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Available on Sharesight Starter, Standard, Premium and Sharesight Business plans.

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The Unrealised Capital Gains Report in Sharesight calculates unrealised capital gains in your portfolio and the resulting taxable income that would arise if these shares were sold on the report date. The report is designed for forecasting purposes only, please use the Capital Gains Tax Report to calculate your actual (realised) taxable capital gain income for a period.

The report is based on the ‘discount method’ for shares that have been held for more than 1 year and the ‘other method’ for shares held for less than one year. The discount rate used is the tax setting selected when the portfolio was set up, the default rate is 50%. The tax discount rate can be changed in the tax settings tab. For more information on Australian capital gain tax, visit the ATO website.

How to run the Unrealised Capital Gains Tax Report:

1 — Click on the date field to select the date for when the report runs on.

2 — If you have any carry forward losses from the previous reporting period, select ‘Advanced Options’.

3 — Type in the amount of the loss into the ‘Losses carried forward’ field.

4 — Click ‘Apply’.

The carry forward loss will be included in the capital losses section of the report.

Note: Sharesight does not automatically account for any capital losses in previous tax years. Capital losses to be carried forward must be accounted for manually. The carry forward amount is not saved and must be re-entered if you rerun the report.

5 — The Sale Allocation Method may be changed, default is First In, First Out. To change; click on ‘Change Sale Allocation Method’.

6 — From the dropdown list, select the sale allocation method, this can be chosen at the portfolio level or individual holding.

7 — Click Update current report.

Note: Changing the sale allocation method will be saved to the portfolio and will be applied to all reports and portfolio performance.

8 — Short Term Capital Gains (unrealised) This table lists unrealised capital gains on shares held for less than 12 months (as at the report date).

Note: Quantities and cost bases are adjusted by Sharesight to allow for any capital returns and capital reconstructions.

9 — Long Term Capital Gains (unrealised) This table lists any unrealised capital gains on shares held for more than 12 months (as at the report date).

Note: Quantities and cost bases will be adjusted by Sharesight to allow for any capital returns and capital reconstructions.

10 — Capital Losses (unrealised) This table lists any unrealised capital losses.

Note: Quantities and cost bases will be adjusted by Sharesight to allow for any capital returns and capital reconstructions.

11 — Summary The summary section details what the taxable income calculation would be if the unrealised gains.

The following methodology is used to calculate taxable income:

1. The cost base of the shares is adjusted for any capital returns or capital reconstructions.

2. If there are any capital losses during the period, these are deducted from any gains made on shares held for less than 12 months. Any residual losses are then deducted from capital gains on shares held for more than 12 months.

3. The capital gains made on shares held for more than 12 months (less any losses if applicable) are discounted by your discount rate (this can be changed under the settings menu for your portfolio).

4. Any capital gains on shares held for less than 12 months (as calculated in (2) above) are added to any discounted capital gains on shares held for more than 12 months (as calculated in (3) above). This amount is the capital gain for the period.

The report can be exported to either a Spreadsheet, PDF or to Google Drive.

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Using the Unrealised CGT Report for tax planning

The Unrealised CGT Report is more than a snapshot of your current gains and losses — it's a tax planning tool. Here are five common scenarios where it can inform your strategy.

1. Tax loss selling

Situation: You've sold (or plan to sell) a profitable investment and want to reduce your CGT liability for the financial year.

Tax loss selling involves identifying holdings that are currently sitting at a loss and selling them to offset your capital gains. This reduces your net taxable income for the year.

Example: You bought a stock for $10,000 and it's now worth $28,000. You decide to sell because you believe the price has run ahead of its fundamentals — but this creates an $18,000 capital gain. By checking the Unrealised CGT Report, you might find other positions sitting at a loss that you've been meaning to exit anyway. Selling those in the same financial year offsets your gain and reduces your overall tax bill.

What to look at: The losses table in the report shows all positions with unrealised losses. Use these to identify candidates for tax loss selling before the end of the financial year.

2. Evaluating which parcels to sell

Situation: You hold multiple parcels of the same stock acquired at different times and prices, and you want to understand the tax impact before selling.

When you've built up a position gradually over time, each parcel has a different cost base and holding period — which affects whether the CGT discount applies and how much tax you'll owe on each.

Example: If you want to sell some of your CBA shares, the report breaks down each parcel, showing which ones qualify for the 50% CGT discount (held 12+ months) and the estimated tax liability for each. This helps you decide which sale allocation method — such as First In First Out, or Highest Cost — produces the best outcome for your situation.

What to look at: Compare the short-term and long-term gains tables to see the tax impact of selling different parcels. Try changing the sale allocation method in Advanced Options to see how it affects your total liability.

3. Drawing down your portfolio tax-efficiently

Situation: You want to draw a regular amount from your portfolio — say $3,000 per month — and want to minimise the CGT you trigger along the way.

Rather than selling whatever is most liquid or has performed best, you can use this report to sequence your sales in a more tax-efficient order.

Example: You might prioritise selling assets with a higher cost base (smaller gain), or those held over 12 months to access the CGT discount, before selling assets with larger short-term gains. The report gives you the information to make that call each time you need to draw down.

What to look at: Sort by estimated gain or tax liability to identify the least costly positions to sell first. Factor in the holding period column to see which positions qualify for the discount.

4. Retirement planning

Situation: You're approaching retirement and building a drawdown strategy that considers both your superannuation and investment portfolio.

Retirement planning often involves more than just knowing what you own — it requires understanding the tax consequences of liquidating assets over time, and potentially the implications of gifting or estate transfer.

Example: As part of your retirement strategy, you might plan to sell down your portfolio gradually over several years to stay within a lower tax bracket each year. The Unrealised CGT Report helps you model the tax impact of different liquidation sequences, so you can pace your sales in the most tax-efficient way. It's also a useful starting point for conversations with a financial adviser about estate planning and the CGT implications of gifting or inheritance.

What to look at: Use the report date to model different future sale scenarios — for example, what would your tax liability look like if you sold a portion of your portfolio in 12 months versus now?

Sharesight does not provide taxation advice. For complex retirement or estate planning scenarios, we recommend consulting a qualified tax adviser or financial planner.

5. Rebalancing your portfolio without a large tax hit

Situation: Your portfolio has drifted from your target allocation — for example, it's become overweight in one sector — and you want to rebalance without triggering a large CGT event.

Selling your biggest winners to rebalance can create a significant tax liability. The Unrealised CGT Report helps you find a smarter path.

Example: If your Diversity Report or Exposure Report shows you're overweight in the technology sector, you can use the Unrealised CGT Report to identify tech holdings with the smallest gains — or losses — to sell first. You then reinvest the proceeds into underweight sectors, achieving your rebalancing goal while keeping your tax bill as low as possible.

What to look at: Cross-reference the Unrealised CGT Report with your Diversity Report and Exposure Report. Focus on positions in the overweight sector that appear in the losses table or have the lowest gain in the short-term gains table.