Retrospective Transfer of Ownership

Hi all.
Maybe this is a ridiculous thought, however, I settled on a property sale two months ago and I now have to pay CGT on the transaction. I have claimed all deductions on this property since it was held from 1997.
I understand that you can transfer a property to a spouse in Victoria and no stamp duty is to be paid. My simple question is: Can I make an application to retrospectively transfer the property in her name so that all sale documentation will show her as the owner and not me? Mmmmm ............. I wonder!!

 

No. You cannot back date documents.

Sadly...

 

No, but if you were acting as trustee for your spouse, and can prove it, then she would have been the owner for tax purposes. a long shot given that for 10 years you may have been claiming things.

There is also the law of mistake - I have a matter now where the client instructed their lawyer to put the title 99%/1% when they purchased their main residence. They didn't realise for many years later that the title was 50/50%. They are using a little know provision to change the title due to mistake - no stamp duty (and no CGT on this as main residence). They have written evidence of the mistake too.

btw, the stamp duty exemption in VIC will change from 1 july so that the exemption will only apply for limited situations.

 

Thanks to all of you who replied. I appreciate the advice ....... sadly.

 

Continuing on in a similar vein, if i happened to have transferred a property to my wife, and I had previously held it in my name for ten years, when determining CGT in another five years time, would the tax be assessed on the period that I held it for, and the time she held it, or for fifteen years that we both held it but at her marginal tax rate after the CGT discount?

 

If your wife buys a house today from you today she will acquire a cost base equal to the properties market value today.

If the property is sold in 5 years time the sale proceeds will be reduced by the notional acquisition price. This profit or loss might be affected by different exemptions at the time including the 50% CGT discount.

The fact that you held the property as a prior owner will not affect the tax treatment on the sale of the property by your wife.

 

So Ross, if I may indulge, my wife and I own a unit in Brisbane and have so for 20 years. I have claimed all the negative gearing benefits due to having a higher income. If I transferred the ownership of this unit to her name, solely, and then we sell it after two years, based on what you have said, she would only pay CGT at her marginal tax rate after the 50% discount. I wouldn't be paying any CGT. Is this right?
Apologies for needing to review this information. It takes a while to sink in!

 

Transferring it to your wife will trigger CGT payable by you on the portion transferred. In two years time, she will pay CGT.

 

Think I wrote about this here
Tax Tip 100: Transfers between Spouses and CGT https://propertychat.com.au/community/threads/tax-tip-100-transfers-between-spouses-and-cgt.9275/

 

You have a 50% interest now. Sell to your wife. You pay CGT now.

Your wife then has 2 separate 50% interests, each with a different cost base.

 

The CGT trigger and the stamp duty may outweigh the future benefits

 

Thanks all to your replies. "Back to the drawing board!".