Finance & Irish taxes · Calculator companion · By K Imports
Capital gains tax: practical guide
This guide explains how to use the Count.ie capital gains tax. Estimate date-specific standard CGT with allowable costs, losses and annual exemption. Follow the inputs, method and worked example below, then compare your own scenario.
Guide written .
Open the Capital gains tax calculatorWhat to prepare
- Find the relevant statement, payslip or transaction record rather than estimating from a bank balance.
- Identify the tax year, transaction date and whether each amount is gross, net, annual or monthly.
- Separate known facts from assumed rates and check eligibility against the linked official sources.
Understand the inputs
- Disposal date
- Supported dates: 6 December 2012 through 31 December 2027. The announced 31% standard rate starts on 7 October 2026.
The calculation method
Gain less allowable costs, eligible losses and remaining personal exemption. Standard rate: 33% before 7 October 2026, or announced 31% from that date. Development land remains 33% and is outside this model.
Worked example
Illustrative inputs and their result.
Example inputs
- Disposal date
- 2026-10-06
- This is development land (special rules — unsupported)
- No
- Disposal proceeds (€)
- 80000
- Original asset cost (€)
- 50000
- Allowable acquisition costs (€)
- 0
- Allowable disposal costs (€)
- 1000
- Qualifying improvement costs (€)
- 0
- Allowable current-year losses (€)
- 0
- Available carried losses (€)
- 0
- €1,270 annual exemption already used (€)
- 0
Calculated example result
- Capital Gains Tax
- €9,150.90
- Disposal Cash After Tax
- €69,849.10
- Exemption Unused After Disposal
- €0.00
How to interpret the result
Distinguish a tax saving, a tax bill, cash received and money remaining: they are not interchangeable. An estimate does not establish eligibility, filing compliance or when a refund will be paid.
Compare the same income or transaction under one changed assumption at a time. Keep a record of the year, date and assumptions so a change in the result can be explained.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Do not mix tax years or apply a newly announced measure to an earlier transaction.
- Avoid counting an allowance, credit, contribution or loss twice.
- Check exclusions and personal circumstances before relying on the headline result.
Assumptions and sources
The €1,270 personal exemption is shared across the calendar year's qualifying gains. Do not reuse it across disposal periods. Aggregate only gains taxed at the same rate; enter exemption already used. Unused allowance cannot carry forward. The 31% rate is a Budget announcement subject to legislation, not a permanent-rate guarantee. Development land, asset-specific regimes, private residence relief, entrepreneur relief, indexation, connected-party losses, share matching, fund exit tax, filing penalties and interest are excluded.
Sources and further information
If your case falls outside this scope, use a more suitable calculator or contact us about an unclear method.