HMRC has been accused of "sinking to a new low" with a new change for inheritance tax. From April 2027, pension schemes will be allowed to withhold up to half of your retirement savings to cover inheritance tax. They can hold onto that money for up to 15 months while they work out what is owed. Pensions used to sit outside inheritance tax entirely. From April 2027 they get hit with the standard 40% rate like everything else.
Reaction to the Shake-Up
Responding to the shake-up from the Labour Party government, TV presenter Cristo Foufas wrote on X: "Every time I think Rachel Reeves can’t sink lower." Foufas was responding to Neil McCoy-Ward, who shared: "So your family loses up to 40% of what you spent a lifetime saving. The pension company sits on the other half for over a year before anyone sees a penny. Funeral costs, mortgage payments, school fees, none of it can be covered while the money is locked up."
Details of the Policy
McCoy-Ward added: "The policy was announced by Rachel Reeves in the 2024 Budget. The operational detail confirming the 50% withholding rule was quietly published by HMRC this week, with final guidance not due until spring 2027, weeks before the deadline. 10,500 estates will be dragged into inheritance tax for the first time. Another 38,500 will pay more. Average extra bill, £34,000. And this is how these things always work. The threshold starts high, the public is told it only affects the wealthy, and the numbers stay frozen while everything else rises."
The inheritance tax threshold has been stuck at £325,000 since 2009. House prices have nearly doubled in that time. Every year, more ordinary families get pulled in without a single rule changing.
Impact on Ordinary Families
"The government calls this closing a loophole. What it actually does is treat your pension like another revenue stream for the Treasury. Money you saved out of taxed income gets taxed again on the way out. If you have a pension, this affects you. Check what your scheme is planning before April 2027 arrives," McCoy-Ward concluded.
