What Inheritance Tax Forms Do I Need To Apply For Probate?
Posted on 30th July 2020
If you are dealing with the Estate of somebody who has died and you need to apply for Probate, you will be required to submit at least one Inheritance Tax form to the Probate Registry. Initially, this may seem like a simple task: surely you just submit one form, listing the deceased’s assets and liabilities and this is all over, right? This is not the case. If the Estate is taxable – you can find out more about Inheritance Tax and when this is payable from our Probate Solicitors in Preston, here – you will need to complete at least one out of more than thirty forms. Our Wills, Trusts, Tax and Probate Solicitors explain what forms there are, and which ones you need to be completing.
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The Inheritance Tax Forms
Estates under £325,000
If the Estate is under £325,000 (the nil rate band) and the assets / liabilities are straight forward, you will most likely only need to complete the IHT205 Inheritance Tax form, which you can find an example of, here.
In this form, you will be asked to complete details of the deceased, such as their marital status and occupation, along with information about their assets and liabilities.
This form should be completed as the deceased’s assets and liabilities were when they passed away, not what they are now. So, if the deceased had Premium Bonds with NS&I when they died, and they won a prize after this date, the prize would not necessarily need to be included on the forms.
For advice and guidance about completing the IHT205 form, contact our expert Probate Solicitors in Preston or Lancaster online, here.
Estates over £325,000
If a person’s Estate is worth over £325,000, this does not necessarily mean that there will be tax to pay. However, there is likely to be a more comprehensive set of Probate Forms that you will be required to complete. Some of the common forms that you may need to complete will include:
1. IHT400 – Inheritance Tax Account
2. IHT405 – Houses, land, buildings and interests in land
3. IHT406 – Bank and Building Society Accounts and National Savings and Investments
4. IHT407 – Household and personal goods
5. IHT421 – Probate Summary
As you can see from the list, our Probate Solicitors have only listed the most common forms that you may need to complete. If the deceased had foreign assets, businesses, agricultural property or land or interest in a trust, there are other forms that will need to be completed.
For now, our expert Probate Solicitors in Preston will discuss the above forms, what information will be required on them, and what they may be used for.
#1 IHT400 – Inheritance Tax Account
This form is 16 pages and, like the IHT205, will ask for information about the deceased, however, more detailed information will be required, including the number of family members who survived the deceased (spouse/civil partner, brothers or sisters, parents, children and grandchildren), what the deceased’s Will states should happen to any property and whether the deceased had a Lasting Power of Attorney.
This form is used as a summary of all of the Probate figures, as well as providing a check list of the other Inheritance Tax forms that you will need to complete.
This form will need to be signed by the Personal Representatives of the Estate, who are applying for Probate.
#2 IHT405 – Houses, land, buildings and interests in land
This form is 4 pages, and needs to be completed with information about what property the deceased owned at their death and how the Estate intends to dispose of it. For example, is it being sold or transferred to one of the beneficiaries?
#3 IHT406 - Bank and Building Society Accounts and National Savings and Investments
This form is 2 pages, and requires information about any bank accounts that the deceased had, plus any National Savings and Investments. The National Savings are broken down into whether it was simply an account, Premium Bonds or whether it was another type of product. HM Revenue and Customs ask for the Bond/Account/Certificate Numbers, too.
#4 IHT407 - Household and personal goods
If the deceased had any jewellery worth more than £1,500, antiques, works of art or collections, or vehicles, boats or aircrafts, you will need to complete the details on this form. If necessary, you may need to obtain valuations for valuable items and send a copy to HM Revenue and Customs with your application.
For vehicles, boats or aircrafts, you will need to complete the following details:
- The manufacturer
- The model
- The year of manufacture or first registration
- The registration numbers
- The condition at the date of death
- Mileage (for vehicles)
- If it has been sold, the sale price, or the open market value
You will also need to provide a value for any other personal goods that the deceased owned. For example, if the deceased did not have any of the above specific items, what was there entire collection of personal possessions worth? Generally, this amount could range from £500 (for example, if they had sold their house and were living in care when they died) to £5,000 plus.
#5 IHT421 – Probate Summary
This form is a summary of all of the Inheritance Tax Forms, and HM Revenue and Customs will either send this form back to the person applying, or forward this directly onto the Probate Registry, to go with the application for Probate.
On this form, there will be basic details of the deceased, along with a summary of the value of the Estate, liabilities, and what tax is payable. Even if there is none payable, you will most likely have to complete this form (unless an equivalent form is being completed).
Get Legal Advice
As you will be able to see from the list above, the Probate Inheritance Tax Forms are complex and require the information to be completed as accurately as possible. Therefore, it is always advisable to seek legal advice before completing these yourself. Quite often, obtaining the assistance of Probate Solicitors to help make an application for Probate, or simply to complete the Inheritance Tax Forms on your behalf, will save you the stress and time of attempting to complete these yourself.
To discuss an Estate with our expert Wills, Trusts, Tax and Probate Solicitors, contact them online, here, or email wills@mglegal.co.uk for a call back within one working hour.
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