Govt hints at future IHT reform

Commissioned research into IHT use

Hannah Godfrey
clock • 3 min read

The government has hinted at reforming the current inheritance tax (IHT) system after commissioning research into the complex area.

HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) commissioned the research on 22 November alongside the Budget to better understand the motivations, behaviours and attitudes underlying individuals' decision-making process on IHT matters, and the use of reliefs and exemptions. There was a limited understanding of IHT among the interviewees, most were aware of the basic principles of IHT such as the threshold and spouse exemption, but few actually relayed the details of these, and very few were aware of agricultural property relief (APR) and business property relief (BPR). HMRC interviewed 80 people who eit...

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