The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond, has apparently written to the Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) to request that it carry out a review of Inheritance Tax (IHT) in the UK.
The OTS is an independent office of HM Treasury and is responsible for giving independent advice to the Government on simplifying the UK tax system.
Its objective is to reduce tax compliance burdens on both businesses and individual taxpayers, and it does this by:
- providing the Government with independent advice on where there are areas of complexity in the UK tax system that could be simplified, and
- conducting inquiries into complex areas of the tax system, to collect evidence and advise the Government on options for reform.
The Chancellor has expressed particular interest in any proposals the OTS may have for simplifying the IHT system, to ensure it is fit for purpose for all those using it.
In addition, he said that:
‘The review should include a focus of the technical and administrative issues within IHT, such as the process of submitting returns and paying any tax due, as well as practical issues around estate planning and disclosure. It could also look at how current gift rules interact with the wider IHT system, and whether the current framework causes any distortions to taxpayers’ decisions surround transfers, investments and other relevant transactions’.
The OTS has said that a scoping document for the review will be agreed and published in due course.
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Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.