Income tax: capital gains: do the costs of obtaining a loan form part of the cost base of an asset acquired with the loan monies?

No. As such costs are incurred in obtaining a loan or other finance, they are not :- (a) part of "any consideration in respect of the acquisition of the asset" (paragraph 160ZH(1)(a) of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 ); (b) part of "the incidental costs to the taxpayer of the acquisition of the asset" (sub-section 160ZH(5)); (c) for the purposes of paragraph 160ZH(1)(ba), expenses of a non-capital nature as they do not satisfy the requirements of subsection 160ZH(6A). Note: (i) Interest incurred on a loan taken out to finance the acquisition of an asset is taken to be a 'non-capital cost' and hence included in the cost base of the asset under paragraph 160ZH(1)(ba). (ii) Section 67 may permit a deduction to be claimed where loan funds are used to acquire an income-producing asset.