The handbook sources

Every source cited in The British Expat Estate Planning Handbook, first edition, 2026. There are 663 entries across 19 chapters, numbered as they are in the book.

Each entry shows its source type, the date it was last checked and any flag. Links can stop working, and a checked date records when the source was last looked at, not a promise that it is still current. This is the book's bibliography. It is not legal or tax advice.

Flags

Check current figure 43
No primary source 25
Illustration 13
Point not confirmed 10
One scheme only 9
Book’s own reading 5

Figures worth checking first

Statutory legacy on intestacy, £322,000. Chapter 4, entry 3
Nil-rate band, £325,000. Chapter 7, entry 1
Residence nil-rate band, £175,000. Chapter 7, entry 2
Residence nil-rate band taper threshold, £2 million. Chapter 7, entry 3
Business and agricultural relief allowance, £2.5 million a person. Chapter 7, entry 29
Lasting power of attorney registration fee, £92 per document. Chapter 5, entry 6
Court of Protection application fee, £432. Chapter 5, entry 14
Annual deputyship supervision fees, £320 general and £35 minimal. Chapter 5, entry 14
Probate application fee, £526 for estates over £5,000. Chapter 10, entry 10
Legalisation fees, £45 for a paper apostille and £35 for an e-apostille. Chapter 10, entry 32
DIFC Wills Service registration fees, AED 5,000 to AED 15,000. Chapter 3, entry 13
HMRC late payment interest, 7.75 per cent a year. Chapter 7, entry 34
Care means test capital limits, £23,250 upper and £14,250 lower. Chapter 15, entry 12

Sources used throughout

Sources by chapter

Introduction: what leaving Britain did to your will

1. 4.8 million British-born people lived overseas in 2024. ONS, UK emigration explained, 21 May 2026. https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/internationalmigration/articles/ukemigrationexplainedwhatweknowaboutbritsmovingabroad/2026-05-21 Official guidance. A floor: the UN data omits over 70 countries. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
2. 41 per cent of UK adults had made a will in 2025, up from 38 per cent. IRN Legal Reports, Wills and Probate Consumer Research 2025. https://todayswillsandprobate.co.uk/more-adults-making-wills-yet-legal-confusion-remains-2025-wills-probate-report-reveals/ Commentary, survey research. 3 September 2026.
Commentary · Checked 3 September 2026
3. Marriage or civil partnership can revoke a will. Wills Act 1837 sections 18, 18(3), 18(4) and 18B. Primary. Not settled for a marriage with a foreign element. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
4. A later Indian will left the English estate intestate. Sangha v Sangha [2023] EWCA Civ 660. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
5. Intestacy shares, the statutory trusts and 28-day survivorship. Administration of Estates Act 1925 sections 46 and 47. Primary. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
6. The £322,000 statutory legacy applies to deaths on or after 26 July 2023. Administration of Estates Act 1925 (Fixed Net Sum) Order 2023, SI 2023/758. Primary. Check current figure. 2 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 2 September 2026 · Check current figure
7. Joint tenancies, pension death benefits and policies in trust can pass outside the will and usually outside probate. HMRC IHTM15031. Official guidance. A nomination form does not by itself put an asset outside the estate for inheritance tax, and for a death on or after 6 April 2027 most unused pension funds and death benefits are within it either way. 8 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 8 September 2026
8. Cohabitants of 2 years, dependants and children of the family can claim provision. Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 sections 1(1)(ba), 1(1)(d), 1(1)(e) and 4. Primary. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
9. Deputyship costs £432, plus £100 assessment, £320 or £35 supervision and a bond. https://www.gov.uk/become-deputy/fees Official guidance. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
10. Lasting power of attorney registration is £92 per document. Register a lasting power of attorney. Official guidance. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
11. Residence-based inheritance tax from 6 April 2025, 10 of 20 years, a 3 to 10 year tail. IHTA 1984 section 6A. Primary. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
12. 40 per cent, 36 with 10 per cent to charity, the spouse exemption, £325,000 and £175,000 to 5 April 2031. IHTA 1984 sections 7, 8A, 8D to 8M, 18 and Schedule 1A, with Finance Act 2026 sections 72 and 76. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
13. Most unused pension funds fall within the estate for a death on or after 6 April 2027. Finance Act 2026 sections 66 to 71, excluded benefits at IHTA 1984 section 150A(6). Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
14. UAE civil succession applies to non-Muslim residents by default from 1 February 2023. UAE Federal Decree-Law 41 of 2022, articles 11 and 1(1). Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
15. Forced heirship in France, reserved shares in Spain, separate Scottish rules. French Civil Code articles 912 to 917, Spanish Civil Code articles 806 to 840, Succession (Scotland) Act 1964. Primary. Scots legal rights come from the common law, not the 1964 Act. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026

Chapter 1: residence, domicile and the rules that moved

1. The residence-based regime took effect on 6 April 2025. Finance Act 2025 section 44, inserting IHTA 1984 sections 6A to 6C. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
2. Long-term UK residence means 10 of the previous 20 tax years. IHTA 1984 section 6A. Primary. Not necessarily consecutive, and the current year is never counted. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
3. The tail is 3 to 10 consecutive non-resident tax years on a sliding scale. IHTA 1984 section 6A(3). Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
4. Ten consecutive non-resident years reset the test. An early return re-engages it. HMRC IHTM47020. Official guidance. 21 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 21 August 2026
5. A split year counts as a full resident year for the residence count. HMRC IHTM47020, updated 7 April 2026. Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
6. Years before 2013/14 count under the residence rules of the time. IHTA 1984 section 6A(5). Primary. 21 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 21 August 2026
7. Someone under 20 is tested against half the whole tax years since birth. IHTA 1984 section 6B. Primary. Rounded up. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
8. Transitional rules for pre-2025 emigrants turn on UK domicile at 30 October 2024. Finance Act 2025 Schedule 13 paragraph 46, with worked examples at HMRC IHTM47021. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
9. The statutory residence test thresholds, the overseas work route and the five ties. Finance Act 2013 Schedule 45, ties table at paragraph 18. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
10. Deemed domicile at 15 of 20 years and the remittance basis both ended on 6 April 2025. HMRC RDRM22010. Official guidance. Stated in the chapter as history. 21 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 21 August 2026
11. Before 2025, section 267 and Schedule A1 could reach beyond UK assets. IHTA 1984 section 267, omitted from 6 April 2025 by Finance Act 2025 Schedule 13. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
12. Domicile: one at a time, origin revives, choice needs residence and intention. HMRC RDRM20080, RDRM22100 and RDRM23030, with Domicile and Matrimonial Proceedings Act 1973 section 1. Official guidance. Those manual pages are now retained for reference only. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
13. British citizenship and the right of abode. British Nationality Act 1981, and Immigration Act 1971 section 2. Primary. 21 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 21 August 2026
14. A will is formally valid under the law of the place of execution, domicile, habitual residence or nationality. Wills Act 1963 sections 1 and 2. Primary. 21 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 21 August 2026
15. Movables follow the domicile at death, immovables the law of the situs. Al Thani v Al Thani [2024] UKPC 35 at 32 and 33, citing In re Berchtold [1923] 1 Ch 192. https://jcpc.uk/cases/judgments/jcpc-2023-0112 Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
16. The 1975 Act applies only where the deceased died domiciled in England and Wales. Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 section 1(1). Primary. 21 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 21 August 2026
17. Treaties are bridged by section 267ZF, and old spouse elections run to 6 April 2032. IHTA 1984 sections 267ZF and 48ZA, with Finance Act 2025 Schedule 13 paragraph 45(2). Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
18. UK situated property stays in scope. Other property of a non-long-term resident is excluded. IHTA 1984 section 6. Primary. 21 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 21 August 2026
19. Worked timeline dates for departures in 2019/20, 2023/24 and 2026/27. Calculated from IHTA 1984 section 6A. Primary. Illustration, before the transitional rules at entry 8. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026 · Illustration

Chapter 2: your will, and what quietly breaks it when you move abroad

1. Execution: writing, signature, intention, at least two witnesses at the same time. Wills Act 1837 section 9, substituted by Administration of Justice Act 1982 section 17. Primary. 21 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 21 August 2026
2. Signature by another needs the testator’s direction, and the will failed. Barrett v Bem [2012] EWCA Civ 52. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
3. Witnesses’ handwritten names counted as signatures, written with intent to attest. Payne v Payne [2018] EWCA Civ 985. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
4. A will failed where testatrix and witnesses could not see one another sign. Coady v Coady, PT-2023-BHM-000025, Birmingham, 14 August 2025. https://www.judiciary.uk/judgments/peter-coady-v-gerard-coady/ Primary. A first instance decision cited as an example, not as binding authority. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
5. A regular attestation clause raises a strong rebuttable presumption of due execution. Sherrington v Sherrington [2005] EWCA Civ 326 at 41. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
6. A gift to an attesting witness or that witness’s spouse is void. Wills Act 1837 section 15. Primary. 21 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 21 August 2026
7. A creditor may witness, an executor is competent, later incompetence does not void the will. Wills Act 1837 sections 14, 16 and 17. Primary. 21 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 21 August 2026
8. Witnesses should be adults who are not beneficiaries or their spouses. Law Society, making a will. https://www.lawsociety.org.uk/public/for-public-visitors/common-legal-issues/making-a-will Professional source. No primary source for the age point. Presence and voiding are statute. The capacity and traceability points are unsourced. 3 September 2026.
Professional source · Checked 3 September 2026 · No primary source
9. A witness married to a beneficiary cost the gift, and the solicitor was liable. Ross v Caunters [1979] 3 All ER 580, through the Law Society Gazette. https://www.lawgazette.co.uk/news/will-drafting-pitfalls-for-practitioners/34533.article Professional source, the report rather than the law report. 3 September 2026.
Professional source · Checked 3 September 2026
10. Wills executed abroad, the alternative connecting laws, and multi-system states. Wills Act 1963 sections 1, 2 and 6, implementing the 1961 Hague Convention. https://www.hcch.net/en/instruments/conventions/status-table/?cid=40 Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
11. Marriage revokes a will unless made in expectation of marrying that person. Wills Act 1837 sections 18, 18B, 18(5) and 18D. Primary. Not settled for a foreign marriage, and the chapter’s default is a planning stance, not law. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
12. Divorce does not revoke a will. The former spouse is treated as having died then. Wills Act 1837 sections 18A and 18C. Primary. Except so far as a contrary intention appears. 21 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 21 August 2026
13. The Law Commission recommended abolishing revocation by marriage. The rule stands. Law Commission, Modernising Wills Law, 16 May 2025. https://lawcom.gov.uk/project/wills/ Official guidance. No bill introduced. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
14. Cross-border estates can need evidence of foreign law, and some cases go on paper. Non-Contentious Probate Rules 1987 rules 19 and 30 and the Third Schedule. Primary. That no rule disqualifies a non-resident executor is the absence of a rule and cannot be sourced. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
15. A guardianship appointment confers parental responsibility when it takes effect. Children Act 1989 sections 3 and 5, with the 1996 Hague Convention. https://www.hcch.net/en/instruments/conventions/status-table/?cid=70 Primary. The status table lists 58 parties and excludes the UAE and Singapore. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
16. A will last in the testator’s possession and not found is presumed revoked. Blyth v Sykes [2019] EWHC 54 (Ch). Primary. Rebuttable, and there the presumption did not arise. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
17. HMCTS will storage costs £24 on form PA7ENV, withdrawal free on PA7A. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/store-a-will-with-the-probate-service/how-to-store-a-will-with-the-probate-service Official guidance. Check current figure: the page gives no effective date for the fee. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
18. A bank safe deposit box cannot be opened until the executor has the grant. Law Society, making a will. Professional source. No primary source. 3 September 2026.
Professional source · Checked 3 September 2026 · No primary source
19. 11,362 probate caveat applications in 2024 and 11,328 in 2025. HMCTS freedom of information data, reported by Irwin Mitchell. https://www.irwinmitchell.com/news-and-insights/newsandmedia/2026/may/high-court-inheritance-disputes-stay-at-elevated-levels Professional source. No primary source. Caveats are challenges, not findings of invalidity. 3 September 2026.
Professional source · Checked 3 September 2026 · No primary source
20. Probate claims in the Chancery Division rose 13 per cent in 2025, and the final quarter was the busiest of the decade. Solomonic data, reported by Legal Futures on 25 February 2026. https://www.legalfutures.co.uk/latest-news/public-sector-and-probate-drive-7-rise-in-high-court-claims Commentary, press reporting of a commercial litigation dataset, counting claims issued rather than outcomes. 10 September 2026.
Commentary · Checked 10 September 2026
21. A revocation clause in a later foreign will left the English estate wholly intestate. Sangha v Sangha [2023] EWCA Civ 660. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
22. A specific gift of an asset the estate no longer owns generally fails. https://www.trethowans.com/insights/ademption-and-the-failing-of-gifts-in-wills-2/ Professional source. No primary source, though orthodox. 22 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 22 August 2026 · No primary source
23. Unless a contrary intention appears by the will, a gift to a child or remoter descendant who dies first leaving issue alive at the testator’s death is rescued by statute, and the issue then take through all degrees according to their stock. Wills Act 1837 section 33, with class gifts at section 33(2) and the degrees rule at section 33(3), which is subject to section 33A and not to the will. Primary. That a lapsed gift falls into residue is commentary only, at https://www.mylawyer.co.uk/losing-a-gift-in-a-will-a-A76045D77068/ 22 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 22 August 2026
24. Commercial will registers record a will’s location rather than holding the original. Law Society, making a will. Professional source. No primary source. The distinction between a register and custody is unsourced. 3 September 2026.
Professional source · Checked 3 September 2026 · No primary source

Chapter 3: one estate, two legal systems

1. Movables follow the domicile at death, immovables the lex situs. In re Berchtold [1923] 1 Ch 192, restated in Al Thani v Al Thani [2024] UKPC 35 at 32 and 33. https://jcpc.uk/cases/judgments/jcpc-2023-0112 Primary. The Privy Council decision is persuasive here, not binding. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
2. An English reference to foreign law traditionally includes that country’s conflict rules. Re Annesley [1926] Ch 692, Re Duke of Wellington [1947] Ch 506, and EU Succession Regulation 650/2012 article 34. Primary. Excluded where an article 22 election applies. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
3. England and Wales has no fixed reserved share, and family provision is discretionary. Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 section 1. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
4. French reserved shares: one half with one child, two thirds with two, three quarters with more. French Civil Code articles 912 to 917. https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/codes/id/LEGISCTA000006150544/ Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
5. Spain reserves two thirds for children, one third strict and one third mejora. Spanish Civil Code article 808, with 806 to 840. Primary. Catalonia, the Balearics, Aragon, Galicia, Navarre and the Basque Country differ materially, and no other country’s reserved shares are sourced anywhere in the book. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
6. Regulation 650/2012 applies to deaths from 17 August 2015, defaulting to habitual residence. EU Succession Regulation 650/2012 article 21. Primary. Denmark and Ireland are not bound and the UK never participated. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
7. Article 20 gives the Regulation universal application, so it reaches British estates. EU Succession Regulation 650/2012 article 20. Primary. A Spanish resolution of 15 June 2016 illustrates the practice but is not authority. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
8. A person may elect the law of a state of their nationality, expressly or demonstrably. EU Succession Regulation 650/2012 articles 22 and 23. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
9. Where a state has several territorial units, its internal conflict rules pick the unit. EU Succession Regulation 650/2012 article 36. Primary. So British nationality alone does not identify a chosen law. Naming the unit expressly is commentary only, and no court has ruled on how much weight it carries. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
10. The Regulation excludes tax, matrimonial property and land registration. EU Succession Regulation 650/2012 articles 1(1), 1(2)(d) and 1(2)(l). Primary. An article 22 election is never a tax election. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
11. French article 913(3) gives children a compensation right against French assets. French Civil Code article 913, inserted by Law 2021-1109. https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/codes/article_lc/LEGIARTI000043982288 Primary. Point not confirmed as to outcome: no binding French or CJEU ruling exists, and the Commission closed its file on 28 July 2026. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026 · Point not confirmed
12. UAE civil intestacy gives half to the spouse and the rest equally among children. UAE Federal Decree-Law 41 of 2022 articles 11 and 1(1). Primary. Article 11 is on neither government summary page and rests on the decree-law text itself. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
13. DIFC Wills Service eligibility and fees, AED 5,000 to AED 15,000 by will type. https://www.difccourts.ae/about/fees Official guidance, the registry’s own schedule. A registration route, not UAE-wide succession law. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
14. Abu Dhabi Civil Wills Office: AED 950 regular, AED 2,500 special, any religion. https://www.adjd.gov.ae/en/Pages/CivilFamilyCourt.aspx Official guidance, the registry’s own schedule. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
15. Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Unsourced: the chapter states no country-specific position, and the English language material available is commentary rather than primary law. 3 September 2026.
Unsourced · Checked 3 September 2026
16. A will may be revoked by a later will, executed writing, or destruction with intent. Wills Act 1837 section 20. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
17. A general cancellation clause in a later Indian will revoked the English will in full. Sangha v Sangha [2023] EWCA Civ 660. Primary. Clear and unequivocal evidence is needed to displace the literal words. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
18. Coordinating multiple wills: territorial limits, carved-out revocation clauses, compatible executors. https://journal.step.org/tqr-june-2018/wills-international-clients Professional source. No primary source, and no authority makes identical executors a standard. 3 September 2026.
Professional source · Checked 3 September 2026 · No primary source
19. Matrimonial property precedes succession, and France and Spain have default community regimes. European e-Justice country descriptions. https://e-justice.europa.eu/topics/family-matters-inheritance/property-marriage-civil-partnerships/matrimonial-property-regimes/fr_en Official guidance. England has no default regime. 22 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 22 August 2026
20. Regulation 2016/1103 on matrimonial property, its article 22 choice and article 26 default. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2016/1103/oj/eng Primary. It binds only participating states, and the choice rules apply from 29 January 2019. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
21. Scots law gives legal rights in the movable estate. English law has none. Scottish Parliament briefing SB 25-06, 18 February 2025. https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/research-prepared-for-parliament/research-briefings/2025/2/18/sb-2506 Official guidance. Stated in outline. Chapter 17 entry 30 carries the fractions. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
22. Assets held with survivorship can pass to the survivor outside both wills. Cross-reference, chapter 9. The chapter states no position on survivorship under any law outside England and Wales. 3 September 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 3 September 2026

Chapter 4: what happens if you do nothing

1. 41 per cent of UK adults have made a will. IRN Legal Reports, Wills and Probate Market report 2025. https://todayswillsandprobate.co.uk/more-adults-making-wills-yet-legal-confusion-remains-2025-wills-probate-report-reveals/ Commentary, self-reported survey data, not a measure of how estates are distributed. 3 September 2026.
Commentary · Checked 3 September 2026
2. A spouse with issue takes chattels, the fixed net sum and half the residue. Administration of Estates Act 1925 section 46. Primary. Without issue, the whole estate. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
3. The statutory legacy is £322,000 for deaths on or after 26 July 2023. Administration of Estates Act 1925 (Fixed Net Sum) Order 2023 article 2. Primary. Check current figure: no later uprating order is in force. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
4. The spouse takes the half residue absolutely for deaths from 1 October 2014. Inheritance and Trustees’ Powers Act 2014, and Administration of Estates Act 1925 section 46(1A). Primary. Interest runs at the Bank of England rate. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
5. A spouse must survive the intestate by 28 days. Administration of Estates Act 1925 section 46(2A), inserted by the Law Reform (Succession) Act 1995. Primary. For deaths on or after 1 January 1996. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
6. The order of relatives, ending in bona vacantia. Administration of Estates Act 1925 section 46. Primary. Each category excludes those below it. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
7. Issue take at 18 or on earlier marriage or civil partnership, with a predeceased child’s issue substituting. Administration of Estates Act 1925 section 47. Primary. Adopted children rank as birth children. Stepchildren are not issue unless adopted. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
8. Only property forming part of the estate is distributed, and a joint tenancy can be severed. Law of Property Act 1925 sections 34 to 36. Primary. Whether an asset passes outside turns on the beneficial ownership and, abroad, local law. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
9. A divorced spouse is not a surviving spouse. A separated but married one is. Administration of Estates Act 1925 section 46. Primary. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
10. For deaths up to 5 April 2027 discretionary pension death benefits sit outside the estate, and a binding nomination brings them in for inheritance tax. HMRC IHTM17052, with Finance Act 2026 sections 66 to 71. Primary. For deaths on or after 6 April 2027 most unused funds and death benefits count either way. See chapter 8. 8 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 8 September 2026
11. Worked example for a £700,000 estate: £322,000 plus £189,000 to the spouse. Calculated from entry 2. Cross-reference. Illustration. 27 August 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 27 August 2026 · Illustration
12. The Bona Vacantia Division accepts claims within 12 years with interest, or 30 at discretion. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/make-a-claim-to-a-deceased-persons-estate Official guidance. 27 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 27 August 2026
13. The Division handled 31,000 cases in the year to 31 March 2026, from 33,100. Crown’s Nominee accounts to 31 March 2026. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/accounts-for-the-crowns-nominee-for-year-ending-31-march-2026 Official guidance. A combined companies and estates count, not a count of intestate estates. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
14. Cohabitants take nothing on intestacy but may claim after 2 years. Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 sections 1(1)(ba) and 3. Primary. On the maintenance standard. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
15. A stepchild is not issue unless adopted but may claim as a child of the family. Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 sections 1(1)(d) and 1(2A), widened by the 2014 Act. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
16. The 1975 Act needs death domiciled in England and Wales. Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 section 1(1). Primary. 21 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 21 August 2026
17. 46 per cent believed cohabiting couples form a common law marriage, 55 with children. British Social Attitudes, NatCen for the University of Exeter, 22 January 2019. https://news-archive.exeter.ac.uk/2019/january/title_700858_en.html Commentary, survey research, used for what people believe, not the law. 3 September 2026.
Commentary · Checked 3 September 2026
18. Movables follow the domicile at death, immovables the lex situs. Al Thani v Al Thani [2024] UKPC 35 at 32 and 33. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
19. No nationality election is possible on total intestacy. EU Succession Regulation 650/2012 article 22. Primary. It must sit in a disposition of property upon death. 21 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 21 August 2026
20. Spanish intestacy gives children the estate equally and the spouse a third in usufruct. Spanish Civil Code articles 834 and 930 onwards. Primary. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
21. A foreign state taking as heir defeats an English bona vacantia claim. Re Maldonado [1954] P 223, applying Spanish Civil Code article 956. https://vlex.co.uk/vid/in-the-estate-of-793171709 Primary, read through a subscription database. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
22. A later Indian will with a general revocation clause left the estate wholly intestate. Sangha v Sangha [2023] EWCA Civ 660. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
23. Property a will fails to dispose of passes under the intestacy rules. Administration of Estates Act 1925 section 49. Primary. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
24. The statutory rescue for gifts to descendants, and the voiding of gifts to witnesses. Wills Act 1837 sections 15 and 33. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
25. 56,327 letters of administration in 2025, by subtraction from the published totals. Family Court Statistics Quarterly, October to December 2025. https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/family-court-statistics-quarterly-october-to-december-2025/family-court-statistics-quarterly-october-to-december-2025 Official guidance. The two administration categories are published only within the total. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
26. Grant priority on intestacy, from spouse to Crown to creditors. Non-Contentious Probate Rules 1987 rules 22 and 31, with Senior Courts Act 1981 section 116. Primary. Entitled persons may renounce and the court may pass over. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
27. A minority or life interest means a trust corporation or two administrators. Senior Courts Act 1981 section 114(2). Primary. The court may still appoint a sole administrator where expedient. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
28. Rule 30 for a foreign domicile, rule 19 for evidence of foreign law, rule 31 for an attorney. Non-Contentious Probate Rules 1987. Primary. The requirement for an acceptable translation is registry practice, not a published rule. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
29. An executor’s authority comes from the will, an administrator’s from the grant. Senior Courts Act 1981 sections 114 and 116. Primary. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
30. Trustees may apply income for maintenance and advance capital for a minor. Trustee Act 1925 sections 31 and 32. Primary. The beneficiary is absolutely entitled at 18 or on earlier marriage or civil partnership. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
31. A guardian may be appointed by will or formal written document. Children Act 1989 section 5. Primary. Absent an appointment, the court decides. 21 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 21 August 2026
32. Eligible applicants, the maintenance standard, the orders and the 6 month limit. Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 sections 1, 2 and 4. Primary. See chapter 12. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026

Chapter 5: lasting powers of attorney, the plan for while you’re alive

1. LPAs are created under the Mental Capacity Act 2005, in two types. Mental Capacity Act 2005 sections 9 to 14 and Schedule 1. Primary. The Act calls them property and affairs and personal welfare. The forms use different names. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
2. The donor must be 18 or over with capacity, and attorneys owe a best interests duty. Mental Capacity Act 2005 sections 9(2)(c), 9(4), 1 and 4. Primary. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
3. A welfare LPA works only once capacity is lost. A property LPA works from registration. Mental Capacity Act 2005 section 11(7)(a). Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
4. Attorneys can decide on life-sustaining treatment only if the instrument says so. Mental Capacity Act 2005 sections 11(8), 4(6) and 4(7). Primary. Otherwise it is a best interests decision under section 4. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
5. Attorney eligibility, joint and several appointments, and replacements. Mental Capacity Act 2005 sections 10(1), 10(2), 10(4) and 10(8)(b). Primary. One attorney failing can bring a joint appointment down unless a replacement takes over. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
6. Registration is £92 per LPA, for applications received from 17 November 2025. Register a lasting power of attorney. Official guidance. Reductions below £12,000 income, exemptions on certain benefits. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
7. Registration takes 8 to 10 weeks, against an OPG average of 45 working days. Register a lasting power of attorney, and the OPG annual report 2025 to 2026. Official guidance. The target is 40 working days. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
8. Forms LP1F and LP1H, the signing order, witnesses and the certificate provider. LP12 guide. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/make-a-lasting-power-of-attorney/lp12-make-and-register-your-lasting-power-of-attorney-a-guide-web-version Official guidance. The guide gives no route for electronic signing but does not say copies or digital signatures are invalid. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
9. Attorneys need not live in the UK, but a donor abroad should take advice. OPG blog, 13 February 2024. https://publicguardian.blog.gov.uk/2024/02/13/your-questions-answered-attorneys-witnesses-and-certificate-providers/ Official guidance. An LPA may not work outside England and Wales, Scotland included. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
10. The Powers of Attorney Act 2023 frames a digital service that had not launched by September 2026. Powers of Attorney Act 2023. Primary. No launch date confirmed. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
11. The Use a lasting power of attorney service generates access codes for organisations. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/getting-started-with-use-an-lpa Official guidance. Only LPAs registered since 1 January 2016. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
12. 10,620,245 LPAs and EPAs on the register at 31 March 2026, and 1,589,500 applications. OPG annual report and accounts 2025 to 2026. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/opg-annual-report-and-accounts-2025-to-2026 Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
13. Where no attorney exists the Court of Protection may appoint a deputy. Mental Capacity Act 2005 sections 16 and 19, with Court of Protection guidance GN4. Primary. Personal welfare deputies are appointed only in the most difficult cases. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
14. Fees: £432 application and £266 hearing from 13 July 2026, £100 assessment, £320 or £35 supervision, plus a bond. COP44 fees page, and SI 2026/642. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/court-of-protection-fees-cop44/court-of-protection-fees-cop44 Official guidance. The gov.uk deputy fees summary still shows £100 for a hearing and lags the fee in force. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
15. An uncontested deputyship application takes 4 to 6 months. https://www.phrsolicitors.co.uk/legal-services-for-individuals/wills-and-probate/resources/how-long-does-court-protection-take Professional source. No primary source: there is no official service standard and no measured average. 3 September 2026.
Professional source · Checked 3 September 2026 · No primary source
16. The 2000 Hague Convention on adults extends to Scotland only, so an English LPA gets nothing from its recognition rules, though its rules on powers of representation at articles 15 and 18 apply in France whatever law they point to. HCCH status table, cid 71. https://www.hcch.net/en/instruments/conventions/status-table/?cid=71 Primary. France is a party from 1 January 2009. Spain is not. That England and Wales will be brought in rests on one parliamentary answer of 3 May 2024, a statement of intent and not law. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
17. Spain’s poderes preventivos, reformed and strengthened by Law 8/2021. Consolidated BOE text, preventive powers at Title XI chapter II and article 260. https://www.boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-2021-9233 Official guidance. That Spanish institutions may decline foreign incapacity documents is commentary only. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
18. France’s mandat de protection future, created by the law of 5 March 2007. French Civil Code articles 477 to 494. https://www.service-public.gouv.fr/particuliers/vosdroits/F16670 Official guidance. What French institutions do with an English LPA is a working assumption, not French law. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
19. In the UAE a general power of attorney ceases on loss of capacity. https://www.professionallawyer.me/legal-articles/civil-law/power-of-attorney Professional source. No primary source, law firm material in English, stated as needing local verification. The UAE is not an apostille convention party. 3 September 2026.
Professional source · Checked 3 September 2026 · No primary source
20. UK powers of attorney and certified copies can be apostilled. https://www.gov.uk/get-document-legalised Official guidance. An apostille certifies the signature or seal only. Effect is for the receiving country’s law. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
21. Advance decisions, with extra formalities for refusing life-sustaining treatment. Mental Capacity Act 2005 sections 24 to 26, form requirements at 25(5) and 25(6). Primary. The sections set out no form, no fee and no registration step. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
22. A later welfare LPA over the same treatment invalidates an earlier advance decision. Mental Capacity Act 2005 sections 25(2)(b) and 11(7)(b), with Code of Practice 9.33 to 9.34. Primary. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
23. The Act extends to England and Wales, so LPAs carry no automatic force abroad. Mental Capacity Act 2005, extent. Primary. Effect abroad depends on local law. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
24. Only EPAs signed before 1 October 2007 remain usable, and cost £92 to register. https://www.gov.uk/enduring-power-attorney-duties Official guidance. They cover property and money only. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
25. An ordinary power of attorney works only while the donor has capacity. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/supporting-customers-who-may-not-be-able-to-make-their-own-decisions/supporting-customers-who-may-not-be-able-to-make-their-own-decisions Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
26. Capacity is decision-specific and judged at the material time. Mental Capacity Act 2005 sections 2 and 3. Primary. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
27. Banks may temporarily restrict a joint account when one holder loses capacity. OPG, Manage a bank account for someone else. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/deputy-and-attorney-guidance-dealing-with-banks/manage-a-bank-account-for-someone-else-web-version Official guidance. That family have no automatic authority comes from the scheme of the Act, not this page. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
28. A donor with capacity ends an LPA by sending the original and a deed of revocation. https://www.gov.uk/power-of-attorney/end Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
29. The two examples are anonymised, and the Dubai illustration is constructed. Unsourced. Illustration, and the chapter says so. 3 September 2026.
Unsourced · Checked 3 September 2026 · Illustration

Chapter 6: trusts without the mystique

1. A trust has a settlor, trustees under fiduciary duties, and beneficiaries. https://www.gov.uk/trusts-taxes, with the Trustee Act 2000. Official guidance. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
2. Where trustees own a life policy the proceeds pass outside probate and the estate. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/trusts-and-inheritance-tax Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
3. Transferring an existing policy is valued at not less than premiums paid less sums received. IHTA 1984 section 167. Primary. Lifetime transfers only. Section 167(3) takes out most ordinary term assurance and section 167(4) adjusts a unit-linked policy whose units are worth less at the transfer than when they were allocated. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
4. A statutory nomination passes an asset outside the will but leaves it in the estate for tax. HMRC IHTM15101. Official guidance. A nomination outside the statutory schemes does not transfer a policy. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
5. Pension death benefits are usually discretionary, so the will does not control them. HMRC IHTM17052, with Finance Act 2026 sections 66 to 71. Primary. For deaths up to 5 April 2027 a binding nomination brings the benefit into the estate for inheritance tax, and for deaths on or after 6 April 2027 most unused funds and death benefits count either way. See chapter 8. 8 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 8 September 2026
6. Statutory trusts arise automatically where a minor inherits on intestacy. Administration of Estates Act 1925 section 47. Primary. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
7. An immediate post-death interest is charged in the life tenant’s estate. IHTA 1984 sections 49 and 4. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
8. The spouse exemption is capped at the nil-rate band where only the transferor is long-term resident. IHTA 1984 sections 18(1), 18(2) and 18(2A), with HMRC IHTM47030. Primary. The election needs a long-term resident spouse within the preceding 7 years. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
9. Bereaved minor trusts: qualifying property, entitlement by 18, no charge while held. IHTA 1984 sections 71A and 71H. Primary. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
10. An 18-to-25 trust charge is capped at 4.2 per cent above the nil-rate band. IHTA 1984 section 71F(5), and HMRC IHTM42816. Primary. The rough 0.6 per cent a year is the book’s own arithmetic, not an HMRC rate. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
11. Relevant property: 20 per cent entry, and ten-year and exit charges capped at 6 per cent. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/trusts-and-inheritance-tax Official guidance. The £600,000 worked example was checked by calculation. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
12. The nil-rate band is £325,000, fixed to the end of 2030 to 2031. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/inheritance-tax-thresholds/inheritance-tax-thresholds Official guidance. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
13. Foreign settled assets are excluded property only while the settlor is not long-term resident. IHTA 1984 section 6A, with HMRC IHTM47050 and IHTM47052. Primary. The proportionate exit charge on ceasing to be resident comes from IHTM47052, not IHTM47050. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
14. Trusts whose settlor died before 6 April 2025 keep the domicile-at-settlement test. IHTA 1984 section 48ZA(3) and (4). Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
15. For qualifying interest in possession trusts, both settlor and interest holder must be outside residence. HMRC IHTM47051. Official guidance. Transitional protection covers assets excluded before 30 October 2024. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
16. Registrable express trusts must register within 90 days, with a £5,000 penalty. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/register-a-trust-as-a-trustee, with HMRC TRSM40010 and TRSM80020. Official guidance. HMRC issues no automatic penalties. A warning letter comes first. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
17. A low-value trust exemption from 30 June 2026, on four cumulative conditions. Money Laundering Regulations 2017 Schedule 3A paragraph 23A, inserted by SI 2026/621. Primary. All four limbs must be met, and it is restricted to one trust per settlor. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
18. Further registration changes from 30 June 2026 for variations, co-ownership and non-UK trusts. HMRC trusts and estates newsletter, August 2026. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/hm-revenue-and-customs-trusts-and-estates-newsletters/hmrc-trusts-and-estates-newsletter-august-2026 Official guidance. No registration deadline is stated for the non-UK group, so the chapter gives none. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
19. Trust rates of 45 per cent on income and 39.35 on dividends. https://www.gov.uk/trusts-taxes/trusts-and-income-tax Official guidance. With a reduced annual exempt amount. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
20. Trust residence turns on the trustees, and on a mixed board the settlor’s status. HMRC TSEM10020. Official guidance. An entry point, not a determination: it turns on who held office when. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
21. A trust ceasing to be UK resident can trigger a deemed disposal and exit charge. Helpsheet HS299. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/non-resident-trusts-and-capital-gains-tax-hs299-self-assessment-helpsheet/hs299-non-resident-trust-and-capital-gains-tax-2024 Official guidance. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
22. Joint ownership may or may not carry survivorship. HMRC IHTM15011 and IHTM15081. Official guidance. Scotland differs. See chapter 3 for foreign situated assets. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
23. Giving an asset away while keeping the benefit leaves it in the estate. Finance Act 1986 section 102. Primary. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
24. The 1985 Hague Trusts Convention has 14 contracting parties. HCCH status table, cid 59. https://www.hcch.net/en/instruments/conventions/status-table/?cid=59 Primary. France, the United States and Spain are not among them. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
25. France has its own fiduciary institution, the fiducie. French Civil Code articles 2011 to 2031, introduced by law 2007-211. https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/codes/section_lc/LEGITEXT000006070721/LEGISCTA000006118476/ Primary. The chapter makes no claim that France lacks a trust-like concept. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
26. Spain treats a foreign trust as transparent and attributes its assets to the owner. Dirección General de Tributos binding consultation V2033-22. https://petete.tributos.hacienda.gob.es/consultas/?num_consulta=V2033-22 Official guidance. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
27. Some countries tax distributions from foreign trusts in the beneficiary’s hands. Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 section 99B, with Australian Taxation Office guidance. https://www.ato.gov.au/businesses-and-organisations/trusts/trust-income-losses-and-capital-gains/receiving-payments-or-assets-from-foreign-trusts Official guidance. Stated generally, with a signpost to local advice. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
28. English family courts can treat trust assets as a spouse’s financial resource. Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 section 25, applied in Charman v Charman [2007] EWCA Civ 503 at 48. Primary. Where trustees would be likely to advance them. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
29. No market cost figures are given for wills, trust set-up or trustee fees. Unsourced: costs are described qualitatively. 30 August 2026.
Unsourced · Checked 30 August 2026

Chapter 7: inheritance tax, the rules everyone starts from

1. 40 per cent above a nil-rate band of £325,000, unchanged since 2009 to 2010. https://www.gov.uk/inheritance-tax and the HMRC thresholds paper. Official guidance. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
2. The residence nil-rate band is £175,000, from 2020 to 2021, for a home passing to descendants. Residence nil-rate band guidance. Official guidance. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
3. Both bands and the £2 million taper threshold are frozen to 5 April 2031. Finance Act 2026 section 72. Primary. Check current figure. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026 · Check current figure
4. Lifetime transfers into relevant property trusts are charged at 20 per cent. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/trusts-and-inheritance-tax Official guidance. Above the available band. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
5. Liabilities were £7.03 billion in 2023 to 2024, up 5 per cent. HMRC inheritance tax liabilities statistics, updated 30 July 2026. https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/inheritance-tax-liabilities-statistics/inheritance-tax-liabilities-statistics-commentary Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
6. 4.72 per cent of UK deaths produced a charge, 30,400 estates of about 644,000 deaths. HMRC inheritance tax liabilities statistics. Official guidance. The highest share since 2006 to 2007. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
7. Worked example: a £500,000 estate, £175,000 taxable, £70,000 tax. Calculated from entries 1 and 2. Cross-reference. Illustration. 3 September 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 3 September 2026 · Illustration
8. The average UK house price was £272,000 in June 2026, provisional. UK House Price Index summary, June 2026. https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/uk-house-price-index-for-june-2026/uk-house-price-index-summary-june-2026 Official guidance. The latest release at September 2026. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
9. Most unused pension funds are tested for deaths on or after 6 April 2027. Finance Act 2026 sections 66 to 71, excluded benefits at IHTA 1984 section 150A(6). Primary. Developed in chapter 8. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
10. The spouse exemption is unlimited except where the transferor is a long-term UK resident and the recipient spouse or civil partner is not. IHTA 1984 sections 18, 267ZC and 267ZD. Primary. The cap is cumulative across lifetime and death transfers. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
11. The unused percentage is claimed on form IHT402 within 24 months of the second death. HMRC IHTM43007. Official guidance. Or 3 months from the personal representatives first acting, if later. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
12. The residence band is claimed on form IHT435, the transferred band on IHT436. Residence nil-rate band guidance. Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
13. A couple’s combined allowances reach £1 million where a home passes to descendants. Calculated from entries 1, 2 and 11. Cross-reference. Illustration. 3 September 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 3 September 2026 · Illustration
14. Direct descendants include adopted, step and foster children, but not nieces or siblings. The husband, wife or civil partner of a living descendant counts too, and so does the widow, widower or surviving civil partner of a descendant who died no later than the deceased, provided they haven’t become anyone’s spouse or civil partner between that death and the deceased’s. IHTA 1984 section 8K(1)(a), (b) and (c), with residence nil-rate band guidance. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
15. The residence band tapers by £1 for every £2 above £2 million. Residence nil-rate band guidance. Official guidance. Measured after liabilities but before reliefs. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
16. A downsizing addition applies where a home was sold or given away from 8 July 2015. HMRC IHTM46051. Official guidance. Capped by the disposed home’s band value and by what passes to descendants. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
17. The annual exemption is £3,000, carried forward one year only. https://www.gov.uk/inheritance-tax/gifts Official guidance. The couple’s £12,000 first-year figure assumes both years unused for each spouse. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
18. The small gifts exemption is £250 per recipient per tax year, all or nothing. https://www.gov.uk/inheritance-tax/gifts Official guidance. Not combinable with another exemption for the same recipient. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
19. Marriage gifts: £5,000 from a parent, £2,500 from a grandparent, £1,000 from anyone else. IHTA 1984 section 22. Primary. Conditional on the marriage taking place. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
20. Normal expenditure out of income needs a pattern, income as the source, and an unchanged standard of living. IHTA 1984 section 21, and form IHT403. Primary. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
21. Potentially exempt transfers become exempt after 7 years, failed gifts using the band first. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/work-out-inheritance-tax-due-on-gifts Official guidance. In chronological order. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
22. Taper relief cuts tax on a failed gift only above the band, at 32, 24, 16 and 8 per cent. HMRC IHTM14612. Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
23. Chargeable transfers in the 7 years before a failed gift cumulate with it. HMRC IHTM14513. Official guidance. The fourteen-year span is the book’s own arithmetic, not a phrase HMRC uses. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
24. A gifted home the donor still occupies rent free stays in the estate. Finance Act 1986 section 102. Primary. The test is exclusion entirely or virtually entirely. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
25. Retained use of a gifted UK property by a donor abroad is a reservation. HMRC IHTM14333. Official guidance. Beyond occasional and minimal use. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
26. Occupation on full consideration sits outside the reservation rules. Finance Act 1986 Schedule 20 paragraph 6(1)(a), and HMRC IHTM14341. Primary. HMRC puts the test as an arm’s length bargain rather than a fixed market rent. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
27. The pre-owned assets charge applies where the reservation rules do not. Finance Act 2004 Schedule 15, and HMRC IHTM44001. Primary. An income tax charge. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
28. Historic relief rates before 6 April 2026, at 100 and 50 per cent. IHTA 1984 Part V Chapter I, HMRC IHTM25141, and https://www.gov.uk/guidance/agricultural-relief-on-inheritance-tax Primary. IHTM24100 carries no rates, so the agricultural rates come from the guidance. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
29. From 6 April 2026, 100 per cent relief is capped at £2.5 million per person, 50 per cent above. The allowance is transferable between spouses and civil partners on a claim, giving £5 million per couple. Finance Act 2026 section 65 and Schedule 12, inserting IHTA 1984 sections 124D and 124E, the allowance at 124D and the transfer at 124E. Primary. Check current figure. The gov.uk policy paper still gives the announced £1 million. This book follows the enacted figure. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
30. The cap was announced at £1 million in 2024 and raised to £2.5 million on 23 December 2025. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/inheritance-tax-reliefs-threshold-to-rise-to-25m-for-farmers-and-businesses Official guidance. Estates paying more on agricultural property fall from 375 to 185 a year. The Commons Library briefing uses a different baseline. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
31. Charitable gifts are exempt without limit, and 10 per cent of the baseline gives 36 per cent. IHTA 1984 Schedule 1A. Primary. The £825,000 example was checked by calculation. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
32. Charity exemption is restricted to UK charities, transitional arrangements having ended in April 2024. Finance Act 2010 Schedule 6 as amended. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
33. Tax is due by the end of the sixth month after the month of death. https://www.gov.uk/paying-inheritance-tax Official guidance. Payment is normally needed before the grant issues. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
34. HMRC late payment interest is 7.75 per cent from 9 January 2026, base rate plus 4 points. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/rates-and-allowances-hmrc-interest-rates-for-late-and-early-payments/rates-and-allowances-hmrc-interest-rates Official guidance. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
35. The direct payment scheme pays HMRC from the deceased’s accounts on form IHT423. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/inheritance-tax-direct-payment-scheme-bank-or-building-society-account-iht423 Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
36. Tax on land, business interests and some shares is payable in 10 annual instalments. https://www.gov.uk/paying-inheritance-tax/yearly-instalments Official guidance. Interest free for relievable assets inherited from 6 April 2026, the trigger being the date of the inheritance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
37. HMRC may allow a grant on credit against an undertaking to pay. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/applying-for-a-grant-on-credit-for-inheritance-tax Official guidance. Case by case, after alternatives are exhausted. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
38. The IHT400 account is due within 12 months of the month of death. IHTA 1984 sections 216(6)(a) and 245, with HMRC IHTM36023. Primary. Penalties are £100, a further £100 at 6 months, and up to £3,200 beyond 12. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
39. The property must have been the deceased’s residence while owned, and only one may be nominated. HMRC IHTM46011. Official guidance. The gov.uk residence band guidance carries neither point. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
40. Long-term residence decides worldwide scope. Situs decides whether an asset is UK situated. Cross-reference, chapter 1. 3 September 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 3 September 2026
41. A charity outside the UK gets no exemption and does not count towards the reduced rate. Finance Act 2010 Schedule 6 as amended, at entry 32. Primary. No further HMRC wording is relied on. 2 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 2 September 2026

Chapter 8: inheritance tax for expats, what’s in scope

1. Long-term residence, 10 of the previous 20 tax years, puts the worldwide estate in scope. IHTA 1984 section 6A. Primary. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
2. The tail runs 3 to 10 consecutive non-resident years, and 10 reset the test. IHTA 1984 section 6A(3). Primary. A return before the run completes can restart the count. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
3. Illustrative tails for leavers in 2023, early 2025, early 2018 and early 2010. Calculated from IHTA 1984 section 6A. Primary. Illustration. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026 · Illustration
4. Transitional rules for pre-2025 emigrants turn on common law domicile at 30 October 2024. Finance Act 2025 Schedule 13 paragraph 46, with HMRC IHTM47021. Primary. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
5. Foreign property is excluded where the owner is not long-term resident at the time of the transfer. IHTA 1984 sections 6(1) and 3(2), with HMRC IHTM27212. Primary. Book’s own reading that a later change of status does not pull the gift back in. Settled property differs. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026 · Book’s own reading
6. UK situated assets generally stay in scope whoever owns them. HMRC IHTM27001. Official guidance. Subject to the exclusions at entries 7 to 10. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
7. Situs: land where it stands, registered shares where the register is kept, accounts at their branch. HMRC IHTM27071, IHTM27074, IHTM27093 and IHTM27121. Official guidance. Situs is asset-specific, so the chapter’s table states what to establish. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
8. UK authorised unit trust and OEIC holdings are excluded for a non-long-term resident. IHTA 1984 section 6(1A), with HMRC IHTM04262. Primary. The condition switched from domicile on 6 April 2025. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
9. FOTRA gilts are excluded property on conditions varying by issue date. IHTA 1984 section 6(2), with HMRC IHTM04291. Primary. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
10. Foreign currency accounts are left out where the deceased was neither resident nor long-term resident. IHTA 1984 section 157, with HMRC IHTM04380. Primary. The 2026 correction to section 157(3) does not change this condition. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
11. Life policy proceeds are situated where they are payable under the policy. New York Life Insurance Co v Public Trustee [1924] 2 Ch 101, cited at HMRC IHTM27102. Primary. Not the insurer’s head office, so an offshore bond’s situs comes from the policy documents. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
12. Interests in closely held foreign companies are in scope so far as their value derives from UK homes. IHTA 1984 Schedule A1, with HMRC IHTM04311. Primary. Proceeds stay in scope for 2 years, and agricultural property is covered from 6 April 2026. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
13. Unused pension funds enter the estate for deaths on or after 6 April 2027. Finance Act 2026 sections 66 to 71, royal assent 18 March 2026. Primary. Sections 66 to 70 charge, section 71 commences. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
14. SIPPs and qualifying non-UK schemes are in, and excluded benefits stay out. IHTA 1984 section 150A(6), inserted by Finance Act 2026 section 66. Primary. A charity lump sum death benefit is not listed as excluded, so it counts in the calculation, and IHTA 1984 section 23(5B), inserted by Finance Act 2026 section 69, then applies the charity exemption to it. 7 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 7 September 2026
15. Personal representatives report and pay. Beneficiaries become jointly liable on vesting. HMRC consultation outcome and technical note 2, 27 August 2026. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/inheritance-tax-on-pensions-technical-note-2 Official guidance. Schemes can withhold benefits while the position settles. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
16. For a death up to 5 April 2027, discretionary funds sit outside the estate, with income tax after age 75. https://www.gov.uk/tax-on-pension-death-benefits Official guidance. That treatment continues after April 2027, with no income tax on the part used to pay the inheritance tax. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
17. Worked SIPP example reaching 64 per cent on the stated assumptions. Computed from entries 13 to 16 with https://www.gov.uk/income-tax-rates Official guidance. Illustration. No source states 64 per cent. It is the outcome of the chapter’s own assumptions for one fund. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Illustration
18. Pension values count towards the £2 million taper threshold. HMRC IHTM46023. Official guidance. Book’s own reading, a consequence of the funds being in the estate. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026 · Book’s own reading
19. The spouse exemption is capped at £325,000 cumulatively where only the transferor is long-term resident. IHTA 1984 sections 18(2) and 18(2A). Primary. Unlimited where both are, neither is, or only the transferee is. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
20. Lifetime transfers above the cap are potentially exempt. On death the excess is chargeable. HMRC IHTM47030. Official guidance. The £900,000 example is computed in the chapter. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
21. The election, how it is made, and when it ceases. IHTA 1984 sections 267ZC and 267ZD, as amended by Finance Act 2026 section 76. Primary. It ceases after 10 successive non-resident tax years, lifetime or death alike. Section 267ZA is the superseded domicile election. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
22. A death election’s effective date must fall within 7 years and no earlier than 6 April 2025. HMRC IHTM47037. Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
23. Electing brings the elector’s worldwide assets into scope from the effective date. HMRC IHTM47038. Official guidance. Until the election ceases under entry 21. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
24. Legacy domicile elections lapse after 4 non-resident years, or 10 if made from 30 October 2024. IHTA 1984 section 267ZE. Primary. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
25. Inheritance tax treaties with 6 countries, and estate duty conventions with 4 more. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/inheritance-tax-double-taxation-relief Official guidance. Section 267ZF bridges deemed domicile references. The India and Pakistan effect is stated conditionally, as specialist treaty analysis. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
26. Double tax relief must be claimed, is capped at the UK tax on the property, and is time limited. IHTA 1984 sections 159 and 241. Primary. The proportionate formula comes from section 159, not the manual. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
27. The account is due within 12 months of the month of death, the tax within 6. IHTA 1984 section 216(6)(a). Primary. Or 3 months from the personal representatives first acting, if later. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
28. Short-form reporting for the never long-term resident, broadly UK assets under £150,000. HMRC IHTM06021. Official guidance. Cash and quoted shares only, otherwise a full IHT400. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
29. France: spouse exempt, children €100,000 each at 5 to 45 per cent, others up to 60. https://www.impots.gouv.fr/particulier/questions/comment-dois-je-calculer-les-droits-de-succession Official guidance. The per-child allowance has been €100,000 since 2012. Higher figures in circulation are out of date. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
30. Spain: state rates of 7.65 to 34 per cent under article 21, then a multiplier of 1 to 2.4 under article 22 set by the beneficiary’s kinship group and their own existing wealth together, largely ceded to the regions. Ley 29/1987, consolidated BOE text, articles 21 and 22. https://www.boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-1987-28141 Primary. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
31. Regional reliefs of 99 or 100 per cent in Andalucía, Madrid, Valencia and the Balearics. Ley 6/2023 for Valencia, with the regional pages. https://www.boe.es/buscar/doc.php?id=BOE-A-2023-26466 Official guidance. Each can be changed by the region. Check current figure. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026 · Check current figure
32. Non-resident heirs may apply the rules of the most closely connected autonomous community. Commission v Spain, case C-127/12, codified in Ley 29/1987. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A62012CJ0127 Primary. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
33. The UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar publish no estate or inheritance tax. https://u.ae/en/information-and-services/finance-and-investment/taxation and https://zatca.gov.sa/en/RulesRegulations/Taxes/Pages/default.aspx Official guidance. Taken from what the listings contain, not from any exemption statement, so the position is one to confirm locally. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
34. UAE civil personal status covers wills and inheritance for non-Muslims. UAE Federal Decree-Law 41 of 2022. Primary. Sharia is not described as a universal UAE default. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
35. 40 per cent, £325,000 and the £2 million taper threshold, as carried into this chapter from chapter 7. https://www.gov.uk/inheritance-tax Official guidance. Check current figure. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026 · Check current figure
36. A policy the deceased owned is in the estate. One in trust is outside only if validly settled. HMRC IHTM20012 and IHTM20031. Official guidance. No benefit may be reserved, and premiums are transfers of value in their own right. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
37. Singapore removed estate duty for deaths on and after 15 February 2008. https://www.iras.gov.sg/taxes/other-taxes/estate-duty/estate-duty Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026

Chapter 9: your assets, one by one

1. Joint tenants hold with survivorship. Tenants in common hold shares passing under the will. https://www.gov.uk/joint-property-ownership Official guidance. Whether survivorship operates turns on the beneficial ownership behind the legal title. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
2. Severance by written notice, then form SEV and a Form A restriction, no fee. Law of Property Act 1925 section 36(2), and https://www.gov.uk/joint-property-ownership/change-from-joint-tenants-to-tenants-in-common Primary. A Form A restriction is consistent with a tenancy in common without proving it. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
3. The deceased’s beneficial share is in the estate for tax however it passes. HMRC IHTM15012. Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
4. Letting agents deduct basic rate tax. Form NRL1i applies for gross rent. https://www.gov.uk/tax-uk-income-live-abroad/rent Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
5. A residential borrower must tell the lender before letting. https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/blog/buy-or-rent-a-home/buy-to-let-mortgages-explained Official guidance. Contractual, with no statutory source. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
6. UK land is always UK situs, shares sit where registered, accounts at their branch. HMRC IHTM27074, IHTM27093 and IHTM27121. Official guidance. A treaty can modify the account rule. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
7. The residence nil-rate band and the downsizing addition. Cross-reference, chapter 7 entries 16 and 39. 3 September 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 3 September 2026
8. Thailand restricts foreign ownership of land, and the rules change. Unsourced: the chapter draws no conclusion on Thai law and directs readers to current Thai advice. 29 August 2026.
Unsourced · Checked 29 August 2026
9. Singapore: landed property needs approval, and a foreign beneficiary’s interest is sold within 5 years. Residential Property Act 1976, with https://www.sla.gov.sg/regulatory/foreign-ownership-of-property/ Primary. The 5 year period rests on the Singapore Academy of Law, not the section text. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
10. For deaths up to 5 April 2027 discretionary pension death benefits are outside the estate, and a binding nomination brings them in for inheritance tax. HMRC IHTM17051. Official guidance. Entry 14 carries the position for deaths on or after 6 April 2027. Lump sums are reported on form IHT409. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
11. Death before 75 gives tax free lump sums within the £1,073,100 allowance, and at 75 or over the marginal rate applies. https://www.gov.uk/tax-on-pension-death-benefits, with HMRC PTM072430. Official guidance. Payment or designation within 2 years. Check current figure. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026 · Check current figure
12. A dependants’ scheme pension is taxed as the recipient’s pension income. HMRC PTM072110. Official guidance. No age condition attaches, so the chapter states it without an age split. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
13. QROPS member payment charges: a 10 year non-residence rule, and 5 years from a 2017 key date. HMRC PTM113210, updated 24 August 2026. Official guidance. Death benefits otherwise depend on the receiving scheme’s jurisdiction. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
14. Unused pension funds enter the estate for a death on or after 6 April 2027. Finance Act 2026 sections 66 to 71. Primary. See chapter 8. Stated here without figures. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
15. The death of the last life assured is a chargeable event, on the surrender value before death. HMRC IPTM7390 and IPTM3515. Official guidance. No worked outcome is stated, because liability depends on residence, policy history and any treaty. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
16. Time apportionment relief reduces a gain by the residence history of the person liable. HMRC IPTM3731. Official guidance. It can apply to an estate. IPTM3730 states the pre-2013 position and is not relied on. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
17. Assignment not for money is not a chargeable event, and the history passes with the policy. HMRC IPTM7360 and IPTM7385. Official guidance. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
18. Up to 5 per cent of premiums a year may be withdrawn without an immediate gain. Helpsheet HS320. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/gains-on-uk-life-insurance-policies-hs320-self-assessment-helpsheet/hs320-gains-on-uk-life-insurance-policies-2026 Official guidance. With carry forward, and top-slicing relief on the tax. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
19. A joint account continues for the survivor subject to the terms, and the contribution share is taxed. HMRC IHTM15042, and form IHT404. Official guidance. No source says the survivor can operate the account without a grant. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
20. Spanish banks block a deceased holder’s funds until documents and tax clearance are produced. Banco de España client portal. https://clientebancario.bde.es/pcb/en/blog/disposicion-de-saldos-bancarios-de-cuentas-bancarias-de-personas-fallecidas.html Official guidance. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
21. A French compte joint generally stays open for the survivor unless the heirs object. https://www.service-public.gouv.fr/particuliers/vosdroits/F1451 Official guidance. Sole accounts are blocked. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
22. UAE joint accounts carry no English-style survivorship, and access can be restricted. https://www.tamimi.com/law-update-articles/succession-procedures-and-creditors-rights/ Professional source. No primary source: no official English-language statement of a freezing rule was found and practice varies. 29 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 29 August 2026 · No primary source
23. The direct payment scheme and the 6 month deadline. Cross-reference, chapter 7 entries 33 and 35. 3 September 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 3 September 2026
24. A partnership is dissolved by the death of any partner unless the partners agree otherwise. Partnership Act 1890 section 33(1). Primary. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
25. A buy-and-sell agreement prevents business property relief. An option does not. HMRC IHTM25292. Official guidance. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
26. The insurance-backed cross-option agreement, with reciprocal options funded by life cover. https://www.thrings.com/en-gb/takefive_cross-option-agreements Professional source. No primary source for the name and shape. The tax point is at entry 25. 29 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 29 August 2026 · No primary source
27. The capped business and agricultural reliefs from 6 April 2026. Cross-reference, chapter 7 entries 29 and 30. 3 September 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 3 September 2026
28. A digital thing can be personal property though neither in possession nor in action. Property (Digital Assets etc) Act 2025 section 1, in force 2 December 2025. Primary. Extends to England and Wales and Northern Ireland. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
29. A will admitted to probate becomes a public record anyone can order. https://www.gov.uk/find-persons-will Official guidance. Which is why keys and seed phrases stay out of the will. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
30. A box provider requires proof of authority, commonly a grant, before releasing a box. https://www.russell-cooke.co.uk/news-and-insights/news/gaining-access-to-safety-deposit-boxes-when-owner-dies Professional source. No primary source: no official statement of the requirement was found. 30 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 30 August 2026 · No primary source
31. A policy the deceased owned on their own life is in the estate. One validly in trust is not. HMRC IHTM20211, with IHTM20241 on gifting an existing policy. Official guidance. IHTM20141 supports the trust route existing, not the tax outcome. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
32. Gift inter vivos cover, term insurance decreasing with the taper over 7 years. https://adviser.royallondon.com/technical-central/protection-guidance/inheritance-tax-and-related-manuals/gift-inter-vivos/ Professional source. No primary source: no HMRC description of the product exists. The taper mechanics are official. 29 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 29 August 2026 · No primary source
33. Apple legacy contact: account data released on the access key and a death certificate. https://support.apple.com/en-us/102631 Professional source, the provider’s own terms. One scheme only. 29 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 29 August 2026 · One scheme only
34. Google inactive account manager notifies trusted contacts after a set period. https://support.google.com/accounts/answer/3036546 Professional source, the provider’s own terms. One scheme only. Google may delete accounts inactive for at least 2 years. 29 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 29 August 2026 · One scheme only
35. A Facebook legacy contact manages a memorialised profile but cannot log in. https://about.fb.com/news/2015/02/adding-a-legacy-contact/ Professional source, the provider’s own terms. One scheme only. Permanent deletion is available instead. 29 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 29 August 2026 · One scheme only
36. Microsoft has no legacy contact and needs a court order to release data. https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/account-billing/accessing-outlook-com-onedrive-and-other-microsoft-services-when-someone-has-died-ebbd2860-917e-4b39-9913-212362da6b2f Professional source, the provider’s own terms. One scheme only. Accounts may close after 2 years without a sign-in. 29 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 29 August 2026 · One scheme only
37. Bitwarden emergency access and the 1Password emergency kit. https://bitwarden.com/help/emergency-access/ Professional source, the providers’ own terms. One scheme only. Named as examples of the pattern, not recommendations. 29 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 29 August 2026 · One scheme only
38. Offshore bonds can carry establishment fees, administration fees and surrender penalties. Unsourced: the chapter’s description of how these products are structured. 29 August 2026.
Unsourced · Checked 29 August 2026
39. Singapore CPF savings pass by nomination, not under a will. Cross-reference, chapter 10 entry 36. 3 September 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 3 September 2026
40. Where a reader’s relationship or holdings carry risk, whether written records should exist is their judgement. Unsourced: an editorial position carried from chapter 16. 29 August 2026.
Unsourced · Checked 29 August 2026

Chapter 10: when it happens, probate and estates across borders

1. A death abroad must be registered with the local authorities. https://www.gov.uk/after-a-death/death-abroad Official guidance. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
2. UK registration is optional, for deaths from 1 January 1983, at £150 plus £50 a certificate. https://www.gov.uk/register-a-death, and the Consular Fees Order 2016, fees 13 and 15. Official guidance. Not required for repatriation. Check current figure. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026 · Check current figure
3. The FCDO pays no burial, cremation, repatriation or legal costs. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coping-with-death-abroad/death-abroad-initial-steps Official guidance. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
4. Cover to check: expat policy, death in service, card cover, travel insurance. Unsourced: practical guidance with no figure attached. 30 August 2026.
Unsourced · Checked 30 August 2026
5. Repatriation needs a certified translation and permission to remove the body. https://www.gov.uk/after-a-death/death-abroad Official guidance. Removing a body out of England or Wales needs the coroner’s permission, 4 days ahead. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
6. Repatriation costs £3,000 to £6,000, £12,000 to £20,000 from China, £1,000 to £3,000 for ashes. https://homeland-international.co.uk/repatriation-costs/ Professional source. No primary source, one firm’s price guide, named in the text as a market illustration. 30 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 30 August 2026 · No primary source
7. An executor’s title comes from the will and arises at death. Chetty v Chetty [1916] 1 AC 603, cited at https://becket-chambers.co.uk/articles/grant-of-probate-or-the-will-which-provides-an-executors-title/ Professional source. No free official text of a 1916 report exists, so the case is kept with an attributed secondary citation. 3 September 2026.
Professional source · Checked 3 September 2026
8. Some UK banks pay a funeral invoice from the deceased’s account before a grant. https://www.santander.co.uk/personal/support/customer-support/bereavement Professional source, the banks’ own bereavement pages. 30 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 30 August 2026
9. Executors apply for probate. Without a will the most entitled relative applies. https://www.gov.uk/applying-for-probate Official guidance. Grant of representation is the umbrella term. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
10. From 13 July 2026 the application fee is £526 above £5,000, copies £2 or £16. https://www.gov.uk/applying-for-probate/fees, and SI 2026/642 as commenced by SI 2026/665. Official guidance. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
11. Foreign banks and registries generally want sealed rather than photocopied grants. Unsourced: practitioner practice rather than a published rule. 30 August 2026.
Unsourced · Checked 30 August 2026
12. Form IHT400 goes to HMRC first, then a 20 working day wait for the code. https://www.gov.uk/applying-for-probate/apply-for-probate Official guidance. The code replaced the stamped IHT421 in January 2024. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
13. Excepted estates: four broad shapes, including £150,000 of UK assets for a permanent expat. https://www.gov.uk/valuing-estate-of-someone-who-died/check-type-of-estate Official guidance. A separate list of conditions removes excepted status, and the chapter refers readers to the live guidance. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
14. The spouse exemption is capped at £325,000 where the transferor is a long-term UK resident and the recipient spouse or civil partner is not. https://adviser.royallondon.com/technical-central/protection-guidance/inheritance-tax-and-related-manuals/long-term-resident-and-inheritance-tax/ Professional source, a convenience summary. The statute is at chapter 8. 30 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 30 August 2026
15. Tax is due by the end of the sixth month after the month of death. https://www.gov.uk/paying-inheritance-tax Official guidance. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
16. Interest is 7.75 per cent late and 2.75 per cent repayment, from 9 January 2026. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/rates-and-allowances-hmrc-interest-rates-for-late-and-early-payments/rates-and-allowances-hmrc-interest-rates Official guidance. Check current figure: rates move with the base rate. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
17. Probate timeliness to March 2026: 5 weeks mean, 2 digital, 70 per cent digital, 14 stopped, caseload 42,490 and 19 per cent up on the year. Family Court Statistics Quarterly, January to March 2026, section 17. https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/family-court-statistics-quarterly-january-to-march-2026/family-court-statistics-quarterly-january-to-march-2026 Official guidance. A stopped application means an administrative fault, not a dispute. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
18. The average wait was about 12 weeks at the end of 2023. Ministry of Justice press release, 14 February 2025. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/probate-waiting-times-halved-thanks-to-government-push Official guidance. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
19. The 1892 Act applies only on reciprocity, with resealing under rule 39. Colonial Probates Act 1892 section 1, the Application Order 1965 Schedule 1, and Non-Contentious Probate Rules 1987 rule 39. Primary. The Schedule uses the territorial names of 1965. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
20. Australia: the states are listed individually, and New South Wales and Queensland reseal. https://www.courts.qld.gov.au/services/wills-and-estates/applying-for-a-grant/resealing-a-grant Official guidance for Queensland. The New South Wales limb rests on a professional source. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
21. New Zealand is listed and reseals under section 71 of the Administration Act 1969. https://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1969/0052/latest/DLM393093.html Primary. The section wording is not quoted. The exemplification point rests on a professional source. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
22. Canada: 10 provinces and territories are listed, but not Quebec, Yukon or Nunavut. Colonial Probates Act Application Order 1965 Schedule 1. Primary. The Ontario and British Columbia procedures rest on professional sources. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
23. Hong Kong remains covered, continued after 30 June 1997, and reseals under Cap 10 Part V. Hong Kong (Colonial Probates Act) Order 1997, SI 1997/1572. Primary. The Hong Kong end rests on a professional source. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
24. Cyprus, the only EU member state listed, reseals under Cap 192. https://www.mondaq.com/cyprus/wills-intestacy-estate-planning/1781374/resealing-a-grant-of-probate-in-cyprus-the-probates-re-sealing-law-cap-192 Professional source for the Cyprus end. The listing is primary. 30 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 30 August 2026
25. Malaysia reseals Commonwealth grants under section 52, with section 51 allowing additions. Probate and Administration Act 1959. https://www.commonlii.org/my/legis/consol_act/paaa19591972334/ Primary. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
26. Kenya seals Commonwealth and foreign grants under section 77 of the Law of Succession Act 1972, Chapter 160. Kenya Law, Act No. 14 of 1972. https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/act/1972/14 Primary. 5 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 5 September 2026
27. Jamaica reseals under its Probates (Re-sealing) Act, widened in 2015. https://www.ghrlegal.com/2023/11/23/reseal-it-the-use-of-foreign-grants-of-probate-administration-in-jamaica-and-the-process-of-resealing/ Professional source. Point not confirmed as to the year of the Act: the Laws of Jamaica site could not be reached, so the book cites the Act without one. 5 September 2026.
Professional source · Checked 5 September 2026 · Point not confirmed
28. Gibraltar is listed and reseals UK grants under its own Probates (Re-sealing) Act 1934. https://www.gibraltarlaws.gov.gi/legislations/probates-re-sealing-act-1160/version/30-01-1934/download Primary. Numbered Act 1934-01, in force from 31 January 1934. 5 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 5 September 2026
29. Singapore is not listed but reseals a grant from any part of the Commonwealth. Probate and Administration Act 1934 section 47. https://sso.agc.gov.sg/Act/PAA1934 Primary. The section is not limited to gazetted territories. 10 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 10 September 2026
30. No claim is made about any listed jurisdiction not named at entries 20 to 29. South Africa sits under a separate 1914 Order, SR&O 1914/144. Primary. Ireland and the United States are not in the 1965 Order. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
31. No foreign grant may be resealed until the inheritance tax position is dealt with. Senior Courts Act 1981 section 109. Primary. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
32. Apostilles replace embassy legalisation, at £45 on paper and £35 electronically. https://www.gov.uk/get-document-legalised Official guidance. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
33. Spain: the self-assessment is due within 6 months, extendable by 6 more. https://sede.agenciatributaria.gob.es/Sede/no-residentes/impuesto-sobre-sucesiones-donaciones/adquisiciones-mortis-causa-modelo-650/plazos-presentacion.html Official guidance. The acceptance deed, the NIE requirement and the bar on selling rest on a professional source. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
34. France: the declaration is due within 6 months of a death in France, 12 abroad. https://www.service-public.gouv.fr/particuliers/vosdroits/F80 Official guidance. A notaire is compulsory where the estate includes real property or a will. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
35. UAE: DIFC grants issue within weeks, at AED 10,000 or 15,000, and AED 950 in Abu Dhabi. https://www.difccourts.ae/about/fees Official guidance. No claim is made about bank account freezes or timings. Check current figure. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026 · Check current figure
36. Singapore: the Public Trustee may administer estates of S$50,000 or less, and CPF follows the nomination. https://pto.mlaw.gov.sg/deceased-cpf-estate-monies/information-for-next-of-kin-cpf-monies/ Official guidance. Without a nomination it goes to the Public Trustee. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
37. An executor may renounce permanently on form PA15. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/form-pa15-give-up-probate-executor-rights Official guidance. That intermeddling bars renunciation is commentary only. No official page states it. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
38. No residence requirement disqualifies a personal representative. Non-Contentious Probate Rules 1987 rules 19 and 30 and the Third Schedule. Primary. Cross-border cases can need extra evidence. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
39. Form IHT423 moves money from the deceased’s accounts straight to HMRC. https://www.gov.uk/paying-inheritance-tax/from-deceaseds-bank-account Official guidance. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
40. Thresholds for releasing funds without a grant are set by each institution. https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/family-and-care/death-and-bereavement/sorting-out-the-estate-when-there-is-a-will Official guidance for the variation. The £50,000 figure is Santander’s own, and no comparative claim is made. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
41. Tax on qualifying property including land is payable in 10 yearly instalments on election. IHTA 1984 section 227. Primary. Interest runs on land. Instalments are interest free for relievable property inherited from 6 April 2026. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
42. Interest relief on a loan to pay the tax is limited to 12 months and to personal representatives. Income Tax Act 2007 sections 403 to 405, with HMRC SAIM10350 and IHTM05122. Primary. Since 1 April 2024 personal representatives are not expected to seek commercial loans first. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
43. HMRC may allow payment to be postponed so a grant can issue. HMRC IHTM05120. Official guidance. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
44. The Estate Administration Banking Protocol, updated by UK Finance on 9 February 2026. https://www.ukfinance.org.uk/policy-and-guidance/guidance/new-banking-protocol-estate-administration Professional source, a trade body. The 2012 original was produced with the Law Society and STEP. 30 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 30 August 2026
45. The Death Notification Service tells member banks of a death through one form. https://www.deathnotificationservice.co.uk/ Professional source. It reaches members only. 30 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 30 August 2026
46. Tell Us Once notifies government departments and councils, offered by the registrar. https://www.gov.uk/after-a-death/organisations-you-need-to-contact-and-tell-us-once Official guidance. It covers a death abroad only where the person was there temporarily. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
47. A letter of wishes has no binding force and may be disclosable. https://www.weightmans.com/insights/letters-of-wishes/ Professional source. No primary source: neither firm cites primary authority. 30 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 30 August 2026 · No primary source
48. A will is normally open to public inspection once probate is granted. https://www.gov.uk/search-will-probate Official guidance. Sealing is possible in rare cases by court order. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
49. There is no property in a body and funeral instructions are not enforceable. Williams v Williams (1882) 20 Ch D 659, through https://www.hughjames.com/blog/burial-disputes-who-decides/, with Non-Contentious Probate Rules 1987 rules 20 and 22. Primary. No free official text of an 1882 report exists. The operative rule is the 1987 Rules. English law only. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
50. Funeral costs: £3,828 simple attended, £4,510 traditional, £1,628 direct cremation. SunLife Cost of Dying 2026, 7 January 2026. https://www.sunlife.co.uk/over-50-life-insurance/funeral-costs/ Commentary, a consumer survey by a life insurer, with the commercial interest disclosed. 30 August 2026.
Commentary · Checked 30 August 2026
51. Prepaid funeral plans have been FCA regulated since 29 July 2022. https://www.fca.org.uk/consumers/funeral-plans Official guidance. Money must be safeguarded, and the chapter routes readers to the Register. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
52. A will last in the testator’s possession and not found is presumed revoked. Blyth v Sykes [2019] EWHC 54 (Ch). Primary. There the presumption did not arise, and a certified copy was admitted. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
53. A general revocation clause in a later Indian will left the English estate intestate. Sangha v Sangha [2023] EWCA Civ 660. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
54. France reserves one half to three quarters for children. Spain reserves two thirds. French Civil Code articles 912 to 917, and the Spanish Civil Code. Primary. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
55. The French compensatory levy applies on three cumulative conditions, from 1 November 2021. French Civil Code article 913(3). Primary. Point not confirmed as to outcome: the Commission file closed on 28 July 2026 and there is no binding ruling. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026 · Point not confirmed
56. Caveats reached 11,362 in 2024 and 11,328 in 2025, with 1,217 probate claims in 2025. https://www.irwinmitchell.com/news-and-insights/newsandmedia/2026/may/high-court-inheritance-disputes-stay-at-elevated-levels Professional source. No primary source. There is no official statistical series for caveats or contested claims. 3 September 2026.
Professional source · Checked 3 September 2026 · No primary source
57. Life insurance in trust and cash reserves as pre-funding arrangements. Cross-reference, chapter 9. The payment position is stated conditionally and no performance claim is made. 30 August 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 30 August 2026

Chapter 11: the established couple abroad

1. The 10 of 20 year test and the 3 to 10 year tail, replacing domicile from 6 April 2025. IHTA 1984 section 6A. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
2. A February 2023 departure with 20 resident years runs to 5 April 2033. Calculated from IHTA 1984 section 6A. Primary. Illustration. A departure in early 2024 runs a year longer and separates the spouses. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026 · Illustration
3. Tail length depends on resident years, so spouses leaving together can differ. IHTA 1984 section 6A(3). Primary. Which is why the chapter compares tail end dates, not departure dates. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
4. The departure year counts as a full resident year even with split year treatment. HMRC IHTM47020. Official guidance. The tail begins with the following tax year. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
5. Split year Case 2 covers the partner of someone starting full-time work overseas. Finance Act 2013 Schedule 45 Part 3, with HMRC RFIG21090. Primary. The conditions moved out of RDRM12090. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
6. Transitional rules can change the tail for people who left before 6 April 2025. Finance Act 2025 Schedule 13 paragraph 46. Primary. The relief offers the couple nothing, so readers should not borrow their answer. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
7. UK work and UK days feed the statutory residence test through the ties. RDR3. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/rdr3-statutory-residence-test-srt/guidance-note-for-statutory-residence-test-srt-rdr3 Official guidance. Property let commercially is generally excluded. See chapter 1, entry 9. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
8. Mirror wills bind nobody. Mutual wills need proof of an agreement not to revoke. Re Cleaver [1981] 1 WLR 939 and Re Goodchild [1997] 1 WLR 1216, through https://www.hughjames.com/blog/mutual-wills-contracts-and-contemporaneous-evidence/ Professional source. Primary authority not retrieved: the law reports are not freely available, so the proposition is taken from the commentary. 29 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 29 August 2026
9. The unused percentage of both bands is claimed by the survivor’s personal representatives. HMRC IHTM43001, with IHTM43007 for the time limit. Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
10. Marriage can revoke an England and Wales will unless made in contemplation of it. Wills Act 1837 section 18. Primary. Not settled for someone living abroad. The chapter gives a planning default, not a legal conclusion. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
11. On intestacy a spouse with issue takes the chattels, £322,000 and half the residue. HMRC TSEM7828. Official guidance. Check current figure. Scotland and Northern Ireland differ. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
12. Whether an English residuary gift reaches foreign assets. Cross-reference, chapter 3. Stated as an open question, with no conclusion on the couple’s Singapore assets. 29 August 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 29 August 2026
13. The life interest trust, described in outline only. Cross-reference, chapters 6 and 12. 29 August 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 29 August 2026
14. A revocation clause in a later foreign will can revoke an earlier English one. Cross-reference, chapter 3, with the authority at chapter 2 entry 21. 29 August 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 29 August 2026
15. Formal validity of an English will executed abroad, and the witnessing rules. Cross-reference, chapter 2 entries 1, 6, 7 and 10. 29 August 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 29 August 2026
16. A guardianship appointment confers parental responsibility, taking effect as section 5(8) provides. Children Act 1989 sections 5 and 105(1), with the 1996 Hague Convention status table. Primary. That guardianship ends at 18 follows from the definition of a child, not from section 5. Neither the UAE nor Singapore is a party. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
17. Parental responsibility cannot be surrendered, but its exercise can be arranged for others. Children Act 1989 section 2(9). Primary. English law only. Recognition abroad is for local advice. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
18. A letter from a person with parental responsibility is the standard evidence for a child travelling. https://www.gov.uk/permission-take-child-abroad Official guidance. Travel permission only, not medical consent or recognition abroad. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
19. Without an LPA, authority needs a Court of Protection deputyship. https://www.gov.uk/become-deputy Official guidance. See chapter 5 for the sources. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
20. Whether an English LPA is recognised abroad is a question of local law. Cross-reference, chapter 5. Raised as a question, with no country-specific answer. 29 August 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 29 August 2026
21. Joint tenants cannot leave a share by will. Tenants in common can. https://www.gov.uk/joint-property-ownership Official guidance. Whether survivorship in fact operates turns on the beneficial ownership and, abroad, local law. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
22. The title register can be downloaded from HM Land Registry for £7. https://www.gov.uk/search-property-information-land-registry Official guidance. It evidences legal title and does not always resolve beneficial ownership. Check current figure. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026 · Check current figure
23. Severance ends survivorship without the other owner’s agreement, on form SEV. https://www.gov.uk/joint-property-ownership/change-from-joint-tenants-to-tenants-in-common Official guidance. The chapter routes the doing of it to a solicitor. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
24. £325,000 and £175,000 each, frozen with the £2 million threshold to 5 April 2031. Residence nil-rate band guidance, and the Budget 2025 overview. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/budget-2025-overview-of-tax-legislation-and-rates-ootlar/budget-2025-overview-of-tax-legislation-and-rates-ootlar Official guidance. The older HMRC rates and thresholds page still says 5 April 2028 and is stale. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
25. A kept home still qualifies, and letting it after moving abroad does not disqualify it. HMRC IHTM46031. Official guidance. The letting half follows from the at some stage test, not from any express statement. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
26. The downsizing addition is preserved for disposals on or after 8 July 2015. HMRC IHTM46051. Official guidance. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
27. A constructed £2.1 million estate loses £50,000 of band, costing £20,000. Calculated from entry 24. Cross-reference. Illustration, and labelled as such in the chapter. 29 August 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 29 August 2026 · Illustration
28. Rent from a UK property stays taxable in the UK for a landlord abroad. https://www.gov.uk/tax-uk-income-live-abroad Official guidance. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
29. Non-residents disposing of UK residential property must report and pay on time. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/capital-gains-tax-for-non-residents-uk-residential-property Official guidance. The detail is outside the book’s scope. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
30. Unused pension funds enter the estate for a death on or after 6 April 2027, with excluded benefits at IHTA 1984 section 150A(6). Finance Act 2026 sections 66 to 71. Primary. A charity lump sum death benefit is not in the subsection, and IHTA 1984 section 23(5B) then applies the charity exemption to it. HMRC policy material is not relied on for the list. 7 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 7 September 2026
31. The £500,000 pension figures are chapter 8’s illustration for a different family. Cross-reference, chapter 8 entries 13 to 17. Illustration. 29 August 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 29 August 2026 · Illustration
32. For a death up to 5 April 2027 unused discretionary funds generally sit outside the estate. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/inheritance-tax-unused-pension-funds-and-death-benefits/inheritance-tax-unused-pension-funds-and-death-benefits Official guidance. The basis of the leave-the-pension-until-last sequencing. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
33. Pension values count towards the £2 million taper threshold. HMRC IHTM46023. Official guidance. Book’s own reading, a consequence of the funds being in the estate. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026 · Book’s own reading
34. Nominations guide the trustees’ discretion and operate outside the will. https://www.gov.uk/tax-on-pension-death-benefits Official guidance. For a death on or after 6 April 2027 a nomination does not generally keep an included fund out, so the chapter claims no tax difference. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
35. The cap applies only where the transferor alone is a long-term UK resident. IHTA 1984 sections 18(2) and 18(2A). Primary. An amount above the cap is not spouse exempt, but the nil-rate band still applies to it. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
36. The election lifts the cap, cannot be revoked, and ceases after 10 non-resident years. IHTA 1984 section 267ZD, as amended by Finance Act 2026 section 76. Primary. A death election must generally be made within 2 years. HMRC IHTM47034 predates the amendment. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
37. The £900,000 estate producing £100,000 of tax is chapter 8’s illustration. Cross-reference, chapter 8 entry 20. Illustration, checked against entries 24 and 35. 29 August 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 29 August 2026 · Illustration
38. Regular gifts out of income that leave the standard of living intact are exempt. IHTA 1984 section 21, and form IHT403. Primary. Fact-sensitive and tested after death, so records support a claim without guaranteeing one. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
39. The £3,000 annual and £250 small gift exemptions, and the 7 year rule. https://www.gov.uk/inheritance-tax/gifts Official guidance. With £2,500 wedding gifts from a grandparent. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
40. UK situated assets stay in scope whatever the owner’s status, and a SIPP is a UK asset. HMRC IHTM47020. Official guidance. Sale proceeds held outside the UK are non-UK assets. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
41. Singapore levies no estate duty for deaths on or after 15 February 2008. https://www.iras.gov.sg/taxes/other-taxes/estate-duty/estate-duty Official guidance. This supports the absence of a death duty and nothing else. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
42. France and Spain tax beneficiaries and apply forced heirship to local assets. Cross-reference, chapters 3 and 8. No figures are restated. 29 August 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 29 August 2026
43. Life cover and policies held in trust. Cross-reference, chapter 9. Arranging or restructuring cover is regulated advice, and no claim is made about any policy. 29 August 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 29 August 2026
44. Statements of general practice: how couples buy, and why nominations go unread. Unsourced: each is written in the chapter as an observation or reasoned inference. 29 August 2026.
Unsourced · Checked 29 August 2026

Chapter 12: the second marriage

1. STEP research of 15 May 2026, 533 practitioners: 41 and 68 per cent on blended family disputes. https://www.step.org/press-office/lack-estate-planning-and-communication-within-families-fuelling-significant-rise Commentary, survey data from a professional body. 3 September 2026.
Commentary · Checked 3 September 2026
2. From the same research: 16 per cent had discussed their will, 8 would dispute one. As entry 1. Commentary, survey data. 29 August 2026.
Commentary · Checked 29 August 2026
3. Mirror wills are separately revocable, and a family understanding is unenforceable. McLean v McLean [2023] EWHC 1863 (Ch), where the survivor’s changed will stood. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
4. A proved mutual wills agreement binds, but can be set aside on vitiating grounds. Naidoo v Barton [2023] EWHC 500 (Ch), set aside for undue influence. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
5. An immediate post-death interest makes the life tenant beneficially entitled. IHTA 1984 section 49, with HMRC IHTM16061. Primary. Outside the bereaved minor and disabled person categories. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
6. A life interest for a surviving spouse attracts the spouse exemption on the first death. IHTA 1984 section 18. Primary. Capped by section 18(2) where the transferor is a long-term UK resident and the recipient spouse or civil partner is not. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
7. The life tenant may occupy and take income but cannot spend capital. https://osborneslaw.com/blog/life-interest-trust/ Professional source. No primary source. Sale needs the trustees too. 29 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 29 August 2026 · No primary source
8. A flexible life interest trust adds express powers to advance capital. https://www.dmhstallard.com/services/for-you-and-your-family/private-client/news-insights/the-flexible-life-interest-trust-a-modern-estate-planning-solution/ Professional source. No primary source. 29 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 29 August 2026 · No primary source
9. A discretionary will trust is relevant property, with ten-year and exit charges. The assets bear the estate’s inheritance tax on death rather than a separate entry charge. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/trusts-and-inheritance-tax Official guidance. See chapter 6 for the detail. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
10. The eligible applicants, including a child of the family, and the two provision standards. Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 section 1, widened by the 2014 Act Schedule 2 paragraph 2. Primary. Section 1 still opens with domicile, not residence. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
11. The court may vary the trusts on which the estate is held, so a life interest can be varied. Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 section 2. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
12. Applications must normally be made within 6 months of representation. Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 section 4. Primary. An application may be made before representation is taken out. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
13. Where a party dies within 12 months of a divorce being final, the court may treat it as not made. Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 section 14. Primary. The power is discretionary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
14. Provision for a non-spouse applicant is limited to maintenance, objectively judged. Ilott v The Blue Cross [2017] UKSC 17, restoring a £50,000 award. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
15. An outdated non-provision declaration counted against a £1.57 million estate. McDaniel v Talbot [2026] EWHC 928 (Ch), 17 April 2026, awarding just under £125,000. Primary. The award figures and the discretionary trust point come from commentary reporting the judgment. No appeal found. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
16. Dean v Groves [2025] 3 WLUK 292 is the recent decision on the section 14 discretion at entry 13. Primary. Point not confirmed: no free official text of it was found, so entry 13 states section 14 from the Act alone. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026 · Point not confirmed
17. Reserved shares in France and Spain apply where the relevant law governs. French Civil Code articles 912 to 917, and the Spanish Civil Code. Primary. Carried from chapter 3 entries 4 and 5. 21 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 21 August 2026
18. A person may elect their national law to govern the whole succession, reserved shares included. EU Succession Regulation 650/2012 articles 20 and 22. Primary. Not conditioned on residence in a participating state. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
19. A valid article 22 election governs the succession as a whole. EU Succession Regulation 650/2012 articles 22 and 23. Primary. The French compensatory levy under Civil Code article 913(3) is a separate complication for French assets, carried at entry 32. Follows from entries 17 and 18. Chapter 3 entry 11 carries the sources. 21 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 21 August 2026
20. Death benefits pass under scheme rules, usually on trustee discretion. https://www.pinsentmasons.com/out-law/guides/death-benefits Professional source. No primary source. An out-of-date expression of wish remains the document the scheme holds. 29 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 29 August 2026 · No primary source
21. Unsecured periodical payments end on either party’s death. Secured ones survive. Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 section 28. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
22. An assurance relied on to the claimant’s detriment can bind the estate. Thorner v Major [2009] UKHL 18. https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200809/ldjudgmt/jd090325/thorn-1.htm Primary. Gillett v Holt [2001] Ch 210 is cited only through a commercial digest and carries no load. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
23. A nuptial agreement freely entered into should be given effect unless unfair. Radmacher v Granatino [2010] UKSC 42 at 75. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
24. A nuptial agreement cannot remove the right to apply under the 1975 Act. Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 sections 1 and 3. Primary. It forms part of the section 3 circumstances. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
25. The opening story is an anonymised account of a real situation. Unsourced: it carries no figures, dates or named country. 29 August 2026.
Unsourced · Checked 29 August 2026
26. A former spouse who has remarried is not an eligible applicant. Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 section 1(1)(b). Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
27. A will may be revoked and remade at any time while the maker has capacity. Wills Act 1837 section 20, with Banks v Goodfellow. Primary. Which is why matching wills do not bind the survivor. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
28. Marriage revokes a will unless the will shows an expectation of marrying that person. Wills Act 1837 section 18. Primary. No Wills Bill was before Parliament on 2 September 2026. Not settled for a marriage abroad. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
29. Survivorship can pass an asset outside the estate, and a joint tenancy can be severed. https://www.gov.uk/joint-property-ownership Official guidance. Whether it does turns on how the asset is held and, abroad, on local law. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
30. A pension sharing order debits the member and credits the former spouse. Welfare Reform and Pensions Act 1999 section 29. Primary. Death benefits calculated on those rights are reduced accordingly. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
31. The divorce court can secure periodical payments, and orders in practice require life cover. Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 sections 23 to 25A. Primary. Stated as what some orders require, not a general rule. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
32. The French position on article 913(3) is an open question for French assets. As entry 19. Cross-reference. Point not confirmed: there is no binding ruling, so the election’s effect is not guaranteed. 3 September 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 3 September 2026 · Point not confirmed
33. A nomination can be updated with the scheme. Changing the structure is regulated advice. Cross-reference, entry 20. 29 August 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 29 August 2026
34. The 1975 Act creates no safe harbour, and stated reasons carry no protective effect. Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 section 3. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
35. Routes to making a will. Unsourced: practical guidance, and the commercial interest is disclosed in the front matter. 29 August 2026.
Unsourced · Checked 29 August 2026
36. Choosing a drafter, described in neutral terms. Unsourced: practical guidance on what to look for. 29 August 2026.
Unsourced · Checked 29 August 2026

Chapter 13: the independent expat

1. 18,572,052 people, 36.8 per cent of those 16 and over, had never married in 2024. ONS, Population estimates by marital status and living arrangements, 2024. https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates/bulletins/populationestimatesbymaritalstatusandlivingarrangements/2024 Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
2. 8.4 million people lived alone in the UK in 2024. ONS, Families and households in the UK, 2024. https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/families/bulletins/familiesandhouseholds/2024 Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
3. The intestacy order where there is no spouse or issue, ending in bona vacantia. Administration of Estates Act 1925 section 46. Primary. Parents and grandparents take personally or not at all. England and Wales only. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
4. A spouse with issue takes the chattels, £322,000 and half the remainder. Administration of Estates Act 1925 section 46. Primary. Check current figure. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026 · Check current figure
5. Quick succession relief tapers from 100 to 20 per cent over 5 years. IHTA 1984 section 141. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
6. The Bona Vacantia Division handled 31,000 cases in 2025 to 2026, from 33,100. Crown’s Nominee accounts to 31 March 2026. Official guidance. A combined estates and companies figure, not an estates-only count. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
7. Claims are accepted within 12 years with interest, or 30 years at discretion. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/make-a-claim-to-a-deceased-persons-estate Official guidance. The unclaimed estates list is published. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
8. No nationality election is possible on total intestacy. EU Succession Regulation 650/2012 article 22. Primary. It must sit in a disposition on death, and a non-participating state applies its own rules regardless. 21 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 21 August 2026
9. Unmarried partners take nothing on intestacy, and common law marriage has no force. https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/family/death-and-wills/who-can-inherit-if-there-is-no-will-the-rules-of-intestacy/ Professional source. 27 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 27 August 2026
10. A cohabitant of 2 years may apply, on the maintenance standard, within 6 months. Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 sections 1(1)(ba), 1(1A) and 4. Primary. The court may allow a later application. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
11. The 1975 Act needs general-law domicile, not the residence test. Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 section 1(1), with HMRC RDRM22300. Primary. A domicile of choice needs residence plus an intention to stay indefinitely. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
12. Charity gifts are exempt without limit, and 10 per cent of the baseline gives 36 per cent. IHTA 1984 Schedule 1A paragraphs 2, 3 and 5, with HMRC IHTM45002. Primary. The baseline is calculated on components, not the whole estate. IHTM45001 carries neither point. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
13. From 15 March 2023 only charities under the control of a UK court qualify. HMRC IHTM11116. Official guidance. Non-UK charities do not count towards the 10 per cent test. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
14. Marriage can revoke a will unless made in contemplation of that marriage. Wills Act 1837 section 18. Primary. Not settled for a marriage abroad, and the chapter’s default is a planning stance. The recommendation to abolish the rule is not enacted. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
15. A gift to a beneficiary who dies first fails into residue, subject to the statutory rescue. Wills Act 1837 sections 33 and 33(2). Primary. Unless a contrary intention appears by the will. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
16. Without an LPA, authority needs a deputyship, and no one holds it by default. Cross-reference, chapter 5. 29 August 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 29 August 2026
17. The court appoints the deputy, and the OPG publishes a panel of professionals. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/panel-deputies-list-of-court-approved-professionals Official guidance. The panel is used where no one else can act. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
18. Pension and death-in-service benefits paid at discretion sit outside the will, and for deaths up to 5 April 2027 outside the estate. HMRC IHTM17052, updated 7 April 2026, with Finance Act 2026 sections 66 to 71. Primary. Where the member could remove the discretion, the benefit falls into the estate. For deaths on or after 6 April 2027 most unused funds and death benefits count either way, with death-in-service cover normally within the excluded benefits at IHTA 1984 section 150A(6). See chapter 8. 8 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 8 September 2026
19. A policy written in trust generally pays outside the estate and without probate. IHTA 1984 section 5, with HMRC IHTM20012. Primary. Neither result is automatic. Both depend on the trust’s form and terms. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
20. 8 per cent of UK adults held cryptoassets in 2025, down from 12 per cent. FCA cryptoasset consumer research 2025, wave 6, 16 December 2025. https://www.fca.org.uk/publication/research-notes/cryptoasset-consumer-research-2025-wave-6.pdf Official guidance. The FCA’s position is that cryptoassets are high risk and largely outside consumer protection. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
21. Without the private key a deceased person’s cryptocurrency is lost. https://www.farrer.co.uk/news-and-insights/your-digital-inheritance-understanding-cryptocurrency/ Professional source. No primary source. 29 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 29 August 2026 · No primary source
22. A will admitted to probate becomes part of the public record. https://www.gov.uk/search-will-probate Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
23. No rule disqualifies a non-resident executor, but cross-border estates are slower. Cross-reference, chapter 2 entry 14. No official source supports a universal figure for how much longer. 21 August 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 21 August 2026
24. Professional executors may charge under a charging clause or the statutory rules. Trustee Act 2000 sections 28 and 29, with Administration of Justice Act 1985 section 50 for removal. Primary. Section 29 needs each co-trustee’s written agreement. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
25. Executor costs of 1 to 5 per cent plus VAT, or £3,500 to £20,000 for full administration. https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/family-and-care/death-and-bereavement/when-to-use-a-probate-specialist Official guidance. Consumer guidance figures, not a legislated scale. The £500,000 worked figure was checked by calculation. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
26. Execution needs writing, signature and at least two witnesses, and a gift to a witness is void. Wills Act 1837 sections 9 and 15. Primary. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
27. Many jurisdictions apply their own rules to land within their borders. Cross-reference, chapter 3. There is no universal answer on one will against coordinated wills. 29 August 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 29 August 2026
28. The residence test counts tax years, so a move’s timing relative to 6 April matters. Cross-reference, chapter 1. 29 August 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 29 August 2026
29. Where a relationship is not recognised, whether written records should exist is the reader’s judgement. Unsourced: an editorial position carried from chapter 16. 29 August 2026.
Unsourced · Checked 29 August 2026

Chapter 14: the widowed and single parents

1. A parent with parental responsibility may appoint a guardian in a signed writing or will. Children Act 1989 section 5(3) to (6). Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
2. The appointment takes effect on death only where no parent with parental responsibility survives. Children Act 1989 section 5(7) to (9). Primary. The child arrangements order exception fails if the order also named a surviving parent. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
3. Revocation and disclaimer of a guardianship appointment. Children Act 1989 section 6. Primary. Divorce revokes an appointment of the former spouse unless a contrary intention appears. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
4. Who holds parental responsibility, and how it is acquired. Children Act 1989 sections 3(1), 4, 4ZA and 4A, with Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008 sections 42 and 43. Primary. Birth certificate registrations count from 1 December 2003. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
5. An adoption order gives the adopters parental responsibility and extinguishes everyone else’s. Adoption and Children Act 2002 section 46(1) and (2). Primary. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
6. Marriage can revoke a will, and a guardianship appointment falls with it. Wills Act 1837 sections 18 and 18B, with Children Act 1989 section 6(4). Primary. Not settled for a testator abroad. The book’s default is a planning stance. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
7. Jurisdiction follows the child’s habitual residence, and that law governs a testamentary appointment. 1996 Hague Convention articles 5, 16(2) and 23. https://www.hcch.net/en/instruments/conventions/full-text/?cid=70 Primary. Article 22 is a public policy rule, not a recognition rule. The UAE and Singapore are not parties. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
8. Spain: parents may designate a guardian, binding the court unless the child’s interest requires otherwise. Spanish Civil Code articles 201, 202, 213 and 222, as reformed by Law 8/2021. Primary. Catalonia and some regions apply their own civil law. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
9. The DIFC guardianship will appoints interim and permanent guardians, at AED 5,000 or 7,500. https://www.difccourts.ae/difc-courts-wills/services/guardianship-will Official guidance. Permanent guardians may live abroad. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
10. Abu Dhabi registers wills for non-citizens of any religion at AED 950 or 2,500. https://www.adjd.gov.ae/en/Pages/CivilFamilyCourt.aspx Official guidance. That a registered will can cover care of minors is commentary only, resting on one firm, and the chapter routes it to a UAE lawyer. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
11. UAE civil personal status lets non-Muslim residents invoke home-country law. UAE Federal Decree-Law 41 of 2022. Primary. Point not confirmed as to guardianship on a parent’s death: no primary source settles it, so the chapter makes no claim. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026 · Point not confirmed
12. Where no UAE guardianship document is registered, the court decides. https://jamesberrylaw.com/news-details/guardianship-of-children-key-considerations-for-parents-with-children-in-the-uae Professional source. No primary source, and safety-relevant, so a reader who needs an answer needs a UAE lawyer. 3 September 2026.
Professional source · Checked 3 September 2026 · No primary source
13. Singapore: a testamentary guardian acts jointly with the surviving parent. Guardianship of Infants Act 1934 sections 6, 7 and 10, as quoted in VET v VEU [2020] SGHCF 4. https://sso.agc.gov.sg/Act/GIA1934 Primary. On objection the court decides. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
14. Where no guardian was appointed, no adult automatically acquires parental responsibility. Children Act 1989 sections 3(5), 5(1), 20(1)(a) and 44. Primary. What happens in the first hours is fact dependent. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
15. Taking a child abroad needs permission from everyone with parental responsibility. https://www.gov.uk/permission-take-child-abroad, with Child Abduction Act 1984 section 1. Official guidance. Defences and exceptions exist, so the chapter directs readers to urgent advice. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
16. A minor cannot give a valid receipt, so a legacy passes to trustees. HMRC TSEM6075, and Administration of Estates Act 1925 section 42. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
17. A minor’s intestacy share is held on the statutory trusts until 18 or earlier marriage or civil partnership. Administration of Estates Act 1925 sections 46 and 47(1)(i). Primary. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
18. Income may be applied for maintenance and capital advanced up to the whole share. Trustee Act 1925 sections 31 and 32, as amended by the 2014 Act section 10. Primary. The full advancement power applies to trusts arising from 1 October 2014. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
19. Guardianship and trusteeship are distinct roles, and neither carries the other’s powers. Children Act 1989 section 5(6), and Trustee Act 1925 sections 31 and 32. Primary. Whether the same people should hold both is the chapter’s own weighing. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
20. £325,000 and £175,000, frozen to 5 April 2031 and transferable, giving up to £1 million. https://www.gov.uk/inheritance-tax Official guidance. Check current figure. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026 · Check current figure
21. The transferable band is claimed on form IHT402 within 2 years of the second death. IHTA 1984 section 8B. Primary. Or 3 months from the personal representatives first acting, extendable at HMRC’s discretion. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
22. The transferable residence band is claimed on form IHT436, the band itself on IHT435. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/claim-to-transfer-any-unused-residence-nil-rate-band-iht436 Official guidance. The deadline is the statutory permitted period at entry 21. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
23. A deed of variation is read back for inheritance tax on five conditions. IHTA 1984 section 142, with TCGA 1992 section 62(6). Primary. Personal representatives join in only where additional tax becomes payable. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
24. A variation harming a minor’s entitlement needs court approval. HMRC IHTM35045. Official guidance. A parent’s signature is not enough. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
25. Bereavement Support Payment eligibility, extended to cohabiting partners with children. https://www.gov.uk/bereavement-support-payment/eligibility, and SI 2023/134. Official guidance. In force 9 February 2023, retrospective to 30 August 2018. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
26. £3,500 plus 18 months of £350, or £2,500 plus £100, claimed within 3 months. https://www.gov.uk/bereavement-support-payment/what-youll-get Official guidance. Later claims lose payments. After 21 months a claimant usually gets nothing. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
27. A claim may be possible from the EEA, Switzerland, Gibraltar or an agreement country. https://www.gov.uk/claim-benefits-abroad/bereavement-benefits Official guidance. Rates and eligibility vary between countries. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
28. Spain: an orphan’s pension of 20 per cent of the base reguladora, generally to 21 or 25. https://revista.seg-social.es/-/la-pensi%C3%B3n-de-orfandad Official guidance. Entitlement must be confirmed with the INSS, and no cap on total survivors’ pensions is claimed. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
29. UAE pensions cover Emiratis and GCC nationals. An employer must release entitlements. https://u.ae/en/information-and-services/jobs/working-in-uae-government-sector/pensions-and-end-of-service-benefits, and Federal Decree-Law 33 of 2021 article 15. Official guidance. The pages describe scheme scope, not expatriate eligibility, so the chapter states no conclusion. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
30. Singapore CPF savings pass by nomination, with the Dependants’ Protection Scheme attached. https://www.moneysense.gov.sg/cpf-nominations-what-happens-to-your-cpf-when-you-pass-away/ Official guidance. Eligibility turns on status the pages do not settle, so the chapter states no conclusion. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
31. A policy in trust generally sits outside the estate and may be paid without a grant. https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/everyday-money/insurance/what-is-life-insurance Official guidance. Timing depends on the insurer, and the chapter gives no figure. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
32. No power of attorney confers parental responsibility. Mental Capacity Act 2005 section 9. Primary. An LPA covers the donor’s own welfare and affairs. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
33. There is no general rule that accounts freeze on loss of capacity. https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/family-and-care/talk-money/managing-someone-elses-money Official guidance. Practice varies between institutions and jurisdictions. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026

Chapter 15: the sandwich generation, planning around elderly parents in the UK

1. An LPA needs a donor with capacity, judged decision by decision. Mental Capacity Act 2005 sections 2 and 3. Primary. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
2. Who may and may not be the certificate provider. LP12 guide. Official guidance. Either 2 years’ personal knowledge or relevant professional skills, and not a relative, partner, employee or care home operator. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
3. Attorneys need not live in the UK or be British citizens. https://publicguardian.blog.gov.uk/2024/02/13/your-questions-answered-attorneys-witnesses-and-certificate-providers/ Official guidance. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
4. The Use a lasting power of attorney service gives organisations access codes. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/getting-started-with-use-an-lpa Official guidance. Only LPAs registered since 1 January 2016. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
5. Registration is £92 per document, in force since 17 November 2025, taking 8 to 10 weeks. Register a lasting power of attorney. Official guidance. An LPA cannot be used before registration. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
6. Attorneys must act within the instrument and in the donor’s best interests. Mental Capacity Act 2005 sections 1, 4, 9(4) and 58. Primary. The Public Guardian may visit, require records and investigate. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
7. Attorneys may make only occasional gifts of reasonable value. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/giving-gifts-a-guide-for-deputies-and-attorneys Official guidance. Larger gifts need court approval, and gifts to reduce a care contribution risk entry 17. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
8. Where no attorney exists, the Court of Protection appoints a deputy. Mental Capacity Act 2005 sections 16 and 19. Primary. Personal welfare deputies are appointed only in the most difficult cases. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
9. Fees: £432 application, £266 hearing, £100 assessment, £320 or £35 supervision, plus a bond. COP44 fees page. Official guidance. Fees are per person, so two parents means two applications. The gov.uk summary still shows £100 for a hearing and lags the fee in force. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
10. An uncontested deputyship application takes 4 to 6 months. https://www.phrsolicitors.co.uk/legal-services-for-individuals/wills-and-probate/resources/how-long-does-court-protection-take Professional source. No primary source: there is no official service standard. 29 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 29 August 2026 · No primary source
11. A person living abroad can be appointed deputy, subject to the court’s view. https://www.mayowynnebaxter.co.uk/latest-news/can-someone-living-abroad-apply-for-deputyship-what-you-need-to-know/ Professional source. No primary source: the recommendation of UK co-deputies is the firm’s, not a rule. 29 August 2026.
Professional source · Checked 29 August 2026 · No primary source
12. England care means test 2026 to 2027: £23,250 upper, £14,250 lower, £1 a week per £250. Department of Health and Social Care circular, 17 February 2026, and the Care and Support (Charging and Assessment of Resources) Regulations 2014 regulation 12. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/social-care-charging-for-local-authorities-2026-to-2027/social-care-charging-for-care-and-support-2026-to-2027-local-authority-circular Official guidance. England only. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
13. The home is disregarded for 12 weeks and where a qualifying relative occupies it. Care and Support (Charging and Assessment of Resources) Regulations 2014 Schedule 2 paragraphs 2 and 4. Primary. The mandatory disregard needs occupation from before the adult went into care. A later move-in is discretionary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
14. The £86,000 care cost cap was cancelled on 29 July 2024 and never came into force. Commons Library briefing CBP-9315. https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-9315/ Official guidance. No cap is in force at September 2026. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
15. A local authority must offer a deferred payment agreement where the conditions are met. Care and Support Statutory Guidance, chapter 9. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/care-act-statutory-guidance/care-and-support-statutory-guidance Official guidance. Interest is capped nationally and the amount by an equity limit. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
16. NHS continuing healthcare is free and turns on assessed needs, not diagnosis. https://www.nhs.uk/social-care-and-support/money-work-and-benefits/nhs-continuing-healthcare/ Official guidance. A checklist comes first, then a full multidisciplinary assessment. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
17. Deprivation of assets: notional capital, and recovery from a transferee. Care and Support (Charging and Assessment of Resources) Regulations 2014 regulation 22, and Care Act 2014 section 70. Primary. The significant motivation test and the absence of any limitation period come from Annex E of the statutory guidance. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
18. Care home top-ups are usually paid by a third party, not the resident. Care and Support Statutory Guidance, Annex A. Official guidance. Whether a resident’s own funds can be used depends on the circumstances. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
19. A welfare LPA works only once capacity is lost. A property LPA works from registration. Mental Capacity Act 2005 section 11(7) and (8). Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
20. The decision-maker must consult carers, those interested in the person’s welfare, and any attorney. Mental Capacity Act 2005 section 4(7). Primary. So far as practicable and appropriate. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
21. A valid and applicable advance decision binds, with extra formalities for life-sustaining refusals. Mental Capacity Act 2005 sections 24 to 26. Primary. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
22. A DNACPR is a clinical decision, and CPR cannot be demanded. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/do-not-attempt-cardiopulmonary-resuscitation-dnacpr-decisions/ Official guidance. The team is expected to discuss it with the patient or those close to them. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
23. A parent’s UK situated assets are within UK inheritance tax wherever the beneficiaries live. https://www.gov.uk/inheritance-tax Official guidance. The bands are set out in chapter 7 and not restated. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
24. Spain taxes the heirs on what they receive rather than the estate. Ley 29/1987. Primary. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
25. France taxes the heirs on what they receive rather than the estate. https://www.service-public.gouv.fr/particuliers/vosdroits/F80 Official guidance. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
26. The UAE imposes no inheritance, estate or gift taxes on individuals. https://taxsummaries.pwc.com/united-arab-emirates/individual/other-taxes Professional source, reviewed 12 March 2026. No primary source: no official UAE publication stating the position was found, so confirm locally. 3 September 2026.
Professional source · Checked 3 September 2026 · No primary source
27. An instrument of variation must meet five conditions and is then read back. IHTA 1984 section 142. Primary. A copy goes to HMRC within 6 months where the variation increases tax. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
28. Only a consenting adult beneficiary can redirect. A minor’s interest needs court approval. IHTA 1984 section 142, and the Variation of Trusts Act 1958. Primary. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
29. The rewriting effect of a variation is a UK tax rule only. IHTA 1984 section 142. Primary. Another country may treat the redirection as the beneficiary’s own gift. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
30. The opening scene and every example are constructed illustrations. Unsourced. Illustration, and the chapter says so. 29 August 2026.
Unsourced · Checked 29 August 2026 · Illustration
31. Attendance allowance is not means-tested, at £76.70 or £114.60 a week. https://www.gov.uk/attendance-allowance/what-youll-get Official guidance. The page names no tax year. England and Wales only. Check current figure. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026 · Check current figure
32. Attendance allowance stops after 28 days where the state pays for the care home place. https://www.gov.uk/going-to-care-home-benefits Official guidance. A self-funding resident keeps it. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
33. NHS-funded nursing care pays a contribution direct to the home, with no means test. https://www.nhs.uk/social-care-and-support/money-work-and-benefits/nhs-continuing-healthcare/ Official guidance. For residents who need nursing care but do not qualify for continuing healthcare. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
34. Care costs about £1,100 a week residential and £1,450 nursing in England. https://www.ageuk.org.uk/information-advice/care/paying-for-care/paying-for-a-care-home/ Professional source. No primary source, a consumer advice average, updated 9 April 2026. Fees can be significantly higher in some areas. 3 September 2026.
Professional source · Checked 3 September 2026 · No primary source
35. A local authority must assess anyone who appears to need care, whatever their means. Care Act 2014 section 9. Primary. The assessment is free and precedes the financial assessment. A request can come from outside the UK. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
36. A carer is entitled to an assessment of their own needs. Care Act 2014 section 10. Primary. Whether or not the person cared for is receiving support. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
37. A low income or certain benefits can reduce the registration fee or remove it. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/power-of-attorney-fees Official guidance. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
38. No figure is given for a solicitor preparing a pair of LPAs. https://www.ageuk.org.uk/information-advice/money-legal/legal-issues/power-of-attorney/ Professional source. No primary source, consumer advice, and costs vary a lot between firms. 3 September 2026.
Professional source · Checked 3 September 2026 · No primary source
39. A property and affairs deputy must normally take out a security bond, set by the court. https://www.gov.uk/become-deputy/fees, and Public Guardian practice note SD15. Official guidance. No premium figure is given, because no citable published rate could be found. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
40. Deputyship applications must be notified to those closest, who may object. https://www.gov.uk/become-deputy/apply-deputy Official guidance. A contested application attracts the £266 hearing fee. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
41. A third party mandate lets a bank allow a named person to operate an account. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/deputy-and-attorney-guidance-dealing-with-banks Official guidance. It is a banking arrangement, not a power of attorney, and ends with capacity. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
42. Selling the donor’s home falls within a registered property LPA. Mental Capacity Act 2005 sections 1(5), 4 and 9. Primary. While the donor has capacity the decision remains theirs. Jointly owned property or any gift element needs advice. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
43. A welfare attorney’s authority can extend to where the donor lives. Mental Capacity Act 2005 sections 4 and 11. Primary. Whether a permanent move abroad falls within it is decision-specific, and no general rule can be stated. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
44. Entitlement and exportability differ by service, so no single rule covers residence abroad. Care and Support Statutory Guidance chapter 19, with https://www.gov.uk/guidance/healthcare-for-uk-nationals-living-abroad Official guidance. Attendance allowance generally stops once an absence ceases to be temporary. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
45. Scotland runs a separate regime with its own powers. Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000. Primary. Applying the law of England and Wales to a parent in Scotland gives wrong answers. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
46. Northern Ireland runs its own arrangements, and an enduring power of attorney can still be made there. Enduring Powers of Attorney (Northern Ireland) Order 1987 article 6. Primary. Applying the law of England and Wales to a parent in Northern Ireland gives wrong answers. 7 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 7 September 2026
47. Guardianship of minor children. Cross-reference, chapter 14. No claim about it is made here, so no source is carried. 29 August 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 29 August 2026
48. A policy on trust is generally payable to trustees without a grant. IHTA 1984 section 5, with HMRC IHTM20000 onwards. Primary. Neither result is automatic. Both depend on the trust’s form, terms and date. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
49. Being next of kin confers no decision-making power in English law. Mental Capacity Act 2005 sections 4, 5, 9, 11 and 16. Primary. Authority comes only from a registered power or a court order. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
50. Long-term residence, not domicile, sets the inheritance tax scope from 6 April 2025. IHTA 1984 sections 6 and 6A. Primary. Domicile still matters for succession law and a 1975 Act claim. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
51. Testamentary capacity, undue influence and want of knowledge and approval. Banks v Goodfellow (1870) LR 5 QB 549, Leonard v Leonard [2024] EWHC 321 (Ch) at 138, and Gill v Woodall [2010] EWCA Civ 1430 at 14 and 21 to 23. Primary. That the 2024 case preferred Banks v Goodfellow over the statutory test, and that undue influence needs coercion, rest on professional summaries. Stated in outline only. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
52. Arrangements marketed as keeping a home out of the means test. https://www.sra.org.uk/consumers/register/ and https://register.fca.org.uk/ Official guidance, for the consumer checks only. No allegation is made about any provider. Entry 17 decides whether the claim holds. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
53. The Court of Protection’s capacity evidence is Form COP3, and the test is decision specific. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/make-a-report-on-someones-capacity-to-make-decisions-form-cop3, with Mental Capacity Act 2005 sections 2 and 3. Official guidance. Part A is the applicant’s and states the decision the court is asked to make, and Part B is the assessor’s, who can be the GP or another suitably qualified professional. The test is the one at entry 1. 9 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 9 September 2026

Chapter 16: LGBTQ+ families and the recognition gap

1. Marriage has the same effect for same-sex couples, and existing references are read accordingly. Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013 section 11 and Schedule 3 paragraph 1. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
2. The civil partner is named expressly in the intestacy rules. Administration of Estates Act 1925 section 46(1)(i). Primary. See chapter 4 for the shares. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
3. The civil partner is named expressly in the spouse exemption. IHTA 1984 section 18. Primary. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
4. The civil partner is named expressly in the transferable nil-rate band. IHTA 1984 section 8A(1)(a). Primary. It must be claimed and is not automatic. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
5. The civil partner is named expressly among those who may apply for provision. Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 section 1(1)(a). Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
6. The exemption is capped at the nil-rate band, cumulatively, where only the transferor is a long-term UK resident. IHTA 1984 sections 18(2) and 18(2A), with HMRC IHTM47030. Primary. The cap is not reset at death. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
7. The election lifting the cap is irrevocable and ceases after 10 non-resident years. IHTA 1984 sections 267ZC and 267ZD, with Finance Act 2026 section 76(2) and (4). Primary. Book’s own reading that an election lifts the cap at entry 6: no official source states it in those terms. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026 · Book’s own reading
8. The 1975 Act needs domicile in England and Wales, and a claim within 6 months. Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 sections 1 and 4. Primary. Domicile here is a different test from long-term residence. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
9. A cohabiting partner of 2 years may apply, or as a person being maintained. Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 sections 1(1)(ba), 1(1A) and 1(1)(e), with Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013 Schedule 3 paragraph 2. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
10. The Regulation’s default is the law of habitual residence at death. EU Succession Regulation 650/2012 article 21. Primary. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
11. A person may choose their national law, with article 36 picking the territorial unit. EU Succession Regulation 650/2012 articles 22 and 36. Primary. For a choice of law, article 36 points to the most closely connected unit. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
12. The applicable law governs the beneficiaries, their shares and the reserved shares. EU Succession Regulation 650/2012 article 23(2)(b) and (h). Primary. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
13. The Regulation excludes the status of natural persons and family relationships. EU Succession Regulation 650/2012 article 1(2)(a). Primary. Book’s own reading that the forum’s private international law answers the status question. No ruling settling it was located. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026 · Book’s own reading
14. A Member State cannot refuse residence to a third-country same-sex spouse of a Union citizen. Coman, Case C-673/16, 5 June 2018. https://curia.europa.eu/juris/liste.jsf?num=C-673/16 Primary. It requires no state to provide for same-sex marriage. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
15. Refusing to transcribe a same-sex marriage from another Member State obstructs free movement. Cupriak-Trojan, Case C-713/23, Grand Chamber, 25 November 2025. https://curia.europa.eu/juris/liste.jsf?num=C-713/23 Primary. Where transcription is the only recognition mechanism offered. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
16. Since Brexit a British citizen without a second EU nationality cannot found either claim. Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union articles 20 and 21. Primary. A British citizen married to an EU national occupies the third-country spouse position. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
17. An apostille certifies the signature, capacity and seal only, not the content. HCCH outline of the 1961 Apostille Convention. https://assets.hcch.net/docs/80d0e86f-7da8-46f8-8164-df046285bcdd.pdf Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
18. Formal validity is a separate question from entitlement. EU Succession Regulation 650/2012 article 27, and the 1961 Hague Convention. Primary. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
19. The FCDO publishes country travel advice and separate LGBT+ travel advice. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/lesbian-gay-bisexual-and-transgender-foreign-travel-advice Official guidance. Neither covers recognition of a marriage or civil partnership. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
20. A woman married to the birth mother at conception is treated as a parent. Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008 section 42, with Children Act 1989 section 2(1A). Primary. Section 42(2) applies whether the woman was in the UK or elsewhere. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
21. Unmarried, second female parenthood needs UK licensed treatment and the agreed conditions. Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008 sections 43 and 44, with Children Act 1989 section 4ZA. Primary. Parental responsibility must then be acquired separately. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
22. An adopted person is treated as born the child of the adopters. Adoption and Children Act 2002 sections 46, 67(1) and 144(4). Primary. A couple includes same-sex partners in an enduring family relationship. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
23. The parental order conditions: gametes, relationship, 6 months, home and domicile. Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008 sections 54 and 54A. Primary. Section 54(2) still uses the words husband and wife in its first limb, and it also covers civil partners and two people living as partners in an enduring family relationship. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
24. A parental order carries the adoption status and property interpretation rules across. Human Fertilisation and Embryology (Parental Orders) Regulations 2018, SI 2018/1412 Schedule 1. Primary. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
25. The 1996 Convention covers parental responsibility, attributed by the law of habitual residence. 1996 Hague Convention articles 3(a), 16, 22 and 23. Primary. Article 22 is a public policy rule, not a recognition rule. In force for the UK since 1 November 2012. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
26. The 1996 Convention does not apply to establishing or contesting legal parentage. 1996 Hague Convention article 4(a). Primary. Point not confirmed: that no binding international instrument governs recognition of legal parentage is a record that none was located. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026 · Point not confirmed
27. A full gender recognition certificate makes the acquired gender the person’s gender. Gender Recognition Act 2004 sections 9(1), 9(2) and 12. Primary. It does not affect earlier events or status as a child’s father or mother. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
28. Property under an instrument made before 4 April 2005 is unaffected. Later ones give a right to apply. Gender Recognition Act 2004 sections 15 and 18, with SI 2005/54. Primary. The High Court may order a lump sum, transfer or settlement. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
29. A protected marriage continues despite a change of gender, including a foreign marriage. Gender Recognition Act 2004 section 11A. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
30. None of the formal requirements for a will concerns the name the testator used. Wills Act 1837 section 9. Primary. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
31. The probate form asks whether the deceased was known by another name. Form PA1P. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/form-pa1p-apply-for-probate-the-deceased-had-a-will Official guidance. An alias can appear on the grant. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
32. Change of name by deed poll is the route gov.uk sets out. https://www.gov.uk/change-name-deed-poll Official guidance. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
33. The UK keeps its own list of countries whose gender recognition it accepts. Gender Recognition (Approved Countries and Territories and Saving Provision) Order 2024, SI 2024/401. Primary. Point not confirmed in the other direction: no official source states that a UK certificate is recognised abroad. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026 · Point not confirmed
34. Next of kin has no legal definition and confers no rights over the body or estate. FCDO bereavement guidance, with Mental Health Act 1983 section 26 for the separate nearest relative concept. Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
35. A property LPA works from registration and a welfare one only on incapacity. Registration is £92. Register a lasting power of attorney. Official guidance. Check current figure. See chapter 5. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026 · Check current figure
36. A body is not property. The personal representative has possession and the duty to arrange disposal. Re JS (Disposal of Body) [2016] EWHC 2859 (Fam) at 47 and 50, with Non-Contentious Probate Rules 1987 rule 22. Primary. Rule 22 now places the spouse or civil partner first. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
37. The Human Tissue Act sets its own ranking of qualifying relationships for consent. Human Tissue Act 2004 section 27(4). Primary. It is not a general funeral hierarchy. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
38. Marriage can revoke a will unless made in contemplation of that marriage. Wills Act 1837 section 18. Primary. Not settled for a marriage abroad, and the chapter’s default is a planning position. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
39. For a death up to 5 April 2027, a discretionary lump sum is not in the estate merely because trustees follow an expression of wish. HMRC IHTM17052, updated 7 April 2026. Official guidance. A binding nomination may give a general power under IHTA 1984 section 5(2). The point is the general power route only. For a death on or after 6 April 2027, entry 42 carries the position. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
40. The NHS scheme can pay a partner pension only for contributions on or after 1 April 2008. https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/member-hub/nominations Professional source. One scheme only. An unnominated partner may still be eligible. 3 September 2026.
Professional source · Checked 3 September 2026 · One scheme only
41. The NHS partner conditions: 2 years exclusive, free to marry, financially interdependent. https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/member-hub/nominations Professional source. One scheme only, with evidence produced after the death. The PN1 form notes publish examples of that evidence, among them a shared address, joint accounts, a joint loan or mortgage and shared household expenditure. https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/sites/default/files/2025-12/Nomination-PN1-20251204-%28V12%29%20-%20Digital%20%282%29.pdf 6 September 2026.
https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/sites/default/files/2025-12/Nomination-PN1-20251204-(V12)%20-%20Digital%20(2).pdf
Professional source · Checked 6 September 2026 · One scheme only
42. Unused pension funds come into the estate for a death on or after 6 April 2027, with excluded benefits. Finance Act 2026 sections 66 to 71, inserting IHTA 1984 section 150A, definition at 150A(6). Primary. A charity lump sum death benefit is not in the subsection, and IHTA 1984 section 23(5B) then applies the charity exemption to it. The exemptions in IHTA 1984 sections 18, 23, 24, 24A, 25 and 27 all reach amounts brought in, each given a pension limb by Finance Act 2026 section 69, and the one that matters here is the spouse and civil partner exemption, subject to the long-term residence cap at entry 6. No exemption of that kind is available for a payment to an unmarried partner. 7 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 7 September 2026
43. A policy the deceased owned is in the estate. One on trust pays the trustees. HMRC IHTM20012 and IHTM14432, with Finance Act 1986 section 102. Official guidance. That such arrangements are hard to change once made is commentary only. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
44. A will admitted to probate is a public record. https://www.gov.uk/search-will-probate Official guidance. Storage costs £24, at chapter 2 entry 17. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
45. An executor may renounce permanently on form PA15, retractable only with leave. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/form-pa15-give-up-probate-executor-rights, with Administration of Justice Act 1985 section 50. Official guidance. That intermeddling bars renunciation is not sourced here. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
46. A death abroad must be registered locally, and UK registration is optional. https://www.gov.uk/after-a-death/death-abroad Official guidance. Consular staff cannot give legal advice, investigate a death or pay costs. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
47. Governing law, intestacy, LPAs, the exemptions, nominations, probate and guardianship. Cross-reference, chapters 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 14. This chapter restates no figure from them. 30 August 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 30 August 2026
48. Statements written as observations: that recognition operates on a spectrum, and that documents carry risk. Unsourced: none is a statement of any named country’s law. 30 August 2026.
Unsourced · Checked 30 August 2026
49. An asset held with survivorship can pass outside the estate. https://www.gov.uk/joint-property-ownership Official guidance. Whether it does turns on how it is held and, abroad, on local law. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
50. Parenthood under the 2008 Act carries into succession, for legal purposes generally. Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008 section 48. Primary. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
51. A protected civil partnership continues despite a change of gender. Gender Recognition Act 2004 section 11B. Primary. Including an overseas relationship. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
52. Disclosing protected information acquired in an official capacity is an offence. Gender Recognition Act 2004 section 22. Primary. Subject to the exceptions the section sets out. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
53. The Withdrawal Agreement protects qualifying family residence rights. Agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom, Part Two, articles 9 and 10. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX%3A12020W/TXT Primary. Nothing wider is asserted: no provision gives a protected UK national the recognition right in Case C-713/23. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
54. Teachers’ Pensions can pay a partner pension for service from 1 January 2007. https://www.teacherspensions.co.uk/members/working-life/life-events/relationships.aspx Professional source. One scheme only, on 2 year conditions. The bereavement documents page publishes examples of financial interdependency, being joint bank accounts, a utility bill and a joint mortgage. https://www.teacherspensions.co.uk/public/relatives-and-advisors/beneficiary/recently-bereaved/providing-documents.aspx 6 September 2026.
Professional source · Checked 6 September 2026 · One scheme only
55. The LGPS pays an eligible cohabiting partner without a nomination, for membership after 31 March 2008. https://www.lgpsmember.org/help-and-support/glossary/ Professional source. One scheme only. Nothing on evidence is published nationally, and individual funds publish their own examples, such as the RCT Pension Fund cohabiting partners factsheet, which is one fund’s published example and not a national requirement. https://www.rctpensions.org.uk/EN/RelatedDocuments/FactSheets/CohabitingPartnersFactsheet1.pdf 6 September 2026.
Professional source · Checked 6 September 2026 · One scheme only
56. FCDO country bereavement guides sometimes address recognition of a same-sex next of kin. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/what-to-do-when-someone-dies-abroad Official guidance. Positions vary, so the chapter points readers to the current guide. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
57. The question left open: succession where religious or personal status law governs. Unsourced. Point not confirmed: no primary source map was obtained, so the chapter states no proposition and routes the subject to a locally qualified lawyer. 30 August 2026.
Unsourced · Checked 30 August 2026 · Point not confirmed

Chapter 17: other situations, and the rest of the UK

1. Unmarried partners take nothing under the intestacy rules. Administration of Estates Act 1925 section 46. Primary. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
2. 46 per cent of people, and 55 per cent of households with children, believed in common law marriage. British Social Attitudes, NatCen, January 2019. https://news-archive.exeter.ac.uk/2019/january/title_700858_en.html Commentary, survey research. That the status has had no force since 1753 rests on the Clandestine Marriages Act. 3 September 2026.
Commentary · Checked 3 September 2026
3. About 3.5 million cohabiting couple families, 17.7 per cent of 19.7 million. ONS, Families and households in the UK, 2024. Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
4. The 2007 Law Commission report was not implemented, and the 2026 consultation closed on 14 August 2026. https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/a-fairer-end-to-relationships Official guidance. No legislation and no government response. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
5. A cohabitant of 2 years may claim on the maintenance standard. Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 section 1(1). Primary. If the deceased died domiciled in England and Wales. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
6. Survivorship can pass an asset outside the estate, and a joint tenancy can be severed. https://www.gov.uk/joint-property-ownership Official guidance. Whether it does turns on how the asset is held and, abroad, local law. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
7. Marriage can revoke a will unless made in contemplation of that marriage. Wills Act 1837 section 18. Primary. England and Wales, with the Northern Ireland equivalent at article 12 of the Wills and Administration Proceedings (Northern Ireland) Order 1994 at entry 36, and no Scottish equivalent, at entry 32. Not settled for a person living abroad, and the chapter’s instruction is planning guidance. No bill followed the 2025 recommendation. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
8. The exemption is capped at a cumulative £325,000 where the transferor is a long-term UK resident and the recipient spouse or civil partner is not. IHTA 1984 sections 18(2) and 18(2A). Primary. The £900,000 example is chapter 8’s illustration. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
9. The election: within 2 years of a death, backdated up to 7 years, irrevocable. IHTA 1984 sections 267ZC and 267ZD, with Finance Act 2026 section 76. Primary. No earlier than 6 April 2025, ceasing after 10 non-resident years. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
10. The 10 of 20 test and the 3 to 10 year tail, with earlier years staying in the window. IHTA 1984 section 6A. Primary. The returning expat timeline is worked from the rule, not taken from a source. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
11. Situs, not residence, decides whether an asset is UK situated. IHTA 1984 section 6, with HMRC IHTM27071. Primary. 30 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 30 August 2026
12. Temporary non-residence: 4 of 7 prior years and 5 years or less brings gains back into charge. Helpsheet HS278. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/temporary-non-residents-and-capital-gains-tax-hs278-self-assessment-helpsheet/hs278-temporary-non-residents-and-capital-gains-tax-2025 Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
13. Wills executed abroad are formally valid under the alternative connecting laws. Wills Act 1963 section 1. Primary. 21 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 21 August 2026
14. The UAE does not levy income tax on individuals. https://u.ae/en/information-and-services/finance-and-investment/taxation Official guidance. One country, one tax, one date: it implies nothing about other taxes, other states or future changes. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
15. UAE civil personal status for non-Muslims, with the DIFC and Abu Dhabi routes. UAE Federal Decree-Law 41 of 2022. Primary. ADGM Courts runs a further wills channel. Saudi Arabia and Kuwait are stated as advice territory. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
16. One will or several: no universal answer. Cross-reference, chapter 3 entries 16 to 18. No standard pattern is prescribed. 29 August 2026.
Cross-reference · Checked 29 August 2026
17. A UAE employer must hand over a deceased worker’s entitlements within 10 days. Federal Decree-Law 33 of 2021 article 15. https://uaelegislation.gov.ae/en/legislations/1541 Primary. Scheme rules and free zone regimes can vary the outcome. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
18. The Gulf illustration: 18 resident years, departure early 2018, scope ending 6 April 2026. Calculated from IHTA 1984 section 6A. Primary. Illustration. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026 · Illustration
19. Same-sex marriage has been law in Northern Ireland since 13 January 2020. SI 2019/1514. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
20. Options preserve business relief. A buy-and-sell agreement binding at death denies it. IHTA 1984 section 113, with HMRC IHTM25292. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
21. From 6 April 2026 full relief is capped at £2.5 million per person, transferable to £5 million. Finance Act 2026 section 65 and Schedule 12. Primary. The cap was announced at £1 million in 2024 and raised before it took effect. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
22. Registered shares are situated where the register is kept, not where the company is incorporated. HMRC IHTM27121. Official guidance. Depositary receipts, nominee arrangements and partnership interests follow their own rules. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
23. Where there is no spouse or issue the estate runs down the ladder to bona vacantia. HMRC IHTM12125. Official guidance. On a second death the survivor’s estate passes to the survivor’s relatives. 27 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 27 August 2026
24. Charitable exemption, the 36 per cent rate, and the residence band’s descendant condition. HMRC IHTM45001, and residence nil-rate band guidance. Official guidance. 27 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 27 August 2026
25. Where the order of deaths is uncertain the younger is deemed to survive, but not for tax. Law of Property Act 1925 section 184, and IHTA 1984 section 4(2). Primary. That 28 or 30 day survivorship clauses are common drafting is commentary only. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
26. Divorce treats the former spouse as having died then, without revoking the will. Wills Act 1837 section 18A. Primary. Except so far as a contrary intention appears. That practitioners routinely make a new will on divorce is commentary only. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
27. Divorce does not update pension nominations, policies or joint tenancies. https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/family-and-care/divorce-and-separation/review-insurance-for-dependants-and-your-will-during-divorce-or-dissolution Official guidance. No single source states the negative, so the claim rests on a combination of pages. 29 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 29 August 2026
28. Cohabitants have no automatic entitlement, but many schemes provide expressly. https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/pensions-and-retirement/pension-problems/pensions-after-death, with the NHS scheme as an example. Official guidance. Each scheme’s own definition governs, usually at trustee discretion. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
29. Spousal periodical payments cease on remarriage but not automatically on cohabitation. Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 section 28. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
30. Scottish legal rights: one third or one half of the net movable estate, with an election. Scottish Parliament briefing SB 25-06. https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/research-prepared-for-parliament/research-briefings/2025/2/18/sb-2506 Official guidance. The fractions come from the common law. No provision of the Succession (Scotland) Act 1964 confers them. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
31. Scottish prior rights: £473,000 house, £29,000 furnishings, £50,000 or £89,000 cash. Succession (Scotland) Act 1964 sections 8, 9 and 9A, with SSI 2011/436. Primary. On intestacy only. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
32. Marriage does not revoke a will in Scots law, and divorce treats the spouse as predeceasing. Succession (Scotland) Act 2016 section 1. Primary. Point not confirmed for the marriage point: no official page states it, and it rests on the absence of any Scottish equivalent to section 18. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026 · Point not confirmed
33. A Scottish cohabitant may apply only on intestacy, within 6 months. Family Law (Scotland) Act 2006 section 29. Primary. 29 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 29 August 2026
34. Scottish confirmation goes through the sheriff court, with a small estates procedure at £36,000. https://www.scotcourts.gov.uk/taking-action/dealing-with-a-deceaseds-estate-in-scotland/guide-to-dealing-with-a-deceaseds-estate-in-scotland/ Official guidance. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
35. Northern Ireland statutory legacy: £250,000 with issue and £450,000 without, each with statutory interest from death until payment, and with half the residue above the fixed sum in the no issue case. SR 2007/452 article 2, amending the Administration of Estates Act (Northern Ireland) 1955 section 7, read with sections 9 and 10 for the other half. Primary. Set by order, so check the amount in force at the date of death. 7 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 7 September 2026
36. Northern Ireland: marriage revokes a will, subject to the article’s own exceptions, and an England and Wales grant needs no resealing. Wills and Administration Proceedings (Northern Ireland) Order 1994 article 12, and Administration of Estates Act 1971 section 2. Primary. Article 12(1) is expressly subject to article 12(2) to (5), which preserve a will or a gift where the will shows both the expectation of that marriage and the intention that it survive, protect a disposition under a power of appointment unless the appointed property would in default of appointment pass to the personal representatives, preserve the will’s other gifts alongside a gift saved under article 12(4) unless the will shows that one of them was meant to be revoked, and disapply the article to a marriage resulting from a conversion under the Northern Irish, English and Welsh or Scottish routes article 12(5) lists. Grants issue from the Probate Office in Belfast. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
37. The English statutory legacy of £322,000, for comparison. Administration of Estates Act 1925 (Fixed Net Sum) Order 2023. Primary. Check current figure. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026 · Check current figure
38. Who holds parental responsibility, and the routes to acquiring it. https://www.gov.uk/parental-rights-responsibilities/who-has-parental-responsibility, with Children Act 1989 sections 4 and 4ZA. Official guidance. Step-parents must apply. 30 August 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 30 August 2026
39. Where death leaves a company with no shareholders or directors, the personal representatives may appoint one. Model articles for private companies limited by shares, article 17(2), SI 2008/3229 Schedule 1. Primary. Older or bespoke articles may lack an equivalent. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
40. A pension sharing order is made under section 24B and takes effect when the divorce is final. Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 section 24B. Primary. Other after-death provisions are stated conditionally. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
41. An enduring power of attorney can still be made in Northern Ireland, and the attorney must apply to register it once there’s reason to believe the donor is or is becoming mentally incapable. Enduring Powers of Attorney (Northern Ireland) Order 1987 article 6, with article 2(2) defining the court as the High Court. Primary. The application goes through the Office of Care and Protection, and Part 5 of the Mental Capacity Act (Northern Ireland) 2016 is not in operation. 7 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 7 September 2026
42. Scotland runs its own incapacity regime, with a continuing power of attorney, a welfare power of attorney and registration with the Public Guardian. Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000 sections 15, 16 and 19. Primary. Applying the law of England and Wales to a person in Scotland gives wrong answers. 7 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 7 September 2026

Conclusion: from knowing to done

1. From 6 April 2025 inheritance tax scope turns on long-term UK residence, not domicile. IHTA 1984 sections 6 and 6A, inserted by Finance Act 2025 Schedule 13. Primary. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
2. The tail runs 3 to 10 consecutive non-resident years, and split years count as resident. HMRC IHTM47020, updated 7 April 2026. Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
3. UK situated assets stay within UK inheritance tax whatever the owner’s status. IHTA 1984 section 6. Primary. 21 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 21 August 2026
4. Movables follow the domicile at death, land the law of its situs. Dicey, Morris and Collins on the Conflict of Laws, 16th edition. Professional source. Chapter 3 carries the case law. 3 September 2026.
Professional source · Checked 3 September 2026
5. Formal validity can be established through any of several connecting factors. Wills Act 1963 section 1. Primary. 21 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 21 August 2026
6. A claim for financial provision needs death domiciled in England and Wales. Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 section 1(1). Primary. 21 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 21 August 2026
7. Marriage can revoke a will, subject to the contemplation exception. Wills Act 1837 section 18. Primary. England and Wales, with the Northern Ireland equivalent at article 12 of the Wills and Administration Proceedings (Northern Ireland) Order 1994 and no Scottish equivalent, at chapter 17. Not settled for a marriage abroad. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
8. Divorce treats the former spouse as having died then, without revoking the will. Wills Act 1837 section 18A. Primary. Except so far as a contrary intention appears. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
9. A later foreign will with a general revocation clause can leave the English estate intestate. Sangha v Sangha [2023] EWCA Civ 660. Primary. The Court of Appeal reversed the reading that confined the clause to Indian property. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
10. Where the Regulation applies, habitual residence governs unless nationality was chosen. EU Succession Regulation 650/2012 articles 21 and 22. Primary. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
11. On an England and Wales intestacy the spouse takes the chattels, £322,000 and half the residue. Administration of Estates Act 1925 section 46, with the Fixed Net Sum Order 2023. Primary. Issue take the remainder at 18 or on earlier marriage or civil partnership, with a predeceased child’s issue substituting. Scotland and Northern Ireland differ, at chapter 17. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
12. On an England and Wales intestacy a spouse must survive by 28 days, and an unmarried partner takes nothing. Administration of Estates Act 1925 section 46(2A). Primary. A Scottish cohabitant has the 6-month court route at chapter 17. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
13. Registering a lasting power of attorney in England and Wales costs £92 per document. Register a lasting power of attorney. Official guidance. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
14. A deputyship application in England and Wales costs £432, with a bond and annual supervision. https://www.gov.uk/become-deputy/fees, with Mental Capacity Act 2005 sections 16 and 19. Official guidance. Only after capacity is lost. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
15. Registration in England and Wales takes 8 to 10 weeks where there are no mistakes. Register a lasting power of attorney. Official guidance. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
16. £325,000 since 2009 and £175,000 since 2020, both frozen to 5 April 2031. HMRC inheritance tax thresholds, with Finance Act 2026 section 72. Official guidance. Check current figure. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026 · Check current figure
17. 4.72 per cent of UK deaths produced a charge, the highest share since 2006 to 2007. HMRC inheritance tax liabilities statistics, 30 July 2026. Official guidance. The 4.72 per cent figure is for 2023 to 2024. The 5.96 per cent comparison is for 2006 to 2007. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
18. A couple can pass up to £1 million where a qualifying residence goes to descendants. IHTA 1984 section 8A. Primary. Provided the executors claim the transferable bands. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
19. Most unused pension funds fall within the estate for a death on or after 6 April 2027. Finance Act 2026 sections 66 to 71, inserting IHTA 1984 section 150A, definition at 150A(6). Primary. A charity lump sum death benefit is not in the subsection, and IHTA 1984 section 23(5B) then applies the charity exemption to it. 7 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 7 September 2026
20. A nomination can be updated with the scheme. Structure advice is regulated. HMRC IHTM17052. Official guidance. Both points are practice signposts rather than sourced claims about any scheme. 3 September 2026.
Official guidance · Checked 3 September 2026
21. Lifetime gifts fall out of account after 7 years, with taper relief from 3. IHTA 1984 section 7. Primary. 27 August 2026.
Primary · Checked 27 August 2026
22. The spouse exemption is capped where the transferor is a long-term UK resident and the recipient spouse or civil partner is not, unless an election is made. IHTA 1984 sections 18, 267ZC and 267ZD, with Finance Act 2026 section 76. Primary. The election ceases after 10 non-resident years, lifetime or death alike. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
23. Forced heirship reserves a share for children in France and Spain. French Civil Code article 913, and the Spanish Civil Code. Primary. English drafting alone does not displace it. See chapter 3, entries 4 and 5. 3 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 3 September 2026
24. Incapacity documents differ across the three UK systems. England and Wales use lasting powers of attorney, Scotland a continuing power and a welfare power, and Northern Ireland an enduring power covering property and financial affairs only. Mental Capacity Act 2005, Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000 sections 15 and 16, and Enduring Powers of Attorney (Northern Ireland) Order 1987 articles 4 and 5. Primary. Part 5 of the Mental Capacity Act (Northern Ireland) 2016 is not in operation. See chapter 17, entries 41 and 42. Registration in Scotland is under section 19 of the Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000, and no attorney has authority until it is done. The Northern Irish attorney’s registration duty is at article 6 of the 1987 Order and arises only on reason to believe the donor is or is becoming mentally incapable. 7 September 2026.
Primary · Checked 7 September 2026