Inheritance tax receipts have increased to a record £5.4 billion in the 2018/19 tax year according to HM Revenue and Customs figures published in late April. Receipts increased by around £160 million in just a year from £5.2 billion in 2017/2018 to £5.4 billion. HMRC figures show the annual revenue and revenue as a percentage of GDP since 1980/81.
It shows receipts rose steadily until 2007/08 due to increases in the value of tax-liable assets in this period, particularly in the value of residential property. Since 2009/10, receipts have increased both in terms of annual revenue and as a proportion of GDP. Those two trends are set to continue and strengthen over the next decade.
Receipts increased substantially in 2015/16 as a result of rising asset values and a higher number of deaths in the final months of 2014/15 compared to the same period in previous years.
Inheritance tax in March 2019 jumped substantially, a 44.4 per cent increase from the previous month, and the government is at a loss for the reason.
An absence of medium-long term planning on the part of the recently deceased, perhaps?
Receipts for April 2018 to March 2019 are 3.1 per cent higher than the same period last year.
The 18/19 tax year show that IHT receipts are at its highest level both in annual revenue and as a proportion of GDP.
