Business Wills Northampton

What is Business Property Relief?

Put simply, it’s one of the most important tax saving reliefs available. It means that if your business qualifies, the value of your business can be passed to your children free of Inheritance Tax (IHT).

BPR is available on all qualifying business assets at either 100% or 50% relief.

What business assets qualify for relief?

You can claim 100% BPR on:

• a business or share of a business
• shares in an unlisted company

You can claim 50% BPR on:

• where shares you own control more than 50% of the voting rights in a listed company
• land and building or machinery owned and used by the business
• land and building or machinery owned and used by the business which is held in a trust that has the right to use them 

You can only claim relief if you owned the business or asset for at least 2 years before your death.

Without careful planning, Business Property Relief can easily be lost, this could lead to an unnecessary Inheritance Tax liability.

For further information visit HMRC to find out more.

What is a Business Will?

A Business Will is a Will which includes a Trust to ensure that the value of your business assets are passed to your spouse and children in the most tax efficient manner.

Naturally, most people would usually leave their business assets to their spouse, this is often the reason why Business Property Relief is lost. At Choice Wills we can show you how to ensure your spouse is financially secure without losing the tax advantages offered by Business Property Relief.

Future-Proof your Business

Failing to plan for your death could be extremely costly for your business and your family. The Chamber of Commerce estimates that around 100,000 business' close each year due to business owners not making plans for their death.

No matter what type of business you own, considerations need to be made about a business Will. That is where we come in. Offering a helping hand, our team will provide all the advice and guidance you need.

Sole Traders

• Would you like to decide who inherits your business? 
• Would there be a value to the business if you died? 
• What would happen to the jobs of the people you employ?
• Would you like your children to take over the business?
• Have you protected yourself against the loss of Business Property Relief?

Partnerships or LLP’s

• Would you like to decide who inherits your share of the business?
• What is each share worth?
• If your business partner died, who would inherit their share of the business?
• Would you want to be in business with this person?
• Have you protected yourself against the loss of Business Property Relief?

Limited Company

• Who will own the shares of a Director who dies? 
• Would it be possible to buy these shares back?
• What if the new owner does not want to sell the shares back to you? 
• Have you made financial provision to buy these shares back? 
• What if the shares were sold to a competitor at a higher price?
• Have you protected yourself against the loss of Business Property Relief?

Business Property Relief is available to all qualifying business assets. This valuable relief can easily be lost, and usually is, if you do not have a Will in place or you make the wrong decisions about who should inherit your business.

We work alongside accountants and other professional advisers in Northampton and surrounding areas to ensure that this very valuable relief is not lost.