Ensuring Your Estate Is Protected from the Tax Man
Estate planning is about much more than passing on wealth — it’s about protecting everything you’ve built, reducing unnecessary tax, and ensuring your assets reach the people you care about most.
Without proper planning, up to 40% of your estate could be lost to Inheritance Tax (IHT). With the right strategy, you can legally and efficiently minimise tax exposure while preserving your legacy.
At Accounts House, we help individuals and families create clear, effective, and long-term estate plans that balance control, flexibility, and tax efficiency.
Understanding Inheritance Tax (IHT)
Inheritance Tax is charged at 40% on estates over the available allowances. We help you understand and make use of:
• Nil-rate band (£325,000 per person)
• Residence nil-rate band (£175,000)
• Spousal exemptions
• Business Relief & Agricultural Relief
• Gifting rules (PETs & CLTs)
• Charitable exemptions
Our planning ensures you maximise your allowances and avoid unnecessary tax charges.
Gifting Strategies to Reduce IHT
We guide you on the most effective ways to pass on wealth during your lifetime:
• Annual gifting exemption
• Small gift exemption
• Gifts for weddings and civil partnerships
• Regular gifts from surplus income
• Potentially exempt transfers (PETs)
• Chargeable lifetime transfers (CLTs)
We help you structure gifts in a tax-efficient and HMRC-compliant way.
Trusts & Family Investment Companies (FICs)
Trusts and FICs can protect assets, control wealth, and significantly reduce future IHT liabilities. We advise on:
• Discretionary trusts
• Bare trusts
• Interest-in-possession trusts
• Family Investment Companies (FICs)
• Private trust company structures
These vehicles allow you to protect wealth for children, manage control, and ensure assets are used responsibly.
Property & Estate Structuring
We help you plan around property — often the largest part of an estate:
• Main residence relief
• Second home & buy-to-let IHT planning
• Property partnerships & FIC ownership
• Gifting property safely and tax-efficiently
• CGT planning on lifetime transfers
• Using trusts or companies to hold property
Proper structuring can reduce both IHT and CGT exposure.
Wills, Records & Succession Planning
Effective estate planning includes ensuring your affairs are clear and updated:
• Will reviews
• Guardianship planning
• Letter of wishes preparation
• Pension beneficiary nominations
• Digital asset planning
• Succession planning for business owners
We help you build a complete plan that protects your family at every step.
Protection & Later-Life Planning
Estate planning works hand-in-hand with future care and protection:
• Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA)
• Long-term care planning
• Life insurance held in trust
• Planning for vulnerable dependants
• Asset protection strategies
This ensures you and your family remain financially secure even in unexpected circumstances.
How Accounts House Helps You Protect Your Estate
IHT forecasting & reduction strategies
• Gifting & trust planning
• FIC setup & long-term structuring
• Pension & retirement integration
• Wills, succession & family planning support
• CGT planning on lifetime asset transfers
• Estate protection for vulnerable beneficiaries
• Support during HMRC enquiries
Protect your wealth. Preserve your legacy. With Accounts House, you can safeguard your estate, reduce tax, and provide long-term security for the people who matter most.