questions:

1. What exactly is the asset? Share, property, crypto, fund, land, business asset or something else?
2. Does ordinary CGT apply? Or is there a special tax regime?
3. What are the disposal proceeds or market value?
4. What was the allowable acquisition cost?
5. What acquisition, disposal and enhancement costs can be deducted?
6. Do you have allowable current-year or carried-forward losses?
7. How much of the €1,270 annual exemption remains?
8. Does a relief or exemption apply?
9. What payment period does the disposal fall into?
10. What return must be filed and when?

Then use the Capital Gains Tax Calculator for the arithmetic.

Frequently asked questions

What is the Capital Gains Tax rate in Ireland in 2026?

The standard CGT rate is 33% for most gains. Other rates and tax regimes apply to certain types of gains and investments.

How much can I make before paying CGT?

An individual currently has an annual personal exemption of €1,270 of net chargeable gains. Allowable losses and other reliefs can also affect the taxable amount.

Is the €1,270 CGT exemption per share sale?

No. It is an annual exemption for the individual, not a fresh exemption for each disposal.

Do I pay CGT on shares in Ireland?

Gains on ordinary direct company shares can generally fall within CGT. The exact calculation depends on acquisition cost, sale proceeds, allowable costs, losses and the annual exemption.

Do I pay CGT on ETFs?

Not necessarily under the ordinary 33% CGT regime. Many ETFs and investment funds can fall under separate Irish fund-tax rules depending on their legal structure and domicile.

Do I pay CGT on cryptocurrency?

For an ordinary investor, the sale, transfer or redemption of crypto-assets is likely to be a disposal for CGT purposes, subject to the facts and Revenue’s rules.

Do I pay CGT on my home?

Full Principal Private Residence Relief can apply where Revenue’s conditions are met. Partial relief may apply where the property was not your main residence throughout ownership or other restrictions apply.

Do I pay CGT if I gift shares or property to my child?

Potentially. Revenue can use market value when calculating the donor’s CGT on a gift. The recipient may also have CAT considerations.

Can I use a capital loss against a gain?

Allowable capital losses can generally reduce chargeable gains, subject to restrictions. Unused allowable losses can often be carried forward.

When do I pay CGT on a 2026 sale?

For disposals from 1 January to 30 November 2026, payment is generally due by 15 December 2026. For December 2026 disposals, payment is generally due by 31 January 2027.

When is the CGT return due for a 2026 disposal?

The ordinary CGT return deadline is 31 October 2027.

Is CGT due when someone dies?

Revenue states that in general there is no CGT on the transfer of an asset on death itself. Later sales by the estate or beneficiary can create CGT, and the inheritance may have separate CAT implications.

The bottom line

For a straightforward Irish CGT calculation, the core sequence is:

sale proceeds → deduct allowable cost and expenses → deduct allowable losses → apply the remaining annual exemption → apply the CGT rate.

For most gains, that rate is currently 33%, and an individual has a €1,270 annual exemption.

But the most expensive mistakes often happen outside that simple formula: using the wrong tax regime for an ETF, missing an allowable loss, misunderstanding PPR Relief, gifting an asset without considering market value, or waiting until the following October to think about a tax payment that was actually due months earlier.

Start with the Capital Gains Tax Calculator, then verify any substantial disposal or relief claim against Revenue’s current guidance before acting.