Are deeds of variation of wills affected?
Deeds of variation are often used to re-write someone’s will more tax effectively. At present it appears that these are not directly affected by the proposals in that any variation would still be treated as made by the deceased. I am getting divorced. The house and other assets are being left under a court order on trust for my wife to be split between us when my children reach 18. Am I affected? Yes. This transfer may well be chargeable to inheritance tax because spouse exemption is no longer available. It is possible you can argue that there is no tax due because you are not making a gift. However, even then there may be ongoing inheritance tax charges on the trust assets whenever capital is distributed and every ten years. You should wait until the draft legislation appears in early April. I am the beneficiary of an existing trust and the assets are to pass to my spouse on death. Will the assets still be exempt from inheritance tax? If you die after 2008 the assets will no longer qu
