Death and Taxes

Are you struggling with you responsibilities as a Personal Representative (PR) due to someone’s death, or are you getting prepared?

It is now, in most cases, possible to arrange for HMRC, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and most other government departments to be notified of a death at one and the same time through the Tell Us Once (TUO) service with is available in most parts of England, Wales and Scotland.  Normally the registrar will offer the service to anyone registering a death, but it can also be accessed at tinyurl.com/TX-GOV-TUO.  In Northern Ireland the Bereavement Service (tinyurl.com/TX-NIGOV-BS) offers bereaved relatives a single point of contact for the Social Security Agency but not for any other department.

If TUO is not used or not available, the PRs must themselves notify HMRC of the death via the bereavement helpline 0300 200 3300.

After being notified via TUO, HMRC should make contact with the PRs to settle the deceased’s tax affairs.  If this does not happen, the PRs may themselves have to initiate contact.  Even if HMRC does respond, the PRs should check that the information on which any assessment or repayment is based is correct.

For PRs administering the estate themselves, there is a useful checklist at tinyurl.com/TX-HMRC-CHKLST which is adequate for straightforward cases.  The Low Income Tax Reform Group (LITRG) has also published a Tax at bereavement factsheet which is available at tinyurl.com/TX-LITRG-FAQ.

If you would like more advice, or wish us to check any assessments produced by HMRC, please do not hesitate to contact us.  We can also complete the Personal Tax Returns to the Date of Death for you, and any necessary reporting requirements for the Estate.  Please contact us at Chrissie@bennewith.co.uk.