Families face probate ‘nightmare’ with delays of up to a YEAR following huge inheritance tax changes
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HOUSEHOLDS face delays of up to a year to get probate granted following major changes to Inheritance Tax (IHT) rules by the government, experts have warned. Finance experts told The Sun that plans to include pensions within the scope of IHT from 2027 could mean thousands of families who don't even owe any tax will face months of extra delays for probate.
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Probate is the legal process of dealing with the estate of someone who has died, including ensuring the right people inherit any money or assets and any outstanding tax or debts are paid. This can already be a long and complicated, with probate typically taking 9.3 weeks, according to official figures from July 2024.
But experts say that the changes to IHT rules will mean every pension firms will need to be contacted to confirm that there is no IHT due, which could add months to the process. Former pensions minister Steve Webb, now partner at consultancy LCP, explained: “It can already be a nightmare trying to sort out the financial affairs of a loved one after their death, and these changes to pensions and IHT will make matters much worse.
"The increased bureaucracy will even affect people who don’t end up having to pay an IHT bill. "We are looking at bereaved families still sorting out the financial affairs of loved ones a year or more after the death, putting bereaved families under real cashflow pressures”.
