When reviewing your finances as part of our overall financial advisory services, we will pay close attention to two areas:

• how your estate and that of any partner will devolve on death
• the overall burden of tax that falls on your income and assets, both during life and on the occasion of your death.

We will generally like to see a copy of your will and of any trusts in which you have an interest and we are happy to liaise with your solicitor about this. Our team of advisers includes those with trust and estate expertise and there are other resources available in Duncan Lawrie, including an international trust company in the Isle of Man, for non-domiciled or non-resident clients. Click here for more information about our international services.

We will examine the potential burden of inheritance tax and look at ways of reducing it by gifts, special investments and by insurance arranged on a tax free basis for your successors.

There are other tax planning services that can help you and we can liaise with your accountants whenever necessary. For example:

• pensions can significantly reduce the amount of income tax on your earnings and provide a tax free lump sum when you draw the benefits
• we can recommend investments such as venture capital trusts and enterprise investment schemes that will provide tax free income and reduce your liability to both income tax and capital gains tax
• ISAs are exempt from tax and need to be taken up each year
• when we are managing your investments, our system carries full details of your base costs for capital gains tax and we issue a comprehensive tax certificate which will be invaluable to your accountants each fiscal year.

Tax mitigation is not an end in itself, however, in the context of financial planning it plays a significant part in making such plans more efficient.

Contact us today about a full financial review and the best way to minimise the impact of tax on your capital and income.