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Inheritance Tax

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Inheritance Tax (IHT) may be payable on a person’s estate after they die. The first £325‚000 of an estate is exempt from IHT. This is called the nil rate band because tax is charged at 0%. Thereafter tax is charged at 40%.

Since 9 October 2007‚ where a spouse or civil partner dies‚ any unused part of that person’s nil rate band can be passed on to the survivor. When the second person dies‚ their estate could benefit by up to double the nil rate band in force at the time.

Oversees properties

UK inheritance tax will still apply to an overseas property if you are UK domiciled. Even if you are non-domiciled you will still be liable to UK inheritance tax if you were domiciled in the UK in the previous three tax years‚ or if you were resident in 17 of the previous 20 tax years. 

Any double taxation agreement will prevent you from having to pay full inheritance tax twice in both countries but this agreement does not apply to all countries‚ for example Spain does not come under this agreement. However in these cases under the Inheritance Tax Act 1984 you should be able to apply for a credit for inheritance tax paid overseas.

Gifts exempt from Inheritance Tax

Gifts of up to £3,000 in each tax year are exempted, plus up to £3,000 of the previous year’s allowance if unused. Gifts to individuals of up to £250 each are exempt, as are wedding or civil partnership gifts of up to £5,000 by each parent or step-parent, £2,500 by each grandparent or great-grandparent, or £1,000 by people outside the categories mentioned.

Gifts to charities established in the United Kingdom, political parties, housing associations or for ‘national purposes’, eg a museum or university, are also exempt.

opens link in new window FS7 Making a Will - April 2012 (PDF 184 KB)

opens link in new window FS14 Dealing with an estate factsheet - July 2011 (PDF 198 KB)

opens link in new window IG16 Tax Guide - April 2012 (PDF 686KB)

opens link in new window IG19 Managing Your Money - September 2011 (PDF 2.47MB)

opens link in new window IG31 Wills and estate planning 0 May 2011 (PDF 908KB)


 

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Downloads

What is a download?

A download is a document (like a research report, a leaflet, or an application form) that can be transferred from our website to your computer. You can download a file, view it on your screen, print it, or save it to your computer.

What is a PDF?

PDF stands for ‘portable document format’.

Most downloads on this website are PDFs. We use this format to ensure that the document looks the same on everyone’s computer (website pages, by contrast, appear differently depending on how people have got their computer set up).

How do I download a PDF?

Computers use a program called Adobe Acrobat Reader to download PDFs. If you try clicking on a link to download a PDF and it doesn’t work, you will need to install Adobe Acrobat Reader onto your computer.

How do I install Adobe Acrobat Reader?

The process is quite straightforward and is free.

  1. Go to opens link in new window http://get.adobe.com/uk/reader/
  2. Click ‘Download’.
  3. Wait for the window to offer you the option to ‘Run’, then choose this option.
  4. Click ‘Next’.
  5. Click ‘Install’
  6. Wait for the window to offer you the option to ‘Finish’, then choose this option.

How do I change a download?

PDFs cannot be changed. If you need to be able to type into a downloaded document (for example, if we are offering a letter template that you need to put your name on) we will provide it as a Microsoft Word document rather than a PDF. You can then download it, type into it and save it to your computer.

How do I print or save a download?

Downloads will open on your computer in a new browser window.

Inside this window (below all your web browser menus), there will be a toolbar with options for you to print or save the document.

Close the browser window to return to the Age UK website.

Can my screen reader read PDF downloads?

We have made every effort to make our PDFs accessible to screen readers. Here is an overview of your accessibility options available in Acrobat Reader. Please ensure that you have downloaded the latest version of Acrobat Reader from the Adobe Reader website to ensure that they are included in your version of the programme.

You can use Adobe Reader to read a PDF out loud with the following shortcut keys:

  • Read the document: Shift +Ctrl+Y
  • Read the open page only: Shift +Ctrl+V
  • Read to the end of the document: Shift+Ctrl+B
  • Pause: Shift+Ctrl+C
  • Stop Shift+Ctrl+E


You can also convert a PDF into a web page by following these steps:

  • Copy the URL (web address) of the document (right-click on the link and select ‘Save target as’ or ‘Copy link’).
  • Open the Adobe online conversion tool in your browser and paste the URL into the URL box.
  • Tick the HTML box on the Format option and click ‘Convert’.


You can convert a PDF document into a text file for use with other software and hardware such as Braille printers by opening the PDF and choosing ‘Save as text’ from the File menu.

 
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