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An introduction to inheritance tax (IHT)

An introduction to inheritance tax (IHT)This guidance note provides a background to the basic principles of IHT, including the loss to the donor principle, chargeable transfers and transfers that are not subject to inheritance tax.Background to inheritance taxInheritance tax is a tax on the value passing from one individual to another person. This typically arises when an individual dies and all of the property that they own (their ‘estate’) passes to beneficiaries. An individual may also transfer their assets to others during lifetime. This could be an outright gift of assets to another person or a gift into trust.Assets in trust are held by trustees for the benefit of others, whose entitlement to them is restricted in some way. Special inheritance tax rules apply to trusts to reflect the separation of legal and beneficial ownership.IHT arising on a death estate is a tax on the donor ― the person who is transferring the asset. It is calculated with reference to their estate. It is not a tax on the beneficiaries, though what the beneficiaries receive may be reduced by the amount of tax. This position contrasts with the law in certain other jurisdictions where ‘death duties’, gift tax or the equivalent are a tax on the people receiving the property and is taxed in accordance with their status or wealth. Clients who receive an inheritance often ask if they have to pay tax on it. Generally, the answer is ‘no’, because any tax due has fallen on those administering

Woodlands

WoodlandsWoodlands may attract one of three different types of relief from inheritance tax (IHT) depending on the nature of the land and timber operations. These are:•agricultural property relief (APR) covered in the Agricultural property relief (APR) guidance note•business property relief (BPR) covered in the BPR overview guidance note•or woodlands reliefThis note concentrates on woodlands relief but APR and BPR are also considered briefly below.Woodlands may obtain APR if they are occupied with agricultural land or pasture and their occupation is ancillary to that of the agricultural land or pasture. An example is a strip of woodland acting as a wind shelter for farmland. Alternatively, woodlands may qualify for BPR if they are run as a commercial business (eg orchards or nurseries) or otherwise generate business profits by regularly producing timber.APR and BPR are usually to be preferred to woodlands relief. This is because, effectively, APR and BPR provide the equivalent of an exemption from IHT (at 50% or 100% of the relevant value of the property) whereas woodlands relief only defers IHT. Moreover, woodlands relief only defers the IHT on the timber, not on the underlying land. However, there will be occasions when woodlands are either not associated with agricultural property or are not part of commercial operations (eg where held as part of a private estate or as an investment) and so woodlands relief needs to be considered.The remainder of this note concentrates on woodlands relief.Outline of woodlands reliefIt is only possible to claim this

Domicile

DomicileIntroductionBefore 6 April 2025, domicile was one of the key factors to consider when deciding whether, or to what extent, an individual was liable to tax in the UK. The other is residence, see the Residence ― overview guidance note. As mentioned below, non-domiciliaries were able to use the remittance basis of taxation in the UK, which meant that their foreign income and gains were not taxable in the UK unless they are brought to the UK. The concept of domicile is abolished for tax purposes from 6 April 2025 onwards. Instead, from that date liability to tax is based on system that depends on an individual’s UK residence pattern. For a summary of the rules that apply to income tax and capital gains from 6 April 2025, including the transitional rules, see the Abolition of the remittance basis from 2025/26 guidance note. For a summary of the rules that apply to inheritance tax from 6 April 2025, see paras 146–235 of the HMRC technical paper. This guidance note explains the concept of domicile, why it mattered, how it could be changed and how to report non-domiciled status to HMRC. Note that other countries may have different interpretations of domicile from the UK. The guidance below is relevant for the 2024/25 tax year and previous tax years. What is domicile?Domicile is a legal concept and does not have a specific definition for tax purposes. It is often defined as the place where a person has their permanent home. It

Fact finding ― inheritance tax planning

Fact finding ― inheritance tax planningPreliminary mattersAn essential first step of any estate planning exercise is to get to know the client and find out all the relevant information about his circumstances (past, present and future), as far as these can be determined.The adviser will first need to complete the necessary identification procedures to comply with money laundering regulations. The usual client acceptance (on-boarding) procedures will need to be followed as well.The adviser will then need to take instructions from the client. These should be recorded in writing and form part of the client care agreement so that the scope of the work to be undertaken is clearly understood by both adviser and client. The extent of the work may develop into other areas as the matter progresses and this should also be agreed on both sides.What are the relevant questions to ask the client?Once the client’s objectives are clear, the adviser should carry out a detailed fact-find. The nature of the information required will be determined by the type

Timing of disposal for capital gains tax

Timing of disposal for capital gains taxDate of disposalThe date of the disposal determines the period in which the gain is subject to capital gains tax (CGT). When the rates of CGT change, the determination of the date of disposal can also affect the rate of CGT that applies to the gain.For the rates of CGT, see the Introduction to capital gains tax guidance note.The rules for determining the date of disposal vary according to the type of disposal made.Type of disposalUnder contractWhere an asset is disposed of and acquired under a contract, the time of the disposal and acquisition is the time when that contract is made, ie the date contracts are exchanged. It is not the date of the completion of the contract, or time of the conveyance or transfer of the asset (if different). However, if the contract is never completed, the disposal never takes place. In the case of a conditional contract, the time of disposal and acquisition is the time when the condition is satisfied. This applies in particular to a contract that is conditional on the exercise of an option. As such, although the date of disposal is fixed based on the date on which the contract becomes unconditional, the disposal only becomes taxable in that earlier period when the asset is transferred (ie the contract is completed). This has led to problems for HMRC where the transfer of the asset does not occur until years after the contract becomes unconditional as the

Family investment company (FIC)

Family investment company (FIC)What is a family investment company (FIC)?An FIC can apply to many different types of company structures used for different purposes although originally they began as estate planning vehicles. This guidance note summarises how an FIC can be a useful structure for a family business and provides links to additional sources of information. The structuring of FICs is a complex area with a lot of options on how to hold the shares, etc, therefore if an FIC structure is implemented, advice should be taken from relevant legal and tax experts.Essentially, an FIC is simply a company that has been established with the specific purpose of meeting the needs of, usually, a single family. An FIC allows the founders of the business to retain some involvement in the company and possibly a managed income stream but also pass the investments down to their children or grandchildren. They may be favoured above trusts because they are a more familiar structure but the option of using trusts should also be considered, see the Taxation of trusts ― introduction guidance note and the attached comparison of a FIC and a discretionary trust:The FIC is usually set up as a new company with a moderate level of share capital, eg 10,000, £1 ordinary shares to provide a reasonable capital base. Giving the family cash amounts in order to allow them to then subscribe for shares means that there are no issues of share valuation.Investments can be in any form that a

Will planning for assets qualifying for BPR

Will planning for assets qualifying for BPRThis guidance note considers how best to deal with assets which qualify for BPR on the death of the testator and the issues around Will planning for these assets to maximise the available relief. It considers the effect of leaving such assets by way of specific gift, maximising opportunities for planning with a spouse, the effect of assets qualifying for BPR on the availability of the residence nil rate band and the 36% rate. It also considers debts incurred acquiring, maintaining or enhancing assets qualifying for BPR before 6 April 2013 and the benefits of making a gift by Will rather than in lifetime. It highlights provisions in partnership and shareholders agreements that need to be considered to maximise relief, what to do to improve the BPR position before death, deathbed planning possibilities and what to do with assets where the BPR position is uncertain.For an overview of BPR, see the BPR overview guidance note.Will planning ― overviewAll clients should have a Will so that their estate is left as tax efficiently as possible to the people that they want to benefit after their death. Wills should be reviewed periodically and at certain life events such as marriage, divorce or the birth of children or grandchildren as well as when the size, nature or location of assets changes. For a general introduction to Wills, see the An introduction to Wills guidance note.Drafting Wills is not a reserved legal service (see the Reserved legal

Historical IHT schemes: Ingram and reversionary lease schemes

Historical IHT schemes: Ingram and reversionary lease schemesThe family home is often the largest asset in the estate and is frequently an obstacle to effective estate planning.The simplest approach is usually for the client to sell their home and downsize to a smaller property. They can make use of principal private residence relief for capital gains tax and release funds to make potentially exempt transfers (PETs) for IHT purposes. See the Outright gifts guidance note.However, many clients want to remain living in their home until their death. In this case, it will be difficult to give away the home without getting caught by the gift with reservation (GWR) of benefit provisions or the pre-owned asset tax (POAT). During the 1990s and early 2000s, a number of schemes and arrangements were devised to avoid these provisions and still remain living in the home. See the Gifts with reservation ― overview and Pre-owned assets tax (POAT) guidance notes.The introduction of the transferable nil rate band in 2007 rendered such planning for lower value estates less important. Planning has become even less relevant with the introduction of the residence nil rate band for residential interests in estates worth not significantly more than £2m. See the Nil rate band and the Residence nil rate band ― main provisions guidance notes.Nevertheless, tax practitioners will still encounter schemes which were set up years ago. The guidance notes on historical schemes provide some background information on how the schemes worked and what their current status is.This

Inter-spouse transfer

Inter-spouse transferSTOP PRESS: The remittance basis is to be abolished from 6 April 2025, although this only applies to foreign income and gains arising on or after that date. The remittance basis rules still apply to unremitted income and gains arising before that date but remitted later. The legislation is included in Finance Bill 2025. For more details, see the Abolition of the remittance basis from 2025/26 guidance note.IntroductionWhen a chargeable asset is transferred between two spouses or civil partners, there is a disposal by the transferor spouse / civil partner and an acquisition by the transferee spouse / civil partner for capital gains tax purposes. For simplicity, spouses and civil partners are referred to jointly as ‘spouses’ in this guidance note, but the commentary applies equally to both. For a discussion on the meaning of chargeable asset, see the Exempt assets for capital gains tax guidance note.No gain / no loss transfersThe disposal is deemed to take place at ‘no gain / no loss’ (which may also be written as NGNL) provided the couple is:•married or in civil partnership, and•living together during the tax yearTCGA 1992, s 58(1A), (1B)This has always been the case, but the no gain / no loss treatment was extended for separated couples where the disposal takes place on or after 6 April 2023. See ‘Separation and divorce’ below.In Scotland, a ‘common-law’ marriage is recognised as a legal marriage once there has been a declaration before the Court of Session (ie in

Basic principles of CGT for trusts

Basic principles of CGT for trustsIntroductionThe trustees of a settlement are treated as a single person for capital gains tax purposes: that is to say, the trust is treated as a separate and single taxable entity. Capital gains tax is charged when the trustees (as a body) make a chargeable disposal. Such a disposal may arise when trustees sell or transfer trust assets in the course of administration of the trust. However, in addition to these ‘actual disposals’ of assets, there are occasions when trustees are ‘deemed’ to have made a disposal and capital gains tax is charged accordingly. In summary, deemed disposals arise when the nature of entitlement to the assets changes. See the Deemed disposals guidance note. The same principles of calculation apply to both actual and deemed disposals.ResidenceIf trustees (as a whole) are treated as UK resident, the trust is chargeable to capital gains tax on the disposal of assets wherever situated. If trustees (as a whole) are treated as non-resident, the trust is chargeable to capital gains tax only on the disposal of assets which are:•situated in the UK and used in the trust’s UK branch or agency (ie for the purposes of a trade, profession or vocation in the UK),•interests in UK land, or•assets which derive at least 75% of their value from UK land (eg company shares) and the trust has a ‘substantial indirect interest’ in the land. This might be for example a 25% investment in a company holding