Capital Gains Taxes on houses

Another interesting question this week on capital gains?  Am I liable to UK capital gains taxes on my French house if I sell it? (I am not going to get into what French gains tax may look like)

As usual its tax and "it depends on your situation".  If you sell it while French tax resident and not UK tax resident the answer is generally no, though there is a situation where if you were only non resident for a short period then return to the UK then HMRC can come knocking for money - so that may be one to check out - and avoid.

If you sell when back in the UK again it depends.  Though it may seem a bit odd, most people know that if you sell your main home in the UK there is no capital gains tax - the same may apply if you lived in France.  However, if you are living in multiple locations/properties/countries and especially if you did not tell HMRC you left the UK rightly they can be a bit suspicious.  

Its worth checking it out before you finalise the house sale...and potentially avoid a big bill.