NEWS
August 18, 2009
A lot of people assume that if they die, their spouse will get everything. That isn’t how it works at all.
If you’re a married man with a wife and kids, your wife will only get the first £250,000 of your estate. She’ll get a right to income only in half of the rest. Everything else goes straight to the kids at 18 – ready or not!
If you don’t have any children, your wife gets the first £450,000 – but still, only a right to income from the remainder. The rest will go to your parents, or – if they aren’t alive – your brothers and sisters.
Worse still – if you die without a wife, children (or grandchildren), parents or siblings, everything goes to the Government.
And if you have a significant other, who isn’t your wife (or civil partner) they don’t get anything, unless they can prove they were financially dependent on you.
So if you want to leave everything to your spouse or significant other, get a will!
For more information visit our topical tip on the subject, or contact us for more information.
PLEASE NOTE: By the very nature of this type of information the details of tax law might have changed since they were published, so contact your Barnes Roffe partner before acting on any matter contained in this document.
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PLEASE NOTE: By the very nature of this type of information the details of tax law might have changed since they were published, so contact your Barnes Roffe partner before acting on any matter contained in these documents.
