10 steps to avoid being hit with 40% IHT in 2018
By International Adviser, 11 Jan 18
With inheritance tax payments hitting a record high at the end of 2017, the new year is a good time for advisers to ensure that clients are being as tax efficient as possible when passing on wealth to future generations, law firm Collyer Bristow has advised.
Check your will is up-to-date
Write a will and review it will periodically to ensure that your current wishes are reflected; that changing family circumstances are taken into account; and that IHT is minimised.
Monitor whether your estate’s value is likely to exceed the nil rate band
Keeping an eye on the approximate value of your estate means you will be able to take timely action to reduce the amount of IHT beneficiaries could have to pay, using the steps outlined below.
Estates worth £325,000 can be passed on free of IHT. For married couples and civil partners, this nil-rate band can now be transferred to a surviving spouse – effectively doubling the nil-rate band to £650,000.
Plus, there’s an additional nil-rate band where individuals wish to pass on a property to direct descendants, worth an extra £100,000 free of tax in 2017/18, rising to £175,000 by 2020/21.
Tags: IHT
