Latest HMRC data reveals that Capital Gains Tax (CGT) receipts hit £17bn in January, up £7bn from the £10bn recorded a year earlier in January 2025.
According to wealth manager Utmost, which compiled the figures, January accounts for the vast majority of the year’s collections due to tax reporting and assessment deadlines.
CGT receipts for the first 10 months of the 2025-26 Tax Year rose to £18.8bn, up £6.9bn compared to the £11.9bn seen in the comparative period in 2024-25.
With two months to go in the current tax year, Capital Gains Tax receipts have already registered a record for collections. Annual receipts also look likely to exceed the OBR’s forecast of £20.3bn made at the Autumn Budget 2025. OBR predicts CGT receipts will rise to as much as £27.3bn by 2029-30.
Industry experts said the CGT surge was mainly due to recent Budget changes.
Marc Acheson, global wealth specialist at Utmost, said: “Capital Gains Tax has recorded its highest ever year of receipts as tax reforms bear fruit for the Treasury. The substantial increase in this year’s collections is likely to be driven by changes made at the Autumn 2024 Budget, primarily the hike in the main rates of Capital Gains Tax.
“The adjustments made by the Government firstly mean that a greater number of individuals will be subject to CGT as their gains from property sales, investments or business disposals trip over the lower exemptions thresholds and secondly those people face higher rates of tax.”
Shaun Moore, tax and Financial Planning expert at Quilter, said: “The changes to Capital Gains Tax, which have seen the annual exempt amount slashed and higher tax rates introduced on many assets, have started to bite.
Jason Hollands, managing director at wealth management firm Evelyn Partners, said: “That is a big upswing in the CGT take for January 2026, which at nearly £17 billion is 69% higher than receipts of just over £10 billion in January 2025.
“January’s figure includes the payment of self-assessment bills for the 2024/25 tax year so it could reflect investors – from April 2024 - disposing of assets ahead of an expected rise in CGT rates that duly arrived at the October 2024 Budget.
Inheritance tax (IHT) receipts, which are also increasing rapidly, were £7.1bn for January, £0.1bn higher than the same period last year.
Andrew Zanelli, head of technical engagement at Aberdeen Adviser, said: “Yet again we’ve seen an increase in IHT receipts. This is not surprising, the data has been trending upwards for some time now, and we expect it will surge upwards from April 2027. We are now 13 months away from pensions being brought into the tax’s scope from April 2027 and in our meetings with advisers we’re hearing this is the number one concern for their clients. Advisers are getting significant numbers of new client enquiries on IHT planning as more people come to realise that they could be impacted.”
Malvee Vaja, Chartered Financial Planner at Rathbones, said: “Inheritance tax receipts continue to edge higher. The main driver remains frozen thresholds, which are steadily pulling more families into the IHT net as property values and long‑term savings rise.
“For many households, it isn’t deliberate wealth‑building that creates an inheritance tax bill, but the simple fact that a family home now accounts for most of an estate’s value. Looking ahead, the planned inclusion of unused pension assets from April 2027 will widen the net further, turning what many see as a retirement planning tool into part of the inheritance tax equation.”
Andrew Tully, technical services director at Nucleus, said: “IHT receipts have grown by more than 50% over the last five years, a trend that is predicted to continue and accelerate. This is due to the freezing of nil rate bands until April 2031, rising UK property values, and planned reductions to agricultural and business reliefs from April 2026. Although the impact of the agricultural and business relief changes has recently been eased with the increase in the 100% relief threshold to £2.5m, rather than the previously announced £1m.”
Ian Dyall, head of estate planning at wealth management firm Evelyn Partners, said: “The recent monthly increases in the overall IHT take have been fairly modest, compared to the trajectory we’ve been used to, which could reflect the levelling off of house prices in the UK over the last few years.”
Amit Joshi, managing director of wealth at Mattioli Woods, said: “Inheritance Tax revenues continue to climb as frozen thresholds pull more families into the tax net. Rising property values and inflation are quietly turning what was once a tax for the wealthy into a bill for ordinary households. Estates that would have paid nothing a decade ago are now automatically liable, without a single announcement.
“What is most concerning isn’t the tax itself, but the lack of awareness. Families often only realise the impact when it’s too late to act. Inheritance Tax has become a planning issue by stealth, and the cost of inaction is measured in lost choices, rushed decisions and unnecessary tax."