There are as many reasons to get married as there are not to and money, of course, should never be one. However, our tax system does in many ways favour wedlock over shack-up, none potentially more significant than the attractively-named Inheritance Tax Inter-Spousal Allowance. If you happen, like the late Ken Dodd to be worth £7.5m and pass your fortune to your fiancé, the tax bill would be nearly £3m. If your fiancé becomes your wife, the whole lot passes on tax-free. That could help you overcome many a scruple.
“HMRC scraps plans to tax pensions after death”
A couple of other Statement Highlights (in my world, anyway). A welcome ‘nothing happened’ on the treatment of pensions on death. They were never going to be liable to IHT (too complicated with trusts and trust law) but there was talk of making them income-taxable on the recipients at whatever age you die.
