Australian expatriates who live and work overseas and want to sell their main residences, may find themselves no longer eligible for the Capital Gains Tax exemption.

The current status is that Australians living and working overseas are exempt from paying CGT should they wish to sell their family home.

However, this is about to change as the Australian Government is preparing to redraft a previous bill from the 2017-2018 budget that sees this exemption waived.

At a glance:

• The government is set to re-introduce a bill that will see Australian expatriates selling their main residences in Australia, no longer exempted from CGT.
• The new bill could affect 100,000 people and cost $581 million
• Properties held prior to this date will be grandfathered until 30 June 2019.

Despite lapsing at the last Federal election, the bill is to be re-introduced into Parliament, which means the sale of main residences for expats will no longer be exempt from CGT.

This could affect 100,000 people costing them $581 million.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said the Government's position hadn't changed.

"Our policy remains as it was pre-election," Mr Frydenberg told The Australian Financial Review in an interview shortly after the May election.

According to the original Bill, the change applies from the date of announcement and properties held prior to this date will be grandfathered until 30 June 2019.

H&R Block tax expert Mark Chapman told news.com.au that the legislation had been a saga.

"You literally won't get the exemption at all, no matter how long you've owned the house, no matter how long you've lived in it as your main residence," said Mr Chapman.

"Foreign residents are really going to have to do some thinking between now and then about what they're going to do with their former main residence in Australia."

You can find out more from the Australian Tax Office here.

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