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Is a tax return required?

Personal representatives (PRs) have a duty to report to HMRC any untaxed income received during the period of administration and any capital gains which have arisen in that period on the sale of property forming part of the deceased’s estate. See the Income tax during administration and Capital gains tax during administration guidance notes.

In accordance with the general rule under TMA 1970, s 7(3), there is no requirement for the personal representatives to notify chargeability where the only income received has been taxed at source. For tax years up to 2015/16, it was often the case that all of an estate’s income was taxed at source, since for many estates the only sources of income are interest and dividends. In that case, no return was necessary.

However, with effect from 6 April 2016, tax was no longer deducted at source on bank accounts, etc and the dividend tax credit was abolished. Currently, the legislation requires that even very small amounts of investment income arising within