If you are a non-dom planning to sell an asset you have held since before 2017, the FA 2025 rebasing election can wipe out years of latent gain and cut your CGT bill sharply. The catch is who actually qualifies. The headline (rebasing to 5 April 2017 market value for non-doms disposing of qualifying assets) is one of four reliefs in the non-dom reform package, and by far the most narrowly drawn. Five cumulative conditions at Schedule 11 paragraph 1(1) all have to be met for any given disposal, and the one that catches most people is the exclusion of UK situs property (condition 3). If your wealth sits in a UK buy-to-let portfolio, this relief almost certainly is not for you.

The rebasing is its own creature: it adjusts the CGT base cost of a specific disposal, and has nothing to do with the income-tax or IHT sides of the FA 2025 reforms. So before you spend time on it, it is worth knowing exactly when it bites, when it does not, and what to do about UK property that falls outside it.

The five cumulative conditions at Sch 11 paragraph 1(1)

For a disposal to qualify for the FA 2025 rebasing election, all five conditions have to be satisfied:

  1. You held the asset on 5 April 2017. The rebasing reference date is 5 April 2017, and the asset must have been yours on that date. Anything you acquired after 5 April 2017 does not qualify.
  2. The disposal is made on or after 6 April 2025. The operative window starts at the FA 2025 commencement date. Sell before 6 April 2025 and the disposal falls under the historic regime (pre-reform domicile and remittance basis architecture).
  3. The asset was NOT situated in the UK at any time during the period from 6 March 2024 to 5 April 2025. The 13-month reference period excludes UK situs assets. This is the condition that catches UK buy-to-let property, UK commercial property, UK-issued securities, and any other UK situs holding.
  4. You were not domiciled in the UK for any tax year prior to 2025-26. The historic non-dom requirement: you must have been non-UK-domiciled throughout your pre-2025-26 UK-residence years.
  5. You made an active claim under ITA 2007 section 809B (remittance basis) for at least one tax year in 2017-18 to 2024-25, in a year where neither section 809D (auto-RB for low-foreign-income) nor section 809E (small-foreign-income exception) applied. Only genuine remittance-basis users qualify, not incidental cases where the basis applied automatically.

Between them, the five conditions thin the field right down. If your domicile of origin is UK, you fail condition 4. If you never actively claimed s.809B (perhaps your foreign income was low enough to fall under s.809D's automatic basis), you fail condition 5. And if your only material assets are UK buy-to-lets, you fail condition 3 on every one of them.

Condition 3 in detail: why UK property is structurally excluded

Condition 3 requires the asset not to have been situated in the UK at any time during the 6 March 2024 to 5 April 2025 reference period. It is binary: any UK-situs status during that 13-month window disqualifies the asset. A UK buy-to-let property is UK-situs throughout, so condition 3 fails. A non-UK situs asset that was temporarily held through a UK custodian during the reference period (shares parked briefly in a UK brokerage account in late 2024, say) is also out.

That reference period is calibrated to catch assets moved specifically to get round the exclusion. The 6 March 2024 start date is Spring Budget 2024, when the non-dom reform was announced; HMRC's aim was to stop people shifting assets offshore in response to the announcement just to qualify for rebasing. An asset moved offshore before 6 March 2024 may pass condition 3 (provided it stayed non-UK situs); an asset moved offshore between 6 March 2024 and 5 April 2025 fails.

For UK property, situs follows the location of the underlying land. UK-located land is UK-situs by definition, and moving legal title (gifting to children, transferring into trust) does not change that. So there is no structuring that gets UK property into the rebasing election; the exclusion is built into the statute.

Condition 5 in detail: the active s.809B claim requirement

Condition 5 requires you to have made an active claim under ITA 2007 section 809B for at least one tax year in 2017-18 to 2024-25, in a year where neither section 809D nor section 809E applied.

The distinction matters. Section 809B is the active claim for the remittance basis, which normally means you signalled in your self-assessment return that you were claiming it (and paid the remittance-basis annual charge of £30,000 or £60,000 if you were a long-term resident). Section 809D gives an automatic remittance basis to anyone with unremitted foreign income below £2,000 in a tax year, with no active claim needed; section 809E provides a small-foreign-income exception that works much like s.809D.

If your remittance-basis position throughout 2017-18 to 2024-25 only ever came through the automatic s.809D or s.809E routes (perhaps your foreign income was always low), you do NOT satisfy condition 5, and the FA 2025 rebasing election is closed to you. The active-claim requirement is aimed at substantial-foreign-income non-doms who deliberately structured their UK tax position around the remittance basis, not at incidental low-foreign-income cases.

The 5 April 2017 rebasing date

Schedule 11 paragraph 1(2) provides that the asset is treated as acquired on 5 April 2017 at its market value on that date. The 2017 date sits 8 years before the FA 2025 reform, which looks odd until you remember that 5 April 2017 was also a rebasing-relevant date in the earlier non-dom reform (when Schedule A1 IHTA 1984 came into force for UK residential property held offshore). FA 2025 reuses the 2017 date for consistency.

Earlier consultation drafts floated alternatives (5 April 2019 and 5 April 2025 were both discussed), but the final enacted position is 5 April 2017. If you come across the date quoted as 2019 or 2025, that is from a consultation draft that did not make it into the Act; anchor on 2017.

For an asset you held continuously from pre-2017 to the disposal date, the 2017 valuation sets the rebased base cost: the latent gain from acquisition to 5 April 2017 washes out, and only the post-2017 gain is chargeable. For anything acquired after 5 April 2017 (which fails condition 1), there is no rebasing and the historic cost stands as the base cost.

The per-disposal irrevocable election

Schedule 11 paragraph 3 makes the election available "to a disposal made by the individual": it is per-disposal, not portfolio-wide. You can elect for one disposal and not another, depending on whether the rebasing improves the CGT outcome for that specific sale. For an asset with substantial pre-2017 gains, electing helps (it washes out the pre-2017 slice). For one with limited or no pre-2017 gain, not electing may be better, because the historic cost basis already gives a low chargeable amount.

The election is irrevocable. Schedule 11 paragraph 3 sub-paragraph 3 states: "An election under this paragraph is irrevocable." Once you make it for a particular disposal, you cannot reverse it. Run the calculation carefully first: an error in the 5 April 2017 valuation (which may itself need a formal valuation report for non-quoted shares, illiquid investments, or unique non-UK property) cannot be put right afterwards by un-electing.

The procedural framework is TMA 1970 sections 42 to 43 (except s.42(1A), which is disapplied). You make the election by an entry in your self-assessment return for the year of disposal, with the chargeable gain calculation reflecting the rebased base cost.

Worked example: an eligible non-dom and a Lisbon commercial property

Take a hypothetical eligible non-dom, Mr Almeida. UK-resident since 2008-09; non-UK-domiciled throughout; made active s.809B claims in multiple years 2017-18 to 2024-25 (so condition 5 is satisfied). He owns offshore investments including a non-UK situs commercial property in Lisbon, acquired in 2010 for £400,000.

Condition analysis. Condition 1: held on 5 April 2017, yes (acquired 2010). Condition 2: disposing in 2026-27, yes (on or after 6 April 2025). Condition 3: not UK-situs at any time 6 March 2024 to 5 April 2025, yes (Lisbon commercial property is Portuguese-situs throughout). Condition 4: not UK-domiciled in any pre-2025-26 tax year, yes (Portuguese domicile-of-origin, never elected UK domicile). Condition 5: active s.809B claim in 2017-18 to 2024-25, yes (multiple years). All five conditions satisfied; the rebasing election is available for this disposal.

Valuation. The Lisbon property's market value at 5 April 2017 is determined by a formal valuation report: based on Portuguese commercial property market evidence, the agreed 2017 value is £900,000. At disposal in 2026-27, the property sells for £1,200,000.

Without the rebasing election. Standard TCGA calculation: chargeable gain = £1,200,000 minus £400,000 = £800,000. At higher-rate CGT (24% non-residential): £192,000 of UK CGT.

With the rebasing election. Rebased base cost = £900,000 (5 April 2017 market value). Chargeable gain = £1,200,000 minus £900,000 = £300,000. At 24%: £72,000 of UK CGT.

Rebasing saving on this disposal: £120,000. The election is binding for this disposal but does not affect later disposals of other assets in Mr Almeida's portfolio; each is independently elected based on its own calculation.

What the rebasing election does not cover

The rebasing election is specifically for non-UK situs assets held since 5 April 2017 by people who meet the five-condition test. It does not cover:

  • UK property. Excluded by condition 3. UK land disposals by non-residents fall under the NRCGT regime under TCGA 1992 s.1A + Schedules 1A, 1B, 4AA, which has its own rebasing dates: 5 April 2015 for residential; 5 April 2019 for non-residential. NRCGT rebasing is not optional in the same way; the default uses the 2015 or 2019 reference dates with limited alternatives.
  • Assets acquired post-5-April-2017. Excluded by condition 1. The historic acquisition cost applies; no rebasing.
  • UK domicile of origin. Excluded by condition 4. Even if you were non-UK-resident during the relevant period, a UK domicile of origin disqualifies you.
  • Non-doms who only used the s.809D / s.809E automatic remittance basis. Excluded by condition 5 if you never actively claimed under s.809B in 2017-18 to 2024-25.

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The interaction with TRF and FIG

The Sch 11 rebasing election operates on the CGT base cost; the TRF operates on income tax / CGT remittance treatment of pre-2025-26 unremitted balances; the FIG operates on income tax / CGT relief for qualifying new residents. The three reliefs are independent and can stack where you satisfy the eligibility test for each.

For a typical eligible non-dom, the picture is: Sch 11 rebasing applies to specific non-UK situs disposals (reducing the CGT base of the chargeable gain); TRF applies to pre-2025-26 unremitted balances (designating at favourable rates to crystallise the legacy income tax / CGT position); FIG does NOT apply, because you fail the s.845B(1)(c) 10-year prior-non-residence test if you were UK-resident pre-2025-26. So if you are a legacy non-dom, you are usually looking at a Sch 11 + TRF combination; FIG is generally for new arrivals, who do not overlap with Sch 11 eligibility.

Run each relief separately and stack where you can. The combined value can be substantial if you have both unremitted offshore balances (a TRF candidate) and pre-2017 non-UK situs assets carrying substantial latent gain (a Sch 11 candidate).

HMRC enquiry pattern on Sch 11 elections

Expect HMRC to focus on three areas. First, the five-condition eligibility analysis: they will check each condition independently, with particular attention on condition 3 (asset situs throughout 6 March 2024 to 5 April 2025) and condition 5 (active s.809B claim with neither s.809D nor s.809E applying). Keep your situs history and historic claim record on file.

Second, the 5 April 2017 valuation. For non-quoted shares, illiquid investments, or unique non-UK property, you will need supporting market evidence (comparable sales, broker reports, an asset-specific valuation methodology). HMRC's valuation challenge usually goes through the Shares and Assets Valuation team for shares and the District Valuer for property, so build readiness for that into how you prepare the election.

Third, the irrevocability discipline. Once you have elected for a disposal, HMRC may scrutinise the calculation closely, knowing you cannot un-elect if errors surface. Make sure the calculation is fully evidenced at the time you elect, with the valuation report and the condition-by-condition eligibility documentation filed alongside your self-assessment return.

How the rebasing relates to NRCGT rebasing for UK land

The FA 2025 Sch 11 rebasing election operates only on non-UK situs assets and is optional per-disposal. UK land disposals by non-residents follow a separate rebasing architecture under TCGA 1992 s.1A and Schedules 1A, 1B, 4AA (rewritten by Finance Act 2019). The two regimes differ in three ways.

First, the rebasing date. Sch 11 uses 5 April 2017. NRCGT uses 5 April 2015 for residential land or 5 April 2019 for non-residential land, depending on which category caught the disposal at the time NRCGT was extended. The dates reflect each regime's policy origin: 2017 was a non-dom-reform date; 2015 and 2019 were the NRCGT-extension dates for residential and non-residential UK land respectively.

Second, the election structure. Sch 11 rebasing is opt-in (you elect on a per-disposal basis) and the historic cost is the default. NRCGT rebasing is the default for assets held on the relevant 2015 or 2019 date, with alternatives (straight-line apportionment or full historic gain) available by election. The defaults run in opposite directions.

Third, the eligibility gateway. Sch 11 needs the five cumulative conditions, including non-dom status and an active s.809B claim. NRCGT applies broadly to any non-resident disposing of UK land regardless of domicile or historic claim record; the gateway is purely situs and residence status at disposal.

If you have a mixed portfolio (UK buy-to-let plus non-UK property held since pre-2017), the two regimes run in parallel: NRCGT handles the UK buy-to-let disposals, and Sch 11 (if all five conditions are met) handles the non-UK property disposals.

Timing the disposal: pre-5-April-2028 considerations

The Sch 11 rebasing election has no sunset date in the legislation: it is available for any qualifying disposal made on or after 6 April 2025, indefinitely. There is no equivalent of the TRF window-close at 5 April 2028. Two timing points still affect when you make qualifying disposals.

First, the TRF interaction. If you have both Sch 11 candidates (non-UK situs pre-2017 assets) AND TRF candidates (pre-2025-26 unremitted offshore foreign income), making both moves in the same self-assessment year can be cash-flow lumpy: the TRF charge plus CGT on the rebased gain land together in the January payment cycle. Spreading your Sch 11 disposals across 2025-26 to 2027-28 to line up with TRF designation timing can ease that.

Second, the asset's continuing-non-UK-situs requirement. Condition 3 looks at 6 March 2024 to 5 April 2025; for an asset that was non-UK situs throughout that period, condition 3 is permanently satisfied (you cannot undo historic situs). But the practical valuation and disposal mechanics turn on the asset's situs at the disposal date. If you move a non-UK situs asset back to the UK after 5 April 2025 (for operational reasons or a family relocation, say), condition 3 still holds (the reference period has passed), but the disposal may now be a UK-situs disposal subject to UK CGT under standard rules.

Where the rebasing election ends and the rest of the FA 2025 package begins

The Sch 11 rebasing election is a narrow CGT tool, so several neighbouring questions sit outside it: the NRCGT regime that governs your UK land disposals; the FIG regime for new arrivals; the TRF for legacy non-dom unremitted balances; the IHT long-term-resident test under s.6A; the IHT spouse exemption under s.18; and the offshore-trust s.48ZA mechanics. Each runs on its own statute and its own rules, and is worth treating as a separate question rather than folding into the rebasing analysis.

Statutory and HMRC sources cited above: Finance Act 2025 Schedule 11; Finance Act 2025 section 42; ITA 2007 section 809B (active remittance-basis claim); ITA 2007 section 809D (auto-remittance basis); ITA 2007 section 809E (small-foreign-income exception); TMA 1970 section 42; TCGA 1992 section 1A (NRCGT for UK land); HMRC Residence, Domicile and Remittance Manual.