Taxpayers can make a negligible value claim when an asset they own has become of negligible value i.e. worthless or worth next to nothing. The taxpayer effectively treats the asset as having been disposed of and then immediately reacquired at the negligible
value. The asset must still be owned by the person making the claim and must have become of negligible value whilst it was owned. Making a claim allows the owner of the asset to realise a capital loss in respect of an asset without actually having to dispose
of it.

HMRC publishes a negligible value list which itemises shares or securities formerly quoted on the London Stock Exchange that have been officially declared of negligible value for the purposes of making a claim. The list has recently been updated to list
all negligible value agreements to 31 December 2018.

By making a negligible value claim, rather than selling an asset, the taxpayer retains ownership should the asset ever recover in value even if this is only a remote possibility. In cases where the asset is not listed on the negligible value list an application
should be made to HMRC to agree upon a valuation.

A negligible value claim can be back-dated to an earlier time falling in the previous two tax years provided all the other qualifying conditions are met.

Source: New feed