- Written by: Jason
- Category: Will Writing
- Published: 11th May 2015
One of the questions I am often asked by clients is, can a Will made in the UK cover properties they own Overseas / Abroad?
Until now I have always advised clients to make a separate Will in the country their property is located. This is because different countries have different succession laws often known as Forced Heirs Rules.
- Written by: Jason
- Category: Lasting Power Of Attorney
- Published: 30th April 2015
A lasting power of attorney (LPA) is a legal document that allows you the ‘Donor’ to nominate someone you trust as an ‘Attorney’ who will have the power to make decisions on your behalf if you lose the mental capacity to make decisions for yourself in the future.
Types of Lasting Power of Attorney
There are two different types of Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA).
- Written by: Jason
- Category: Inheritance Tax Planning
- Published: 15th April 2015
Death and Taxes
With the General Election just around the corner and the various parties election campaigns now in full swing, one of the topics that keep cropping up is that of Inheritance Tax and proposed changes to it.
Currently, Inheritance Tax is charged on a persons estate at the rate of 40% on anything above the personal exemption threshold of £325,000.
For married couples, it’s also possible on the death of the second spouse for Executors to apply to transfer over any unused relief from the first spouses’ estate meaning a maximum possible exemption of £650,000.
- Written by: Jason
- Category: Will Writing
- Published: 25th March 2015
Appointing Executors
One of the first things that needs to be decided when making a Will is who you would like to appoint as your Executors.
Executors are the people you choose to carry out the wishes you have for the distribution of your estate, once you die.
Depending on the size of your estate there will be a number of duties that your Executors are required to carry out in order to legally fulfil their obligations.
- Written by: Jason
- Category: Lasting Power Of Attorney
- Published: 14th March 2015
A Power of Attorney is a legal document created by an individual (Donor) which grants authority to another person (An Attorney) to take care of some or all aspects of their financial affairs and other matters.
There are various types of Powers of Attorney, the purpose of this article is to explain the different types of Power of Attorney in more detail.
Ordinary Power of Attorney
- Written by: Jason
- Category: Inheritance Tax Planning
- Published: 13th March 2015
Back in June last year we published an article about the HMRC planned changes to IHT taxation of trusts.
The original consultation paper on this subject was published by the Treasury in 2013 and planned to put legislation in force to deter inheritance tax (IHT) mitigation through the use of multiple Pilot Trusts.
Prior to the new legislation coming into force an individual could set up two or more Nil rate band (NRB) discretionary trusts on different dates with a small amount of capital, often referred to as trust de minimis.
- Written by: Jason
- Category: Will Writing
- Published: 3rd March 2015
Currently somewhere in the region of 70% of people in the UK have yet to make a Will.
Its likely that a large proportion of these have at some stage given some thought to Will Writing and then put it to the back of there minds, often feeling that the process of making a Will is both lengthy and complicated.
Nowadays this does not have to be the case, at Mind At Rest Wills we go to great lengths to ensure our clients receive all the information they need in simple terms, explaining the process from beginning to end.
- Written by: Jason
- Category: Will Writing
- Published: 19th February 2015
Today we are pleased to welcome guest contributor Drew Davies from Unicef UK, who talks to us about how to leave a legacy to charity in your Will:
If you’ve been putting off making a Will, you’re in good company. Most people in the UK are busy doing the same, with only 36% of us have written our Wills in 2014, according to the Law Society.
By making a Will, however, you can do more than simply state how your estate and possessions should be divided. You can make guardianship arrangements for children under 18 and name trustees who will take care of their inheritance until they grow up.
- Written by: Jason
- Category: Uncategorised
- Published: 10th February 2015
On the 1st of October 2014 the Inheritance and Trustees Powers Act 2014 came into force which included making some changes to the Intestacy Rules of England & Wales,
If you die without making a Will, then your estate will be distributed subject to these Rules of Intestacy.
The Rules of Intestacy do not necessarily distribute assets in the most tax-efficient manner and do not always distribute assets in a way that a deceased person would have wanted.