property traders

PHOTO: TOM PULLAR-STRECKER/STUFF In the tax year to date, there have been 146 audits of brightline transactions and 122 audits of dealers and speculators.

Inland Revenue scrutiny of property transactions has resulted in $12.5 million in tax bills for property traders and speculators last year.

The department is tasked with identifying property dealers and speculators who should have paid tax on the gains they make from buying and selling properties.

A spokeswoman said its current focus was on identifying transactions that should be caught by the brightline test, which requires that tax is paid on gains from investment properties bought since October 2018 and sold within five years.

When it was first introduced in October 2015, it required tax to be paid on investment properties bought and sold within two years.

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