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SIPP How can I avoid IHT ?

Hi

Is there anyway myself and my brother can avoid paying 55% on my dads SIPP when inherit his estate? Sorry to sound a bit cold but I can't stand to think my dads money that has already paid tax on going back to the tax man.

Thanks

Neil
«1

Comments

  • kidmugsy
    kidmugsy Posts: 12,709 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    "my dads money that has already paid tax on": if it's in a SIPP he didn't pay tax on it. That's the whole point.
    Free the dunston one next time too.
  • Linton
    Linton Posts: 18,536 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Hung up my suit!
    The 55% isn't IHT, the pension does not form part of his estate. The 55% level is about what it needs to be to prevent excessive pension savings being used as a tax avoidance scheme.
  • Is there any way to avoid the 55% though? Could my dad change the dependents name or add myself and my brother to the SIPP so it will continue after my dads passing(hopefully not for a good few years)


    Thanks
  • gadgetmind
    gadgetmind Posts: 11,130 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    Linton wrote: »
    excessive pension savings

    Who says what's excessive and what isn't? We already have annual and lifetime caps.
    I am not a financial adviser and neither do I play one on television. I might occasionally give bad advice but at least it's free.

    Like all religions, the Faith of the Invisible Pink Unicorns is based upon both logic and faith. We have faith that they are pink; we logically know that they are invisible because we can't see them.
  • gadgetmind
    gadgetmind Posts: 11,130 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    Is there any way to avoid the 55% though?

    Has he already started to drawdown the SIPP?

    Are you and/or brother over the age of 23?

    This might help.
    http://www.hl.co.uk/pensions/income-drawdown/what-happens-when-i-die
    I am not a financial adviser and neither do I play one on television. I might occasionally give bad advice but at least it's free.

    Like all religions, the Faith of the Invisible Pink Unicorns is based upon both logic and faith. We have faith that they are pink; we logically know that they are invisible because we can't see them.
  • Linton
    Linton Posts: 18,536 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Hung up my suit!
    gadgetmind wrote: »
    Who says what's excessive and what isn't? We already have annual and lifetime caps.

    By excessive I mean money deliberately held in excess of that required to provide for the pension holder and dependents.
  • gadgetmind
    gadgetmind Posts: 11,130 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    Linton wrote: »
    By excessive I mean money deliberately held in excess of that required to provide for the pension holder and dependents.

    Even if someone uses the full lifetime allowance, at a 4% drawdown, that's only £60k pa before tax. OK, so that's a fair bit, but if someone has been living on more than that, and has high property etc. bills, then why shouldn't they be able to save enough to provide for themselves in retirement?

    Anyway, it looks like I'm hijacking the thread, which wasn't my intention.
    I am not a financial adviser and neither do I play one on television. I might occasionally give bad advice but at least it's free.

    Like all religions, the Faith of the Invisible Pink Unicorns is based upon both logic and faith. We have faith that they are pink; we logically know that they are invisible because we can't see them.
  • Linton
    Linton Posts: 18,536 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Hung up my suit!
    edited 27 April 2012 at 11:27AM
    Is there any way to avoid the 55% though? Could my dad change the dependents name or add myself and my brother to the SIPP so it will continue after my dads passing(hopefully not for a good few years)


    Thanks


    Only if you were a genuine dependent.

    I guess the way to minimise tax is for your father to convert it to an annuity and then pay you completely out of income, and hope he lives long enough to make the annuity worthwhile. In this way he would pay income tax, but the payment could not be considered part of his estate for IHT. Its a guess though - I am not a tax expert.

    PS Another guess - that may work with drawdown as well. But either way he would be eating into his currently available income which may well not be what he wants.
  • gadgetmind wrote: »
    Has he already started to drawdown the SIPP?

    Are you and/or brother over the age of 23?


    He has started to draw down and both myself and my brother are over 23,what effect does this have?
  • gadgetmind
    gadgetmind Posts: 11,130 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    He has started to draw down and both myself and my brother are over 23,what effect does this have?

    My understanding, which you obviously need to verify, is that you will find it hard to argue that either of you are dependants so you won't be able to simply start taking an income from the SIPP.

    If the pension is fully crystalised (you can segment it and keep taking PCLS from segments as they are moved to drawdown/annuity) then I don't know of any way to avoid that tax charge.
    I am not a financial adviser and neither do I play one on television. I might occasionally give bad advice but at least it's free.

    Like all religions, the Faith of the Invisible Pink Unicorns is based upon both logic and faith. We have faith that they are pink; we logically know that they are invisible because we can't see them.
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