IHTM05021 - Is an account required?: excepted estates (all UK locations)

With over a ¼ million grants ( IHTM05001) each year in England and Wales alone it would be undesirable if all personal representatives ( IHTM05012) (prs) automatically had to complete an account, particularly since the majority of accounts would need little if any examination.

Acting under a power conferred by IHTA84/S256 the Board has made regulations, which since 1981, have enabled a large number of cases to be excepted estates ( IHTM06001). In these cases the liable persons are excepted from delivering an account of the estate provided certain conditions are met ( IHTM06012) and ( IHTM06013). Instead, the prs file a brief return of information about the estate as a whole.

The current regulations ( IHTM06012) and ( IHTM06013) apply to deaths on or after 1 September 2006. They came into force under the IHT (Delivery of Accounts) (Excepted Estates) Regulations 2004 (S. 2004/2543) as amended. There are some differences in procedure for applying for an excepted estate grant between Scotland ( IHTM05027) and the rest of the UK ( IHTM05026).