I have an empty property previously tenanted which I wish to transfer to my daughter. I have owned this for over 40 years. Can I avoid a hefty capital gains tax bill? 

Arthur Weller replies:  

Not really. Presumably, the property is now worth a lot more than it was 40 years ago. Since you are transferring to your daughter, the rules state that you are deemed to transfer to her at today's market value (see HMRC’s Capital Gains Manual at CG14530). Therefore, this transfer will trigger a large capital gain. Perhaps you want to speak to a tax adviser about transferring the property into a trust using a gift holdover election and then, after a reasonable period, taking the property out of the trust with another election.