Thinking
HMRC’s transformation roadmap: what it means for tax disputes
Topic: Tax Take 21.08.2025 Read moreSports Ticker #134 - FIFA faces fracas with furious footballers and boxing's back on the BBC - a speed read of commercial updates from the sports world
Topic: Sports 20.08.2025 Read more
Fighting the Tide – The Pension Ombudsman's Operating Model Review
Topic: Professional and Financial Risks 20.08.2025 Read moreHMRC targeting supply chain fraud - are you at risk? What every business needs to know
Topic: Tax Take 19.08.2025 Read more
From Reactive to Proactive: The Pensions Ombudsman's Corporate Strategy
Topic: Professional and Financial Risks 19.08.2025 Read more
Quality at The Core - The FRC's Shift From Inspections to Systems
Topic: Professional and Financial Risks 18.08.2025 Read moreWhose grease is it anyway?
Topic: Real Estate and Built Environment 18.08.2025 Read moreSwings and Roundabouts for Pension Administrators
Topic: Professional and Financial RisksThe shift of responsibility to personal representatives and/or beneficiaries of a deceased's estate does not, however, mean that pension administrators can take a back seat. It is anticipated that the implementation of the new IHT charge will result in circa £60m in one-off costs to businesses (and, in particular, administrators) through the adoption of new internal policies and procedures, training, and IT systems to ensure compliance with the new legislation when it comes into force in April 2027. Pension administrators will need to ensure that they are in a position to provide accurate valuations of inherited pension funds quickly, as the proposed legislation requires this to be provided within 4 weeks of being notified of a member's death. They will also be required to inform non-exempt beneficiaries that they may be liable for IHT and otherwise work with personal representatives/ beneficiaries closely to ensure accurate information is provided to HMRC. The government states that it is committed to supporting businesses and individuals impacted by the changes and HMRC is due to publish guidance as well as a calculator to assist in determining whether IHT is payable at all. Despite the promised support, preparing for this change will no doubt be a significant undertaking for pension administrators and professional personal representatives. Whilst the government has confirmed that certain benefits will remain out of the scope of IHT (i.e., death-in-service benefits and defined benefit dependents' pensions), the full scope of its application is otherwise very broad, and all defined contribution pension pots and defined benefit lump sum death benefits will be within the scope of the new regime. Business Property Relief and Agricultural Property Relief will not be available for pension inheritance, though the spouse/civil partner exemptions and charity exemptions will still apply. Government figures suggest the extension of IHT to unused pension funds and death benefits will raise an additional £640m in the 2027/28 tax year, increasing to an additional £1.4bn in revenue in the 2029/30 tax year. Despite the reduced burden for pension professionals in the new announcement, there will be those who do not think that the government has gone far enough in reducing that burden and there is speculation that similar revenue increases could have been achieved by other means. In particular, it has been highlighted that whilst only a small number of estates will see an increased IHT bill, many more than that will face increased complexity in the administration of estates, a particularly difficult pill to swallow when those impacted will already be navigating a bereavement.
18.08.2025 Read moreThe Week That Was - 15 August 2025
Topic: Construction 15.08.2025 Read moreContentious Tax Quarterly Review – Summer 2025
Topic: Tax TakeThis Contentious Tax Review provides an update on a number of recent important decisions in the tax disputes arena as well as changes to tribunal procedure.
14.08.2025 Read more
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