STEP conference meeting points

STEP Spring Conference 2017

Date: May 2017

Location: London

Reported by: Geraint Jones BKL

Speakers reported:

Chris Whitehouse 5 Stone Buildings

Lucy Obrey Higgs & Sons

Peter Rayney Peter Rayney Tax Consulting Ltd

Professor Lesley King professional development consultant for the University of Law

Inheritance tax planning

Chris Whitehouse highlighted several tax planning opportunities to reduce potential inheritance tax including the use of reversionary leases. By way of example the taxpayer would grant a 199-year reversionary lease that takes effect in 20 years. This would reduce the current value of the property by about 50% which would be a potentially exempt transfer (PET). As the years passed the property’s value would diminish progressively each year. Those diminutions would not be PETs. Thus as the taxpayer approaches old age the estate value of their property diminishes for...