A frozen nil-rate band is causing the number of estates subject to IHT to soar. In the final part of his estate planning series, Canada Life's Jeremy Pearson examines the adviser's role.
In a sense, inheritance tax (IHT) is the UK's version of wealth tax - although, unlike our continental neighbours, it is mostly collected on death. As wealth increases, naturally, the potential tax take increases and this is in no small part escalated by the fact the nil-rate band (NRB) is frozen until April 2018. As regards people's wealth, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) tells us that half of all deceased's estates are represented by the family home, and a significant part is stocks and shares. So, how did they do in 2013? Against an NRB which went up 0%, the Halifax Property index (...
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