In response to today’s bulletin published by HMRC on the taxes it collected in April, Jamie Morrison, Head of Private Client, at HW Fisher comments.
Inheritance tax (IHT) receipts hit £800m in April, a rise of £97m (13.8pc) compared with the same period last year.
“We are now six months on from the Chancellor’s decision to freeze IHT thresholds until 2030, a move that continues to bring more families within the scope of the tax, this upward trend in receipts is expected to continue in the coming years.
However, MPs from the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Efra) Committee last week urged the government to delay planned changes to farm inheritance tax by a year, warning that the reforms could harm small family-run farms. Calls for a delay will be welcomed by family-run farms, as it would give them more time to seek professional advice and plan ahead to minimise the impact of the changes.
Currently, pension funds are typically excluded from an estate for inheritance tax purposes, but from April 2027 onwards, unused pension death benefits will be included as part of the estate for IHT. This change will mark a significant shift in many people’s tax planning strategies.
Those affected by the various Inheritance Tax changes will probably have to wait until the Autumn Statement later this year for any updates – leaving many UK families uncertain about the future.”
