A simple way for non-dom married couples to manage the Inheritance Tax on UK residential property from 6 April 2017

Offshore companies holding UK residential property will no longer be opaque for UK Inheritance Tax (IHT) purposes from 6 April 2017.  The change is being achieved, courtesy of the Finance Bill 2017 as currently drafted, by removing IHT ‘excluded property’ status from an interest in a closely held company (see the 15 December 2016 blog for a brief definition) which derives its value, directly or indirectly, from UK residential property. 

Finance Bill 2017 tax changes: how can UK resident non-doms protect their offshore trusts?

To date, UK resident non-doms may not have been greatly impacted by the UK tax system’s plethora of measures to try to get the foreign income and gains received by offshore trusts (i.e. trusts that are not UK tax resident) taxed in the UK.  This is because one of the key anti-avoidance provisions, the ‘S.86 Settlor Charge’ which can make a trust’s settlor liable for the offshore trust’s gains, only applies to settlors who are both resident and domiciled in the UK.