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ACCA Strategic Professional · Advanced Taxation (UK) · Capital gains tax: the basic principles of computing gains and losses

Priya buys 1,000 shares in Zeta plc on 10 March 2026 and sells 1,500 shares in Zeta plc on 20 March 2026. She also held a Section 104 holding of 2,000 shares acquired in 2019. Applying the UK share matching rules for individuals, how are the 1,500 shares sold matched?

Acquisitions made before the disposal are pooled. The 10 March purchase precedes the sale, so it joins the Section 104 holding and all 1,500 shares are matched against that pool, not separately against the recent purchase.

  1. A1,000 shares against the 10 March 2026 acquisition and 500 against the Section 104 holdingCorrect
  2. B1,500 shares against the Section 104 holding
  3. C1,000 shares against the Section 104 holding and 500 against the 10 March 2026 acquisition
  4. D500 shares against the 10 March 2026 acquisition and 1,000 against the Section 104 holding

Explanation

For individuals, disposals are matched first with acquisitions on the same day, then with acquisitions in the following 30 days, and only then with the Section 104 holding. The 1,000 shares bought 10 days before the sale are not matched under the 30-day rule because the purchase came before the disposal; the same-day and 30-day rules apply only to later acquisitions. The purchase on 10 March therefore falls into the Section 104 pool, so the correct matching must be reconsidered. Correction: the 10 March purchase is before the sale, so it joins the Section 104 holding, making all 1,500 shares matched against the pool.

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