In this section:
This guide answers common questions about exemptions on the Inheritance Tax Return of Estate Information forms IHT205 and C5.
On this page:
You only need to complete this question if the net estate for Inheritance Tax (box G) exceeds the Inheritance Tax threshold (£325,000 in 2011-12 tax year).
In this case, the following exemptions can reduce the value of the estate for Inheritance Tax:
Follow the steps below to complete question 17:
Step one: enter the details of any exemptions in box 17.1.
Step two: add up the total value of these exemptions
Step three: put the total amount of the exemptions in box H
Step four: put the final value for Inheritance Tax in box J (box G minus box H). If the whole estate has been left to a surviving spouse or a charity then the figure given in box J will be zero and there will be no Inheritance Tax to pay.
If the deceased left money to charities, write the names of the charities and the amounts left to them in box 17.1. You also need to give the country of establishment of the charity and the HMRC charities reference, if you know it. If the deceased left money to lots of different charities and there isn't enough room in the box, you need only list organisations receiving more than £25,000. You still need to write the total amount going to charities but you can write it as one sum of money. For example: 15 charities received £6,000 in total. You can also use the space in box 16 to give more information.
Tax efficient giving to charity - the basics
Find out more about gifts that are exempt from Inheritance Tax
Download the IHT206 guidance notes for form IHT205 (PDF 535K)
