Death Duties?

Question

Can anybody explain how the calculation of death duties work.

Answer 1

Inheritance tax, also known as death duty, is paid on the estates of the deceased providing the value of the estate is in excess of £300,000.

Inheritance tax is payable at the rate of 40 per cent of the value of the estate above £300,000, and gifts made by the deceased person within the preceding seven years ('lifetime gifts') are taken into account in calculating the tax payable.

This lower threshold is set to rise to £350,000 by 2010.

There are a number of exemptions from inheritance tax, notably including assets left to a spouse, a political party, or a charity, as well as some as agricultural and business assets.

Heritage assets may be given an exemption from the tax provided they continue to be appropriately maintained and made accessible to the public.

In 2003-04, inheritance tax was paid by 30,000 estates, representing a small proportion of the over 600,000 people who die each year, and generated some £2.5 billion for the Inland Revenue. However, rocketing house prices have seen more and more people fall within this tax's umbrella.

Answer 2

Very roughly - If a married couple own a house or any other valuables, when one of them dies the estate goes to the survivor. No tax (inheritance tax) to pay. But when the survivor dies the value of the estate is added up. The first £285,000 of value is free of tax and goes to the person(s) named in the will. But here's the rub.....anything over this figure is taxed at 40%. That means if your estate - house, bank accounts, insurances and any other valuables total £500,000 this Scottish-dominated labour government will snatch about £90,000 from you to subsidise their Scottish voters at the expense of the English. It was made worse by the newly unelected Labour boss Gordon Brown who as Chancellor of the Exchequer for the last ten years has never stopped looking for new ways to grab our cash. He then wastes it on grandiose schemes that leave us with the worst health service, schools and transport services in Europe.

Answer 3

it is no longer straightforward; take suggestion in case you truthfully need to. The shrink is approximately £300000 yet many stuff are not getting taken under consideration. Transfers between spouses are a hundred% exempt as is joint belongings and joint money owed and so forth. while you're making presents extra beneficial than 7 years before dying they're exempt etc...

Answer 4

Off the top of my head- in the uk, anything over £300,000, it`s 40% to the government. So if the total estate is £500,000, then you will lose £80,000 to the taxman!

Answer 5

if the property exceeds £300K then you have to pay 40% of it on inheritence tax unledd all the assets are made in your name