How long in a property before I get Private Residence Relief?

Question What is the minimum amount of time you need to live in a property before you can claim 'Private Residence Relief'? I have heard it is 6 months, is this true?

Arthur Says
The Inland Revenue has not given any specific guidance as to how long you need to live in a property before you can claim the relief.

However as a general rule of thumb, you should look to make it your permanent residence for at least 1 year i.e. 12 months (but it can be less and there have been successful cases for much less than this).

The longer you live in a property the better chance you have of claiming the relief.

The Inland Revenue is not necessarily interested in how long you lived in the property. They are more interested in whether the property really was your home!

They want to know whether you really did live in the property!

If you want to claim this relief then here are some pointers that will help you to convince the taxman that a property genuinely was your private residence.

a) Have utility bills in your own name at the property address.

b) Make the property address your voting address on the electoral register.

c) Be able to demonstrate that you bought furniture and furnishings for the property. Keep receipts and prove that bulky furniture was delivered to the property address under your name.

d) Have all bank statements delivered to the property address.