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Filing Your Return -> Capital
Gains and Losses -> Capital Gain
Reserve -> All other property
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This reserve is available for the deferral of capital gain on disposals of property when the proceeds are received over a number of years. This article deals with the reserve that is available for most capital property, except for dispositions which are:
The reserve is calculated using the following formula: capital gain x amount payable after the end of the year The reserve can be claimed up to a maximum of four years, which spreads out the capital gain over 5 years. There is a maximum reserve that can be claimed in each year. The maximum is calculated as a percentage of the capital gain. The maximum percentage is:
Therefore, to spread out the gain over the maximum 5 years, you would have to receive your proceeds of disposition over at least 5 years. It is not necessary to claim the maximum allowed reserve in any year. However, if a reduced reserve is claimed in a year, the reserve claimed in the following year cannot exceed that amount. For instance, if in the year of sale 45% of the capital gain was claimed as a reserve, then the maximum reserve that could be claimed in the next year would also be 45%. If the 45% maximum was claimed in the next year, the capital gain would be zero, because amount of capital gain in each year is equal to the reduction in the amount of the reserve from the previous year. If a higher reserve could be claimed in a subsequent year, the result would be the creation of a loss. This is not allowed. A person may not have to claim the maximum reserve in a particular year if they have capital losses to offset the capital gain, or if they have business losses to reduce taxable income. They might also want to shift income to the current year from the coming year, if they know that they will have higher income in the coming year. Example - sale of real estate which has been used as a rental property:
The proceeds are being received over a period of 5 years. A $160,000 down payment is made, with annual payments of $160,000 for the next 4 years. The reserve is calculated as follows, with the original capital gain amount of $300,000 referred to as G (gain) in the formulas shown:
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In the above example, the proceeds are received evenly over the 5 years, so the initial reserve calculation equals the maximum allowable reserve. Note that the capital gain before reserve in the years after the sale is always the amount of the reserve claimed in the previous year. If no reserve was claimed in any year, then the reserve amount from the previous year would be brought into income as a capital gain. The amount of capital gain in each year after the year of sale is equal to the reduction in the amount of the reserve from the previous year. In the above example, if the taxpayer decided in the year of sale to claim a reserve of only $170,000, then the capital gain after the reserve would be $130,000 ($300,000 - $170,000). They might decide to do this if they had capital losses to offset the capital gain, or if they had business losses that would reduce their taxable income. The maximum allowable reserve in the 1st year after sale would then be $170,000, the same as the year of sale. If this amount is used it would result in a zero capital gain for the year, because there is no reduction in the reserve amount from the prior year. See the following for an example, with the capital gain of $300,000 again referred to as G in the formulas shown. |
* The maximum allowable reserve is the lesser of G x D, or the reserve from the previous year. The next example shows what happens with the reserve when a larger down payment is received. The proceeds and cost are the same as the above example, with a capital gain of $300,000 (again referred to as G in the formulas shown). However, $300,000 is received in the first year, with annual payments of $125,000 for the next 4 years. The reserve is calculated as follows:
Tax Tip: If you are selling capital property, it may be advantageous to carry the mortgage, and spread your gains over 5 years. Get professional advice on this. Revised: July 19, 2010
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