Tax rules

Best will for……..Part 2: Married entrepreneurs

I am lucky enough to meet inspiring entrepreneurs on a regular basis in the course of my work. Although they are busy building up successful business empires in very different sectors, they all tend to have one thing in common, though. Their Inheritance Tax (IHT) planning is non-existent! Yet if they knew what was at […]

Changes afoot for owners of UK residences

The Government recently issued a consultation entitled ‘Implementing a capital gains tax (CGT) charge on non-residents’. Now, if you are UK resident for CGT purposes, you might have formed the view, quite reasonably, that, in view of its title, you need not add the consultation to your pile of bedtime reading. Tut tut, how could […]

ATED goes large

ATED (the UK’s Annual Tax on Enveloped Dwellings) is one of the newest taxes to hit the statute book but it became clear in this year’s Budget that, as taxes go, it is destined for even greater things in 2015 and beyond. ATED is an annual tax, levied on non natural persons (such as companies) […]

Surplus income gifts and Inheritance Tax: are you fit for the fight?

UK Inheritance Tax (IHT) is essentially a tax on capital at death but allowing unused income to accumulate over the years, in effect turning itself into chargeable capital, can increase a person’s IHT liability. It is a common misconception that one has to survive all gifts by seven years before the gift will be free […]

What a relief!

The Chancellor’s Autumn Statement last month confirmed that capital gains tax (CGT) is to be extended to UK residential property owned by non-residents. At the time of writing this, we are still waiting for further details in the form of a consultation document. However, I predict that securing CGT Principal Private Residence (PPR) Relief will […]

Nil Rate Band will trusts: time to review

This year’s Finance Act introduced some significant constraints on when debts can be deducted for Inheritance Tax (IHT) purposes. The changes should have set alarm bells ringing for any families who are making use of nil rate band will trusts and associated loans. IHT is usually thought of as a tax that applies to a […]

Married couples and the Koshal case

The recent case of Koshal (Koshal and another v HMRC [2013]) provides a useful reminder that married couples need to take particular care when it comes to declaring income from most of their jointly owned assets. Whilst husbands and wives are taxed as individual taxpayers, this is a classic example of where a joined up […]

Intra-family debts and IHT

The deductibility of debts for inheritance tax (IHT) purposes is a hot topic at the moment, following the changes introduced to IHTA 1984 by this year’s Finance Act.  However, it’s easy to overlook more mundane loans between family members. Not surprisingly, these loans often remain undocumented as they tend to be informal arrangements.  However, that […]

ATED tax returns

The final version of the tax return for the new Annual Tax on Enveloped Dwellings (ATED) has been published by HMRC. So, now is the time to start thinking about whether ATED applies to you or your clients. ATED is only a potential concern if a corporate entity, or a partnership with a corporate member, […]