If you are buying and selling residential property, you need to be aware of the bright-line test.

From 29 March 2018, the bright-line test that is used to determine if you have tax to pay on the sale of residential property has changed.

If you entered into an agreement to purchase residential property on or after 29 March 2018 and sell it within 5 years, you’ll need to consider if it is taxable under the bright-line test. If a property was purchased on or after 1 October 2015 through to 28 March 2018, the bright-line test will look at whether the property was sold within 2 years.

The bright-line test doesn’t apply if the property was:

• your main home
• transferred as part of an inheritance
• transferred to you as an executor/ administrator of a deceased estate.

Read more here.