With careful planning it is possible to significantly reduce the need for your estate to pay Inheritance Tax. We spend a lifetime generating wealth and assets but not many of us ensure that it will be passed to the next generation – our children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and so on. Estate preservation planning is the transferring of wealth from one family generation to the next.
The introduction of the ‘residence nil-rate band’ (RNRB) has made it easier for some individuals to pass on the family home. The rise in property prices throughout the UK means that even those with modest assets may exceed the £325,000 ‘nil-rate band’ (NRB) for Inheritance Tax.
An outright gift falls into one of two categories, depending on the type of gift and to whom it’s made. These categories are Potentially Exempt Transfers (PETs) and Chargeable Lifetime Transfers (CLTs).
Passing wealth through the family, for most, is an important part of their estate preservation planning process. Pension funds are typically free of Inheritance Tax provided the scheme trustees/administrator has discretion over the payment of death benefits
A valid Will is an incredibly important part of estate preservation planning and will ensure that should the worst happen, your assets, whether they be financial wealth or possessions, are distributed in an orderly fashion to the right beneficiaries.
Thinking about death isn’t easy. Talking about it is even harder. The reality of our own mortality is a tough subject, but a discussion will ensure your assets are left to the right people.
You may want to consider putting some of your assets into a trust for a loved one. Trusts are a way of managing wealth, money, investments, land or property, for you, your family or anyone else you’d like to benefit.
When you put assets in a trust, they are under the control of an appointed person or persons called ‘trustees’. The trustees then manage the trust according to your instructions, even after your death.
Bare Trusts are also known as ‘Absolute’ or ‘Fixed Interest Trusts’, and there can be subtle differences. The settlor – the person creating the trust – makes a gift into the trust, which is held for the benefit of a specified beneficiary. If the trust is for more than one beneficiary, each person’s share of the trust fund must be specified.
With a Discretionary Trust, the settlor makes a gift into trust, and the trustees hold the trust fund for a wide class of potential beneficiaries. This is known as ‘settled’ or ‘relevant’ property. For lump sum investments, the initial gift is a chargeable lifetime transfer for Inheritance Tax purposes.