Inheritance Tax

The life tenant of a trust created by his late wife’s will is a higher-rate taxpayer and wishes to assign the income to his new wife, a basic-rate taxpayer

A taxpayer died seven years ago and the estate, which was just below the inheritance tax threshold, has long been wound up. It seems a claim could be made in respect of an individual savings account and this might yield about £6,000. What are the inheritance tax implications if compensation is now paid?

The inheritance tax revamp for non-domiciled spouses explained

An interest in possession trust was established by a will and allowed a widow to occupy a property as her main residence for her lifetime. She is now elderly and has moved into a care home. The property has been sold and the proceeds have been invested

There are special rules for allocating the income arising from property held jointly by spouses or civil partners and this may cause confusion

The inheritance tax (IHT) exempt amount a UK-domiciled individual can transfer to a non-domiciled spouse or civil partner is to be increased.

There is currently a lifetime limit of £55,000 on the value of the assets that can be transferred free of IHT when the spouse or civil partner to whom the assets are transferred does not have a UK domicile.

New rules to be introduced in Finance Bill 2013 will raise the cap to the level of the prevailing nil-rate band.

By Withers LLP, Aparna Nathan and Marika Lemos; £275; sixth edition; hardback; Sweet & Maxwell

The potential beneficiaries of a discretionary settlement included the settlor’s husband. The husband died in 2008 and the settlor has not remarried

An examination of the decision in the Trustees of David Zetland Settlement

Many taxpayers feel that they have worked hard to purchase their main residence and wish to pass this on to their children without paying tax, but without the possible complication of using a trust

A couple jointly own a company that is about to be sold. They plan to transfer shareholdings to the value of their inheritance tax nil-rate bands to a trust shortly before sale

A father’s will left three quarter shares of his estate into trust for his three children for life and then to the children of one of them. The income requirements of each of the life tenants have been different and the trusts have differing levels of capital in them