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The Treasury is on course to collect record receipts of £7.54bn from inheritance tax this year.
This would beat the previous all-time high of £7.1bn collected in 2022/23.
HM Revenue & Customs data for April 2023 to February 2024 showed £6.8bn inheritance tax (IHT) receipts – £0.4bn higher than the same period last year.
The data also showed that IHT receipts collected in February alone totalled £564m.
The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) recently forecast IHT receipts will increase by 37% by 2028/29, potentially delivering £9.7bn to the Treasury.
This, it said, is driven by growth in asset prices including shares and property.
The head of private wealth at national law firm Weightmans, Richard Bate, said: “Another rise in the amount of inheritance tax (IHT) being paid is ‘fiscal drag’ in action.
“More and more people are finding themselves liable for IHT as the value of their estates continues to grow, but the threshold at which IHT must be paid remains frozen – we’re only likely to see this trend continue.”
Group communications director at retirement specialist Just Group, Stephen Lowe, said: “Despite speculation that the Chancellor would tinker with inheritance tax in the Spring Budget, it was left alone – and with public finances so tight, it is little wonder.
“Frozen thresholds and the increase in property values have dragged more estates into paying the tax and we would encourage people to assess the entire value of their estate, including an up-to-date valuation of their property, and familiarise themselves with the inheritance tax rules.”
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