The ability to gift certain amounts of money or assets can be a valuable exemption from Inheritance Tax. 

There are various additional ways to use your Gift allowance, such as an annual exemption for gifting to an individual up to £3,000 per tax year, using income to fund the contributions to a life policy held in trust, parents can each give up to £5,000 to each party of a marriage/ civil partnership and a lifetime gift of capital designed to maintain a dependant is exempt under certain circumstances.

Gifts to charities, political parties or gifts for the public benefit, e.g. universities, national museums, the National Trust etc are also exempt.

To discuss the above in further detail, please contact us.

The information on this website is based on our interpretation of the law and HMRC practice as at April 2010. Taxation legislation and HMRC practice may be subject to unforeseen changes in the future.