Inheritance tax planning – The application of section 10 IHTA 1984 (Burles v The Commissioners for HMRC)

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Can the purchase of an income interest in an offshore trust escape inheritance tax under section 10 IHTA 1984? The First-tier Tribunal (Tax Chamber) has just said no.

In Burles v The Commissioners for HMRC, the Tribunal dismissed the appeal against an inheritance tax determination, finding neither limb of s 10(1) satisfied. The purchase formed part of a series of transactions intended to confer a gratuitous benefit on the deceased’s beneficiaries, and it was not made at arm’s length. It was therefore a transfer of value.

Raghav Trivedi has analysed the decision for LexisNexis: https://www.lexisnexis.co.uk/legal/news/inheritance-tax-planning-the-application-of-section-10-ihta-1984-burles-v-the-commissioners-for-hmrc

Written by Guy Dunwoody