All guidesEstate & tax

Trusts, charity gifts, inheritance tax and what happens to what you own.

The mechanics of an estate: how the residue works, how property trusts protect a home, what charitable gifts do to your inheritance tax bill, and what happens to the assets that only exist on a screen.

See plans for complex estates

Watercolour of a brass and glass sand timer on a stone mantelpiece beside a small pile of blank cream envelopes and dried hydrangeas

Estate & tax8 min read

Gifts and the seven year rule: when inheritance tax follows what you give away

Most gifts leave your estate for good. The seven year rule, the exemptions that work straight away, and the thing taper relief does not do.

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Watercolour of small brass balance scales and a folded deed on a study desk beside a sunlit window

Estate & tax7 min read

The nil rate band explained: how much can you leave before inheritance tax?

Fewer than one estate in twenty pays inheritance tax. How much passes tax free, why couples talk about a million, and the £2m line that takes it away.

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Watercolour of a wooden collection box with a posy of wildflowers on a stone windowsill

Estate & tax5 min read

Leaving money to charity in your will

A charitable legacy is free of inheritance tax, and a large enough one cuts the rate on everything else. How to word the gift so it actually arrives.

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Watercolour of a stone cottage behind a low garden wall with an iron gate, roses climbing the porch

Estate & tax7 min read

Property trusts in wills: life interest and protective trusts explained

How a will can let your partner stay in the home for life while your share ultimately reaches your own children. The mechanics, honestly explained.

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Watercolour of late afternoon light falling across an armchair and side table in a quiet sitting room

Estate & tax5 min read

What is the residuary estate? The clause your will cannot live without

The residue is everything your will does not specifically give away, which is usually most of the estate. Miss the clause and the intestacy rules fill the gap.

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Watercolour still life of a closed laptop, phone and brass key on a desk by a window

Digital assets4 min read

Digital assets and your will: what the 2025 Act changes

The Property (Digital Assets etc) Act 2025 settled that crypto and other digital assets are property you can leave in your will. Here is what to do about it.

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