Financial planning in your seventies and beyond looks different from planning in earlier decades. The focus shifts from accumulation to preservation, from saving for the future to deciding how that future is shared with your family.
The Finance Act 2026 introduced the most significant changes to inheritance tax in a generation. Frozen allowances, capped business and agricultural reliefs, and the inclusion of pension assets in estates from April 2027 mean many families now face exposure they did not have a year ago. For clients in later life, the case for proactive planning has rarely been clearer.
Our advisers work with you and, where you'd like, with your family, to bring clarity to your estate, identify where exposure sits, and put practical structures in place. Done well, the result is more of your wealth passing where you want it, with less friction and less tax along the way.
Three changes are reshaping later-life estate planning. They're worth understanding even if you've planned well in the past, because the rules underneath that planning have moved.
The £325,000 nil-rate band and £175,000 residence nil-rate band, frozen since 2009 and 2020, will remain frozen until 2030. As estates grow with inflation and asset values, more families move into the IHT net every year.
From April 2026, Business Property Relief and Agricultural Property Relief have been capped at £1 million of qualifying assets per individual, with relief above that level reduced to 50%. For clients holding business interests or farmland, the planning landscape has changed materially.
From April 2027, defined contribution pension savings will form part of the deceased's estate for IHT purposes. This is a significant shift from current rules and, for many families, makes pension legacy planning a priority again rather than an afterthought.
We start by mapping your estate in full: property, pensions, investments, business interests, life policies, and any gifts already made. The goal is a clear, single view of what you have, where it sits, and how it will pass under current rules.
Once the picture is clear, we model the IHT position and identify the practical levers, including allowances, exemptions, gifting strategies, trust structures, and pension nomination, that can change it.
From April 2027, pension assets are part of your estate for IHT. We work through whether to draw down, gift, or restructure, taking into account your income needs, your family's circumstances and the wider plan.
The seven-year rule, annual exemptions, gifts out of normal expenditure, and gifts in consideration of marriage all have a place. We help you use them in a way that supports your family without compromising your own security.
Trusts are powerful but rarely necessary in their full complexity. Where they earn their place, we work alongside your solicitor to set up arrangements that achieve specific objectives, no more.
Decision-making capacity rarely fails on a predictable schedule. Putting financial and health LPAs in place while you have capacity is one of the most valuable steps you can take, for yourself and for your family.
For many of our clients, the most valuable part of later-life planning is the conversation it opens with the family. Adult children, in particular, often have questions about their own financial position that are easier to address alongside yours.
We'll always take your lead on what's appropriate. Where you'd like family involved, our advisers are comfortable working across generations, joining family meetings, and explaining the plan to whomever you'd like at the table.
The best estate plans aren't the most complex. They're the ones the family understands, agrees with, and is ready to support when the time comes.
The Financial Conduct Authority does not regulate Wills, Trusts or Tax advice. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and may be subject to change in the future. The value of your investments can go down as well as up, so you could get back less than you invested. The guidance on this page is subject to the UK regulatory regime and is primarily targeted at consumers based in the UK.
Book a no-obligation conversation. We'll talk through your circumstances and, if it would be useful, look at your estate together.
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