Guide
The Business Asset Disposal Relief rate in 2026/27
Updated
The relief rate has moved twice in two years. Getting the wrong one on a seven-figure sale is a six-figure mistake, so start with your completion date.
The rate depends on your date of disposal
| Qualifying assets disposed of | Rate on relieved gains |
|---|---|
| From 6 April 2026 | 18% |
| 6 April 2025 to 5 April 2026 | 14% |
| 30 October 2024 to 5 April 2025 | 10% |
| On or before 29 October 2024 | 10% |
Those are HMRC's own words: the relief means you pay tax at 18% on all gains on qualifying assets disposed of from 6 April 2026, 14% on gains disposed of between 6 April 2025 and 5 April 2026, and 10% on gains disposed of on or before 5 April 2025 (gov.uk). The same three rates are repeated in HMRC's rates and allowances guidance, last updated 13 April 2026 (gov.uk).
The date that counts
It is the date of disposal, not the date the money arrives. For a share sale that is normally the date of the unconditional contract, which is why sale agreements that are conditional on a consent or a regulatory clearance can land in a different tax year from the one everyone assumed at signing. Where deferred consideration is involved, the treatment is more complicated again, and worth an adviser rather than a calculator.
The £1,000,000 lifetime limit
The relief is capped at £1,000,000 of gains across your lifetime, and there is no limit on how many times you claim within it (gov.uk: how to claim). HMRC's Capital Gains Manual sets out the history: £1m for disposals from 6 April 2008 to 5 April 2010, rising through £2m and £5m to £10m from 6 April 2011, then back to £1m for disposals on or after 11 March 2020 (CG64125). If you sold a business before March 2020 and relieved more than £1m, contact HMRC rather than guessing.
Claiming it
You claim through Self Assessment or by completing Section A of the Business Asset Disposal Relief helpsheet. HMRC publishes the claim deadlines by tax year: 31 January 2028 for a disposal in 2025 to 2026, 31 January 2027 for 2024 to 2025, and 31 January 2026 for 2023 to 2024 (gov.uk). We do not publish a 2026 to 2027 deadline here because HMRC's table does not yet list one.
Rates move in April. This page states the position on its updated date above and is corrected in place when HMRC changes it, but confirm your own date of disposal against gov.uk before you file.