I’m married and have lived in the UK a long time, but I have a property and a pension in Southeast Asia.
When I die, I plan to leave an amount of money to my family who are still living there, while the rest will pass to my spouse.
Will my pension and property overseas be subject to UK inheritance tax?
A Which? Money member
‘Borders aren’t barriers when it comes to inheritance tax’
Samm Galloway, Which? money expert, says…
As someone who is classed as a long-term UK resident, all your assets, regardless of where they are located, will be subject to UK inheritance tax rules. This will also include most non-UK pensions from April 2027.
A long-term resident is someone who has been resident in the UK for tax purposes for 10 of the previous 20 years.
Those assets could quality for the usual inheritance tax allowances and exemptions
There is a silver lining: inheritance tax applying to your overseas assets also means those assets could quality for the usual inheritance tax allowances and exemptions.
Anything that you’re leaving to your spouse will be exempt from inheritance tax.
Money you leave to your family in Southeast Asia will benefit from your nil-rate band tax-free allowance (up to £325,000), with any remaining allowance inherited by your spouse, if you die before them.
- Find out more: Inheritance tax calculator
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