Negligible value claims and agreements
Source: gov.uk (2025-11-17)

How to make a negligible value claim for unquoted shares, and how to check if shares previously quoted on the London Stock Exchange now have negligible value.

What ‘negligible value’ means

For tax purposes there is no accepted definition of ‘negligible value’. It usually applies to assets that have become worth almost nothing while someone has owned them.

Assets cannot have been of negligible value when you acquired them. They must have become of negligible value while you owned them.

How to make a negligible value claim

If you have evidence to show that your assets no longer have any value since you acquired them, you may be able to make a negligible value claim to HMRC. You can use this to realise a loss to reduce your Capital Gains Tax liability.

Make a claim by either:
- writing to your tax office
- entering a negligible value on your Self Assessment tax return
Your tax office may ask the Shares and Assets Valuation team (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/shares-and-assets-valuations-for-tax) to consider your claim.

Negligible value claims for company shares and securities

If the company is in liquidation or receivership

You’ll need to give the following information:
- a statement of affairs for the company and any subsidiaries
- a letter from the liquidator or receiver showing if a return will be made to the shareholders
- details of how this decision was reached (for example, a balance sheet showing significantly more debts than assets)
- evidence that no recovery or rescue of the company is likely (for example, a statement that the company has ceased trading)
If the company is not in liquidation or receivership

You’ll need to give full and comprehensive information that shows the shares or securities have become of negligible value.

Negligible value agreements and claims for previously quoted companies

HMRC publishes a list of shares and securities in companies that:
- were previously quoted on the London Stock Exchange
- have been accepted as being of negligible value
You can use it to find shares which have been declared as being worth negligible value up to and including 31 October 2025.

You’ll still have to submit your claim to HMRC if you own shares or securities for a company shown on the list.

A list is not published for:
- unquoted companies
- companies which were quoted on the Alternative Investment Market or PLUS Market
- non-UK companies
How to use the Negligible Value Agreement list

Use this list to check if the shares or securities you hold in a company are of negligible value.

Select the first letter of the company name in the Negligible Value Agreement list index.

If the company appears in the list, this tells you that your shares or securities:
- were quoted on the London Stock Exchange
- are of negligible value
The ‘security’ is the ownership interest held by the shareholders in a company. This interest is realised in the form of publicly traded stock or shares, including ordinary shares and preferred stock.

The ‘effective date’ is the date that an agreement or transaction becomes binding. This is the date (or length of time) on which a claim to negligible value on the shown security is valid.

The ‘dissolved date’ is the date the company ceased to legally exist. You cannot make a negligible value claim on or after the date the company has been dissolved.

Negligible Value Agreement list index

Companies: A to C

A

B

C

Companies: D to F

D

E

F

Companies: G to I

G

H

I

Companies: J to L

J

K

L

Companies: M to O

M

N

O

Companies: P to R

P

Q

R

Companies: S to U

S

T

U

Companies: V to Z

V

W

X

Y