Selling up North

Hi,


My partner and I live in Dublin. She has a property in Northern Ireland which she has been renting out for some years now. Her tenant has announced that he is moving in the coming month, and having examined the rental market and likely selling price, she is probably going to sell the property, and re-invest the proceeds in somewhere sunnier we can use as a holiday home.

Would we be right in assuming that CGT would be payable to the Irish Revenue Commissioners (as opposed to the UK), and at the Irish rate of 20% (with indexation relief for the period up to 2002)? It was also her principal private residence for about 2 years before she left (she's owned it 12 years), should she apportion the capital gain on the basis of the amount of time she lived there? She never paid income tax on the rental income, but she's fairly sure that it was always exceeded by the mortgage interest and agency fees in any given year, and so it would if I understand correctly mean that she would not have been liable, although I'd imagine she should have made some sort of declaration anyway? She's a PAYE taxpayer, if that makes any difference.

Finally, should we use a Northern solicitor for the sale, given the tax matters should be handled by someone familiar with the southern system or, heavens forbid, will we need 2 solicitors?


Any advice - including websites with the answers to some of the above - gratefully recieved!


Dearg

I'm in a similar position and keen to know what the story is - any one any ideas?

I can answer, to the best of my knowledge, some of your questions;

- The solicitor will not get involved in the CGT aspect if he is just doing the conveyancing, therefore an NI solicitor alone is ok for the sale.

- CGT is payable to the Irish Revenue - if she has lived outside of the UK for 5 UK tax years (April-)there is no UK liability

- If there was no income made on the rental income then no liability would be have been incurred. A self declaration return should probably have been made for the first couple of years of being outside the UK, the same occurred to me and we were advised by the Inland Revenue that we did not have to make another return unless circumstances change.

with regards to the actual calculation I really would recommend she went to a tax accountant, although there are guidelines on the revenue.ie site.