IHT trap 'hits middle classes' as govt nets record £4.7bn

HMRC collected record £4.7bn last year

clock • 2 min read

Government income from inheritance tax (IHT) reached a record £4.7bn during the last year, meaning more middle class estates were getting 'wrongly' caught by the net, according to a law firm.

IHT receipts saw a 17% increase in 2015, representing a 91% rise on 2009/10, the year when the threshold was last set. Law firm Wilsons said the rise meant middle class estates were increasingly affected by a tax which was "never intended for them". It added HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) was becoming more reliant on the income, which now consists of 0.87% of all tax receipts in the UK in comparison to 0.57% in 2009/10. The threshold for when IHT has to be applied lies at £325,000 and is not scheduled to be re-examined again by the Treasury until at least April 2019. Wilsons partne...

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