When applying for a Grant of Probate, in all circumstance where Inheritance Tax is payable, and in some circumstances when it is not, an IHT 400 tax account needs to be filed with HMRC. The old procedure was that this was sent in with an IHT421 summary, which HMRC would send directly to the probate court. A practitioner would then wait 20 working days, and thereafter make the Probate application at the court.
The probate court has estimated that 9,000 'stops' (causing even longer delays) in 2022 were due to IHT400 forms being submitted incorrectly. To try and improve the system as of the 17th January an IHT 421 is no longer needed, instead HMRC will send a unique code, which will allow the practitioner to file the probate application. If HMRC cannot issue a unique code for any reason, the letter will advise the applicant what to do next.
It will be interesting to see what difference this makes, if any, to the extensive delays experienced by practitioners in obtaining grants of probate. We hope it will help reduce the delays. It is worth noting that HMRC have not currently set a time limit for issuing the codes. Furthermore, the HMRC statement does not say whether this will happen if tax is not payable.
If you have any queries regarding probate or require assistance with administering an Estate, please do get in touch with one of our Private Client specialists.
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