It’s time to get savvy with planning the protection of your future. Pension planning, life insurance both have their place, but protecting the future of your assets should also be a high priority.

The current political turmoil and a general election around the corner will turn focus onto the policies of each of the parties and their implications on farmers and landowners. Labour have strongly hinted at major reviews of Inheritance Tax. The contents of their report “Land for the Many” and Tax Justice’s “In Stark Relief” highlight the risk to both the existing Agricultural and Business Property Reliefs which have offered helpful means of protecting assets from Inheritance Tax.

The current best advice should be to carry out a valuation of assets at today’s value to enable a mock Inheritance Tax calculation to be made and to identify where the current reliefs would apply. This process will identify the extent of the risk that the removal of the reliefs would bring. The solution may be as simple as transferring assets to the next generation, restructuring the ownership or a more bespoke arrangement to protect assets where at all possible.
Any landowner with land that is either allocated or soon to be allocated for development of any kind within your Local Authority’s Local Plan, should consider a possible transfer into a separate business/ownership structure based on today’s value such that when the development does come to fruition the level of Capital Gains should be reduced.

Land bought or transferred in the 1980s or before, will almost certainly be worth more now. The gain on a higher base value will probably be less than the gain on the original purchase price.

Entrepreneurs Relief changed on 6th April 2019 from a twelve-month qualifying period to two years, so allow yourself time to consider the timing of land sales or disposal of business assets.

Valuation for taxation purposes and potential negotiations with HMRC must be carried out by qualified valuers regulated by the RICS. These along with close liaison and advise from accountants and where appropriate solicitors, will help ensure the protection of your assets into the future. The old adage of there being two things certain in life - death and taxes doesn’t change but minimising the latter can be achieved with careful planning.

For all valuation advice please do not hesitate to contact our valuation team at PFK Janet Flintoft or Jo Edwards on 01768 866611 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..