Mark McLaughlin looks at a ‘deathbed’ tax planning step for spouses or civil partners.
Inheritance tax (IHT) has been labelled by some as a tax on death. However, IHT has also been referred to as a voluntary tax, as steps can often be taken during an individual’s lifetime to reduce the IHT burden on their death.
In addition, forward planning can sometimes reduce capital gains tax (CGT) in advance of an individual’s death.
Accelerating gifts
For example, married couples (or civil partners) can achieve CGT savings by making gifts between themselves, particularly in unfortunate circumstances where the life expectancy of one spouse is shorter than the other.
The gift of an asset (e.g., investment property) between connected persons is normally treated as a disposal at market value for CGT purposes. However, gifts
