Inheritance Tax (IHT)

Death duties are reaching record levels with the recent figures detailing that the UK Government alone now collects over £7 billion/year in IHT.

In practice, most families are unaware that they might have to pay inheritance tax but when they learn the facts they take steps to try to avoid it.

The worlds highest IHT rate is Japan at an eye watering 55% with the lowest (excluding Nil Rate countries) being Italy at 4%.

If you haven't protected your assets, alarmingly HMRC will tax the same asset multiple times with their Generational IHT powers. However our intelligent Trust planning stops them dead in their tracks meaning more money for your beneficiaries and not the tax man.

Mitigation

The former British home secretary, Lord Jenkins once said, “IHT is ‘a voluntary tax, paid by those who distrust their heirs more than they dislike the Inland Revenue’ and steps can be taken to minimise liability by using a number of entirely legitimate processes.”

Whilst this specific statement should be taken with a pinch of salt, the fact remains that with the use of intelligent Legacy Planning combined with the use of trusts steps can be taken to legally mitigate IHT liability. In some countries, domestic trusts are common place and relatively cost effective to establish (particularly when you compare the set up costs to the massive potential IHT savings) and in other jurisdictions effective planning can be more complex however in any event, Trust Planning is a specialist area requiring solutions tailored to your own particular situation.

For further information on how we can help you, contact us now so we can organise a free no obligation initial consultation.