Inheritance tax receipts for January 2023 totalled £578 million, up from £443 million in the same month a year ago. It takes the total inheritance tax take for the 2022-23 Financial Year to date to £5.9 billion, £853 million higher than through the same period last year.
The total inheritance tax takes for 2021-22 (the last full financial year) was £6.1 billion, meaning this year is already only £178 million short of that. It looks set to beat that record and potentially surpass official estimates* for 2025-26 of £6.8 billion.
Commenting on today’s data, Stephen Lowe, group communications director at retirement specialist Just Group, said:
“The Chancellor has struck a seam of gold with recent inheritance tax receipts as he looks set to receive another record haul this financial year – and with more to come.
“Receipts are likely to race past official predictions for the next few years. The OBR forecast a tax-take of £6.7 billion for the current financial year rising to £6.8 billion by 2025-2026 but with receipts averaging £588 million a month this year, inheritance tax receipts are on track to exceed £7 billion this year.
“The combination of frozen thresholds and property prices that have soared over the years mean that receipts could continue to grow over the coming years.
“While it’s good news for the Treasury there will be many people for whom an inheritance tax bill will be a nasty shock. These figures provide a reminder for people to assess the value of their estate regularly, taking into account an up-to-date valuation of any property they own.
“Professional, regulated advice can be invaluable to help work out the total value of an estate, calculate how much inheritance tax is likely to charge and understand what options are available to manage that tax bill.”
* https://obr.uk/forecasts-in-depth/tax-by-tax-spend-by-spend/inheritance-tax/
