Your questions answered
Most people now have more options when it comes to their retirement choices. But generally they’ll still want their pension income to last their lifetime – so careful planning is a must.
Getting more financially savvy
Sorting out finances high on most people’s list
Britons are determined to become more financially savvy about their saving and spending habits this year, with three quarters (76%) of adults admitting they are prepared to moderate their lifestyle, according to a new survey by Standard Life.
Inheritance Tax checklist
Start planning today to spare your family from a potential Inheritance Tax bill tomorrow
1. The main ways to avoid Inheritance Tax are to spend your money while you are alive or give it away.
Life assurance cover
Funding a potential Inheritance Tax liability
After taking the appropriate steps to put in place an Inheritance Tax planning strategy, if there is still the potential likelihood of a liability on your estate, or if you have made gifts which have created a potential liability for the recipients if you die within seven years, we can help you review how you could fund this liability in the most efficient way.
Trust solutions
Different trust solutions to managing your wealth
We can advise you on a range of different trust solutions, each designed with a particular purpose in mind. Some types of trust are treated differently for Inheritance Tax purposes.
Trusts
Helping you control and protect your assets
One of the most effective ways you can manage your estate planning is through setting up a trust. The structures into which you can transfer your assets can have lasting consequences for you and your family, so it is important that you obtain professional advice, as the right structures can protect assets and give your family lasting benefits.
Dying intestate
If there’s no valid Will
When you die, your estate has to be distributed one way or another. If you have a Will, your executors have to gain a Grant of Probate in England and Wales or Northern Ireland (a Grant of Confirmation in Scotland). If there’s no valid Will, or the named executors in the Will are unwilling or unable to carry out their duties, a Grant of Letters of Administration is needed. This is known as ‘dying intestate’.
A Will is the first step
Sharing out your estate
Planning your finances in advance should help you ensure that when you die, everything you own goes where you want it to. Making a Will is the first step in ensuring that your estate is shared out exactly as you want it to be.
Living outside the UK
What happens when someone dies?
When someone living abroad dies, the rules for paying Inheritance Tax usually depend on:
Giving to charity
Reducing an Inheritance Tax – it’s good to give
A n estate can pay Inheritance Tax at a reduced rate of 36% on some assets (instead of 40%) if 10% or more of the ‘net value’ of their estate is left to charity.
