Inheritance tax when second parent dies UK (21 figures)
The UK IHT Rate Table carries 21 published figures read from 10 sources' own pages; the 18 published figures given by rule run from 250 to 5,000,000 GBP, read 17 October 2026.
- 16250 to 833,542
- 833,542 to 1,666,833
- 41,666,833 to 2,500,125
- 2,500,125 to 3,333,417
- 3,333,417 to 4,166,708
- 14,166,708 to 5,000,000
Bands
| Bucket | Value |
|---|---|
| 250 to 833,542 | 16 figures |
| 833,542 to 1,666,833 | 0 figures |
| 1,666,833 to 2,500,125 | 4 figures |
| 2,500,125 to 3,333,417 | 0 figures |
| 3,333,417 to 4,166,708 | 0 figures |
| 4,166,708 to 5,000,000 | 1 figure |
11 of the 23 named sources read in full publish a figure; 12 publish none, read 17 October 2026.
By rule and effective date
| Breakdown | Median | Range | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| rulestandard rate | 40% | 40 to 40% | 3 |
| ruleagricultural and business property relief rate | 100% | 100 to 100% | 3 |
| ruleannual gift exemption | 3,000GBP | 3,000 to 3,000GBP | 1 |
| rulesmall gift allowance | 250GBP | 250 to 250GBP | 1 |
| rulenil-rate band | 325,000GBP | 325,000 to 325,000GBP | 3 |
| rulethreshold where a home passes to direct descendants | 500,000GBP | 500,000 to 500,000GBP | 3 |
| rulereduced rate where 10% of the net estate goes to charity | 36% | 36 to 36% | 1 |
| ruleresidence nil-rate band | 175,000GBP | 175,000 to 175,000GBP | 4 |
| ruletransferable nil-rate band cap | 100% | 100 to 100% | 1 |
| rulerate below the nil-rate band | 0% | 0 to 0% | 1 |
| ruletaper threshold | 2,000,000GBP | 2,000,000 to 2,000,000GBP | 1 |
| ruleagricultural and business property relief allowance | 2,500,000GBP | 2,500,000 to 2,500,000GBP | 3 |
| ruletransferable agricultural and business property relief allowance | 5,000,000GBP | 5,000,000 to 5,000,000GBP | 1 |
| ruleannual exemption maximum with carry-forward | 6,000GBP | 6,000 to 6,000GBP | 1 |
| rulegift taper 3 to 4 years | 32% | 32 to 32% | 1 |
| rulegift taper 4 to 5 years | 24% | 24 to 24% | 1 |
| rulegift taper 5 to 6 years | 16% | 16 to 16% | 1 |
| rulegift taper 6 to 7 years | 8% | 8 to 8% | 1 |
| rulegift taper 7 years or more | 0% | 0 to 0% | 1 |
| effective date2017-18 | 100,000GBP | 100,000 to 100,000GBP | 1 |
| effective date2018-19 | 125,000GBP | 125,000 to 125,000GBP | 1 |
| effective date2019-20 | 150,000GBP | 150,000 to 150,000GBP | 1 |
Every figure, with its source
One row per published figure: the figure as the source's own page publishes it, the page, and the day it was read. A figure that is not on a page we read is not on this one.
The sentence each figure was read from (35)
- HM Treasury: inheritance tax reliefs threshold to rise to £2.5m, read 2026-10-17:
This allows spouses or civil partners to pass on up to £5m in qualifying agricultural or business assets between them before paying inheritance tax, on top of existing allowances.
- IHTM25131: outline of business relief, read 2026-10-17:
the transfer was made on or after 30 October 2024, the value of qualifying property subject (if appropriate) to 100% relief will be limited to £2.5m (or up to £5m if 100% relief allowance can be transferred from a pre-deceased spouse or civil partner).
- HM Treasury: inheritance tax reliefs threshold to rise to £2.5m, read 2026-10-17:
The government has today (Tuesday 23 December) announced that the level of the Agricultural and Business Property Reliefs threshold will be increased from £1m to £2.5m when it is introduced in April 2026.
- House of Commons Library CBP-10181: changes to agricultural and business property reliefs, read 2026-10-17:
From April 2026, 100% relief is only applicable to the first £2.5 million of combined agricultural and business property, following changes announced by the Labour government in October 2024.
- IHTA 1984 s.8D: the residence nil-rate amount, read 2026-10-17:
the “taper threshold” is £2,000,000 for the tax year 2017-18 and subsequent tax years, but this is subject to subsections (6) and (7),
- GOV.UK: How Inheritance Tax works - thresholds, rules and allowances, read 2026-10-17:
If you give away your home to your children (including adopted, foster or stepchildren) or grandchildren your threshold can increase to £500,000.
- GOV.UK: passing on a home, read 2026-10-17:
If you own your home (or a share in it) your tax-free threshold can increase to £500,000 if:
- HMRC: nil-rate band and residence nil-rate band from 6 April 2028, read 2026-10-17:
This means that since 6 April 2020, qualifying estates have been able to pass on up to £500,000 and, if the nil-rate band and residence nil-rate band remain unused, the qualifying estate of a surviving spouse or civil partner is still able to pass on up to £1 million without an Inheritance Tax liability.
- GOV.UK: How Inheritance Tax works - thresholds, rules and allowances, read 2026-10-17:
the value of your estate is below the £325,000 threshold
- HMRC: nil-rate band and residence nil-rate band from 6 April 2028, read 2026-10-17:
The nil-rate band has been fixed at £325,000 since the tax year 2009 to 2010.
- Low Incomes Tax Reform Group: inheritance tax, read 2026-10-17:
Each individual has their own nil rate band which is £325,000 for 2026/27.
- HMRC: nil-rate band and residence nil-rate band from 6 April 2028, read 2026-10-17:
The £175,000 residence nil-rate band is available to those passing on a qualifying residence on death to their direct descendants.
- HMRC guidance: work out and apply the residence nil rate band, read 2026-10-17:
The maximum available residence nil rate band in the tax year 2020 to 2021 is £175,000.
- Low Incomes Tax Reform Group: inheritance tax, read 2026-10-17:
It is an additional nil rate amount, which is £175,000 for 2026/27.
- IHTA 1984 s.8D: the residence nil-rate amount, read 2026-10-17:
£175,000 for the tax year 2020-21 and subsequent tax years,
- IHTA 1984 s.8D: the residence nil-rate amount, read 2026-10-17:
£150,000 for the tax year 2019-20, and
- IHTA 1984 s.8D: the residence nil-rate amount, read 2026-10-17:
£125,000 for the tax year 2018-19,
- IHTA 1984 s.8D: the residence nil-rate amount, read 2026-10-17:
£100,000 for the tax year 2017-18,
- Low Incomes Tax Reform Group: inheritance tax, read 2026-10-17:
Therefore the maximum annual exemption in a particular tax year cannot exceed £6,000.
- GOV.UK: gifts and the seven-year rule, read 2026-10-17:
This is known as your ‘annual exemption’. You can give gifts or money up to £3,000 to one person or split the £3,000 between several people.
- GOV.UK: gifts and the seven-year rule, read 2026-10-17:
You can give as many gifts of up to £250 per person as you want each tax year, as long as you have not used another allowance on the same person.
- House of Commons Library CBP-10181: changes to agricultural and business property reliefs, read 2026-10-17:
Depending on certain criteria, relief is available at a 100% or 50% rate.
- IHTM43033: transferable nil rate band where the survivor was married more than once, read 2026-10-17:
On David’s death the nil rate band available on his death would be limited to 100% by IHTA84/S8A(5).
- IHTM25131: outline of business relief, read 2026-10-17:
before the deduction of exemptions, but note that from 6 April 2026 the 100% AR/BR allowance will only apply to chargeable transfers (IHTM11000)
- HM Treasury: inheritance tax reliefs threshold to rise to £2.5m, read 2026-10-17:
Increase the threshold at which 100% Agricultural Property Relief and Business Property Relief applies from £1 million to £2.5 million per estate, with 50% relief continuing to apply to qualifying assets above that level.
- House of Commons Library CBP-10181: changes to agricultural and business property reliefs, read 2026-10-17:
Inheritance tax is charged at a 40% rate if the estate of a deceased person exceeds a threshold, known as the nil-rate band, set at £325,000.
- GOV.UK: How Inheritance Tax works - thresholds, rules and allowances, read 2026-10-17:
The standard Inheritance Tax rate is 40%.
- Low Incomes Tax Reform Group: inheritance tax, read 2026-10-17:
Any part of the estate that exceeds the nil rate band threshold is usually chargeable to inheritance tax on death at 40%.
- GOV.UK: How Inheritance Tax works - thresholds, rules and allowances, read 2026-10-17:
The estate can pay Inheritance Tax at a reduced rate of 36% on some assets if you leave 10% or more of the ‘net value’ to charity in your will.
- Low Incomes Tax Reform Group: inheritance tax, read 2026-10-17:
Years between the gift and death Rate of tax applied 3 to 4 years 32%
- Low Incomes Tax Reform Group: inheritance tax, read 2026-10-17:
4 to 5 years 24%
- Low Incomes Tax Reform Group: inheritance tax, read 2026-10-17:
5 to 6 years 16%
- Low Incomes Tax Reform Group: inheritance tax, read 2026-10-17:
6 to 7 years 8%
- Low Incomes Tax Reform Group: inheritance tax, read 2026-10-17:
The value of the estate up to the nil rate band threshold is chargeable to inheritance tax at a rate of 0%, meaning estates valued at less than £325,000 usually pay no inheritance tax.
- Low Incomes Tax Reform Group: inheritance tax, read 2026-10-17:
7 or more 0%
Read in full, publishes no figure
12 named sources were read in full on the dates shown and print no usable figure. They are counted, never filled in.
- GOV.UK: Rates and allowances - Inheritance Tax thresholds and interest rates, read 2026-10-10: read in full and no accepted figure on the page
- IHTM43035: calculating the transferable nil rate band - worked example, read 2026-09-12: every candidate on the page was refused
- GOV.UK: if Inheritance Tax is due or full details are needed, read 2026-09-12: every candidate on the page was refused
- GOV.UK: pay your Inheritance Tax bill, read 2026-09-12: read in full and no accepted figure on the page
- GOV.UK: Business Relief for Inheritance Tax, read 2026-09-12: read in full and no accepted figure on the page
- Inheritance Tax Act 1984 (contents), read 2026-10-17: every candidate on the page was refused
- IHTA 1984 s.8A: transfer of unused nil-rate band, read 2026-10-17: read in full and no accepted figure on the page
- HMRC form IHT402: claim to transfer unused nil rate band, read 2026-10-10: read in full and no accepted figure on the page
- IHTM30001: liability and payment of tax, read 2026-09-12: read in full and no accepted figure on the page
- Scottish Government: inheritance (law of succession), read 2026-09-12: read in full and no accepted figure on the page
- Scottish Parliament research briefing: inheritance law in Scotland (2025 update), read 2026-09-12: read in full and no accepted figure on the page
- the rule per figure, read 2026-09-12: read in full and no accepted figure on the page
Methodology
Every row is a verbatim sentence read from the named source's own page through our fetch service on the date shown, hash-pinned to the stored read (the sha of the page's visible text; the raw page is mirrored to R2).
11 of the 23 named sources that could be read published a usable figure; 12 published none and are recorded as not published, never filled in; 1 could not be read (blocked, dead or unreachable) and count nowhere.
The headline figures (median, minimum, maximum, quartiles) are over ONE figure per source for each breakdown it prices, in GBP (a source's median where its page yielded several accepted sentences for one breakdown), so a page that gives figures for several breakdowns gives one for each and N counts 21 figures, never sentences; 145 candidate sentence(s) were refused by a reviewer with the reason recorded.
The fuller derivation this dataset is chartered to grow into (not yet what the figures above are; they are each source's own published figure as read): one row per input the bill actually turns on - nil-rate band, residence nil-rate band, the transferred PERCENTAGE, the £2m taper, the 40%/36% rates, gift taper, the business and agricultural relief allowance - each quoted verbatim from HMRC or the statute with its effective date, and the whole table carried as a DATED SERIES so an estate is computed at the date of death rather than at today's figures.
The derivation nobody publishes is the second-death worked answer: the couple's combined allowance for a given pair of death dates, which needs the first death's unused percentage and the second death's band together, and changed-since, which is what makes a rate-year turn or the April 2026 relief cap a release rather than a silent edit.
145 candidate sentences on these pages were refused by a reviewer; each refusal and its reason is recorded in the review ledger.
Sources (24)
- GOV.UK: How Inheritance Tax works - thresholds, rules and allowances(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- GOV.UK: Rates and allowances - Inheritance Tax thresholds and interest rates(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- HMRC guidance: work out and apply the residence nil rate band(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- HMRC: nil-rate band and residence nil-rate band from 6 April 2028(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- IHTM43035: calculating the transferable nil rate band - worked example(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- IHTM43033: transferable nil rate band where the survivor was married more than once(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- GOV.UK: passing on a home(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- GOV.UK: gifts and the seven-year rule(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- GOV.UK: if Inheritance Tax is due or full details are needed(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- GOV.UK: pay your Inheritance Tax bill(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- GOV.UK: Business Relief for Inheritance Tax(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- IHTM25131: outline of business relief(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- HM Treasury: inheritance tax reliefs threshold to rise to £2.5m(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- House of Commons Library CBP-10181: changes to agricultural and business property reliefs(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- Inheritance Tax Act 1984 (contents)(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- IHTA 1984 s.8A: transfer of unused nil-rate band(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- IHTA 1984 s.8D: the residence nil-rate amount(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- HMRC form IHT402: claim to transfer unused nil rate band(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- IHTM30001: liability and payment of tax(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- Scottish Government: inheritance (law of succession)(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- Low Incomes Tax Reform Group: inheritance tax(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- MoneyHelper: a guide to Inheritance Tax(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- Scottish Parliament research briefing: inheritance law in Scotland (2025 update)(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- the rule per figure(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
Cite or embed this figure
Cite or embed this figure
The UK IHT Rate Table carries 21 published figures read from 10 sources' own pages; the 18 published figures given by rule run from 250 to 5,000,000 GBP, read 17 October 2026.
11 of the 23 named sources read in full publish a figure; 12 publish none, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, rule standard rate: median 40 percent across 3 sources, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, rule agricultural and business property relief rate: median 100 percent across 3 sources, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, rule annual gift exemption: median 3,000 GBP across 1 source, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, rule small gift allowance: median 250 GBP across 1 source, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, rule nil-rate band: median 325,000 GBP across 3 sources, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, rule threshold where a home passes to direct descendants: median 500,000 GBP across 3 sources, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, rule reduced rate where 10% of the net estate goes to charity: median 36 percent across 1 source, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, rule residence nil-rate band: median 175,000 GBP across 4 sources, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, rule transferable nil-rate band cap: median 100 percent across 1 source, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, rule rate below the nil-rate band: median 0 percent across 1 source, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, rule taper threshold: median 2,000,000 GBP across 1 source, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, rule agricultural and business property relief allowance: median 2,500,000 GBP across 3 sources, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, rule transferable agricultural and business property relief allowance: median 5,000,000 GBP across 1 source, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, rule annual exemption maximum with carry-forward: median 6,000 GBP across 1 source, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, rule gift taper 3 to 4 years: median 32 percent across 1 source, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, rule gift taper 4 to 5 years: median 24 percent across 1 source, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, rule gift taper 5 to 6 years: median 16 percent across 1 source, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, rule gift taper 6 to 7 years: median 8 percent across 1 source, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, rule gift taper 7 years or more: median 0 percent across 1 source, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, effective date 2017-18: median 100,000 GBP across 1 source, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, effective date 2018-19: median 125,000 GBP across 1 source, read 17 October 2026.
UK IHT Rate Table, effective date 2019-20: median 150,000 GBP across 1 source, read 17 October 2026.
Cite as: "Corp Tax Calculator UK IHT Rate Table", updated 2026-10-21, https://corptaxcalculator.co.uk/datasets/uk-iht-rate-table/.
Download the CSV (35 rows, computed 2026-10-21)