[Alan]

Has anyone sold shares whilst living in NZ? If so how has the tax side of things worked out as I am guessing that you are exempt from tax for the first 4 years?

Thanks

Alan

[James 1077]

I'm not 100% certain on this one as Personal Tax isn't my focus area so I haven't done any work around it yet but the basics are that if you hold the shares on capital account then profits won't be taxable anyway.

The way that you know if you hold them on capital account is if, when you bought them, you saw them as long-term investments rather than short-term investments to sell as soon as you can make a quick buck.

The list of exempt income with respect to the temporary tax exemption is here (http://www.ird.govt.nz/yoursituation-nonres/move-nz/temp-tax-empt-foreign-inc.html) and share sales aren't included (except for employee share options).

I think that there are other accountants here who probably do a bit more personal tax so they should be able to give you a more definitive answer.

Normal caveats apply about the above - it isn't my area of taxation, I don't know all of the details, any advice has been provided in good faith but please do not rely on it without seeking professional advice etc etc!

[Super_BQ]

James is correct. But more importantly is what kind of shares we're talking about? Investments in NZ and Australian listed shares are exempt from IRD's nasty FIF rules.

Do a forum search on taxation of foreign investment. You will find that IRD taxes paper profits on those NZ residents that have in excess of over $50K overseas. Again with the exception of Australia. What they won't allow is a tax credit on the paper LOSS which is absurd.

BQ

[Nick88]

I sold UK shares about three years after arriving, as well as selling up all of the NZ shares that we had bought over that time. None of it is taxable, apart from dividends.