709. Deputy Seán Kyne asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance the length of time the annual capital gains tax personal exemption has been set at €1,270; and whether he has plans to increase it in Budget 2027. [55645/26]

In general, capital gains tax (CGT) is chargeable on a gain arising on the disposal of an asset at the rate of 33 per cent. As provided for in section 601 of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 (TCA 1997), the first €1,270 of all chargeable gains accruing to an individual in any tax year are exempt from CGT, subject to certain exceptions outlined below. This relief is commonly referred to as the ‘annual exemption’.

Where the gains accruing to the individual in a tax year exceeds €1,270, only the excess over that amount is chargeable to CGT. In calculating chargeable gains, any losses arising on disposals of assets in the tax year, or brought forward from previous tax years, must first be set off against gains arising in that year before the application of the annual exemption. The annual exemption is not transferable between spouses or civil partners and cannot be used in conjunction with relief available to an individual under section 598 TCA 1997 (disposal of business or farm on “retirement”) or section 599 TCA 1997 (disposal within family of business or farm) in the same tax year. This exemption is restricted to individuals only. Companies, trustees or other non-corporate bodies are not entitled to the annual exemption.

The current annual exemption amount was amended from £1,000 to €1,270 by Schedule 5 of the Finance Act 2001, with effect from 1 January 2002.

CGT as with all taxes, is subject to ongoing review. This involves the consideration and assessment of the rate of CGT and the relevant reliefs and exemptions from CGT as part of the annual Budget and Finance Bill process, as well as consideration of CGT in the wider tax policy context.