As 2025 gets under way, it is once again the time of year to start considering your tax year-end planning. The early months of the year are the time to undertake year-end tax planning. Unsurprisingly,…
The Autumn Budget – a brave new tax world
Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ first Budget was a significant one in all senses. “…this Budget delivers a large, sustained increase in spending, taxation, and borrowing.” So said the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) in the first…
HMRC ramps up its checks and investigations
There’s no respite for HMRC with inheritance tax (IHT) accounts, undeclared dividend income and gains from share disposals to scrutinise. HMRC is currently busy with several ongoing checks. They are looking at IHT accounts, targeting…
Farewell to inheritance tax?
In July, the government was reported as holding talks on abolishing inheritance tax (IHT). This wasn’t given much credence at the time, but there are now reports that the March 2024 Budget will include a…
Inheritance Tax: Intestacy entitlement increased
If an English or Welsh domiciled person dies without leaving a will, the amount that a surviving spouse or civil partner can inherit as a statutory legacy under the intestacy rules has – from 26…
Take Two on Wealth tax…………
Hard on the heels of May's Sunday Times Rich List, will new proposals for a wealth tax gain any traction? In 2020, a group of economic research bodies set up the Wealth Tax Commission to…
Increase in number of estates paying IHT
The combination of a frozen inheritance tax (IHT) nil rate band and considerably higher property values has pushed more estates into the IHT net. The average IHT bill is now nearly £62,000, with much larger…
Cohabitation law reforms rejected
The government has rejected proposals to modernise cohabitation laws in England and Wales, leaving it up to individuals to arrange their financial affairs for partners and dependents. In August, the House of Commons Women and…
The effects of fiscal drag on your tax position
Fiscal drag is the stealthy way in which governments pull more and more taxpayers into higher tax brackets without the backlash that comes with increased tax rates. This is something taxpayers can probably live with…
Confused on claiming residence band relief?
Working through inheritance tax (IHT) requirements come at a difficult time. The provisions of the residence nil rate band (RNRB), which can be passed on between deceased spouses and civil partners, has caused some confusion.…