How do I add all my share purchases/sales that do not relate to the current financial year into the Investment Register, so I have a complete record of all buys and sells relating to each share in my share portfolio?
Shares in a company or units in a unit trust (including a managed fund) are treated in the same way as any other asset for capital gains (CGT) tax purposes.
For an investor, CGT applies to capital gains on shares or units when a CGT event happens, such as when you sell them (unless you acquired them before CGT started on 20 September 1985). However, profits on the sale of shares made as part of a business of share trading are taxed as ordinary income rather than as capital gains.
Make sure you keep detailed records of all share and unit transactions, not only for CGT purposes but also to meet your other income tax obligations.
Such records will generally include:
As you may have purchased parcels of shares in the same company at different times, you need to keep full details for each parcel as they are separate CGT assets.
Click on the following ATO link for information on Shares, units and similar investments and Keeping records of shares and units.
The Investment Register requires you to have a complete record of your share purchase transactions (i.e. the number of shares for each stock in the Investment Register must equal the total shares you actually own in each company listed in your share portfolio). All income transactions (e.g. dividends, distributions, DRP) are automatically calculated on the number of shares for each company. It is also vital for all share sale transactions, as they are allocated against the 'current holdings' (i.e. each parcel of shares you have purchased for that company and entered into the Investment Register.)
To add the initial/first purchase of an investment into the Investment Register follow these instructions: