- 1. The Scope of the Book: Estate Planning Introduced
- 1.2.3 Other Taxes
- 1.5.14 Tackling tax avoidance: the 22 June 2010 Emergency Budget Proposals
- 1.6.1 ‘Spotlights’ and ‘Signposts’
- 2. Inheritance Tax Mitigation: The Basics
- 3. Making Gifts: Outright or Protected?
- 3.2.3 The pre-owned assets regime
- 3.2.4 Settlor-interested trusts: Income Tax and CGT
- 3.6.3 Formation
- 4. Trusts: Tax-Efficient Management
- 4.4.3 Capital Gains Tax
- 4.7.6 Related settlements
- 4.9.3 Power to accumulate or a discretion over income
- 5. The Family Home(s)
- 6. The Family Business
- 6.1.3 Capital Gains Tax angles
- 6.1.4 Other taxes
- 6.2.7 The period of ownership
- 6.3.1 The announcement of 24 January 2007 - and increasing thresholds
- 6.3.2 The detail of the legislation
- 6.6.2 Partnerships
- 9. Investments
- 10. Life Assurance
- 11. Pensions
- 11.1.2 Pensions not to be used for IHT mitigation
- 11.5.1 Overview
- 11.5.5 Death benefits
- 11.5.6 Age 75: ASP or annuity purchase?
- 12. Charitable Giving
- 12.2 Charities: The ‘fit and proper persons’ test in FA 2010
- 12.2.3 Tax advantages for donors summarised
- 12.2.3.1 Gift aid carry back: time limit for claim
- 13. The Family Unit
- 15. Leaving the UK
- 15.3.7 Gifts from UK to non-UK domiciliaries and reservation of benefit
- 15.3.8 Domicile: prospective government review
- 15.5.7 Differing status for different members of the family
- 16. Non-UK Domiciliaries Living in the UK
- 16.1.5 Further review of non-doms promised on 22 June 2010
- 16.3.2 Compliance
- 16.4.4 IHT and double taxation: the pre-capital transfer tax treaties and Switzerland
- 16.6.1 The statutory rule
- 16.6.2.1 Excluded property settlements and the UK private residence
- 17. Offshore Trusts and Companies
- 17.5.2 The capital payments charge in more detail
- 17.7.4 The transfer of assets abroad regime: non-UK resident childrens trusts
- 18. Wills
- 18.4.3 The transferable nil-rate band
- 18.5.5 Different structures: the balance of advantage
- 18.6.1 The issues, subject to the transferable nil-rate band
- 18.6.2 Statement of Practice SP 10/79
- 19. Post-death Planning
- 20. Compliance
2 - Inheritance Tax Mitigation: The Basics
Chapter: 2 - Inheritance Tax Mitigation: The Basics
The £250 small gifts exemption
2.2.5
A gift of up to £250 (but no more) to any individual in a tax year is exempt (IHTA 1984 s20). Note that this exemption cannot be used in conjunction with the £3,000 annual exemption (IHTM 14180). So a gift of £3,250 to a particular individual, in circumstances where the previous year’s annual exemption has been used and so cannot be carried forward (but with no other transfers of value in that tax year), will be covered by the annual exemption as to £3,000 and, as to £250, if not by the normal expenditure out of income exemption, as a PET.
TAX TIP: Consider the advantages of occasional or even annual £250 gifts to (say) God-children made during one’s lifetime rather than by Will – and the donor might even get the bonus of a thank you letter.