The Office for Tax Simplification (OTS) has said that smaller and less complex estates should not be subject to the requirement to file Inheritance Tax (IHT) paperwork.
The call was part of a review into IHT, which Chancellor Philip Hammond ordered earlier this year.
While just five per cent of estates are subject to IHT, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) requires the estates of half of the 570,000 UK residents who die each year to file IHT paperwork.
Angela Knight, Chairman of the OTS, said: “Inheritance Tax is both unpopular and complicated. The basic design of the tax itself is for Government, but at the OTS we can address that most frequent of all comments and at least make it easier for families to fill in the forms.
“The OTS has worked on ways to address these practical complexities, which have come through loud and clear.”
She added: “The recommendations will make it easier for the majority, and would mean that in future, many may not have to do the forms at all. Improving the administration of this tax in these ways is important, as having to deal with the current process can seem overwhelming to people at a time when they are both preoccupied and distressed.”
The findings were the first part of the review published by the OTS, with further findings scheduled for publication in spring 2019.
Link: Hundreds of thousands of families needlessly filling in inheritance tax paperwork
