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Taxation (UK) · Payment of inheritance tax

Due Dates for Payment of Inheritance Tax

Updated 11 October 2026 · Fact-checked

Inheritance tax on a lifetime chargeable transfer is due on 30 April after the end of the tax year of the transfer, or six months after the end of the month of transfer if that is later. Tax on death is due six months after the end of the month of death. Interest runs from the due date.

Understand Due Dates for Payment of Inheritance Tax

Inheritance tax (IHT) is only useful to you in the exam if you can say when the money must reach HMRC. The date depends on what triggered the tax. There are two triggers in TX-UK: a chargeable lifetime transfer, and death.

A chargeable lifetime transfer (CLT) is a gift into a trust, for example, that exceeds the available nil rate band and so suffers lifetime tax. The tax is due by the later of two dates: 30 April following the end of the tax year (5 April) in which the transfer was made, and six months after the end of the month of the transfer. So a gift made between 6 April and 30 September is due on the following 30 April. A gift made between 1 October and 31 March is due six months after the end of that month.

A gift made from 1 April to 5 April is in the old tax year. The 30 April after that 5 April comes first, but six months after the end of April is 31 October. The later date is 31 October.

On death, tax on the death estate and on any lifetime transfers brought back into charge is due six months after the end of the month of death. A death on 12 March is taxed on 30 September of the same year.

A potentially exempt transfer (PET) has no tax at the time of the gift. Tax only arises if the donor dies within seven years. The due date is then six months after the end of the month of death, not of the gift. The same applies to extra tax on a CLT made within seven years before death.

Interest runs on unpaid IHT from the due date. The rate is set by HMRC and is not part of the rates ACCA gives you in the exam, so you only need to know that interest starts on the due date and not before.

Key rules to remember

Lifetime chargeable transfer due date
Later of: 30 April after the end of the tax year of transfer, and 6 months after the end of the month of transfer
A transfer from 6 April to 30 September falls on 30 April of the following year. A transfer from 1 October to 31 March falls six months after the end of the month. A transfer from 1 to 5 April falls on 31 October of the same year.
Due date on death
6 months after the end of the month of death
Applies to the death estate and to additional tax on lifetime transfers made within seven years before death.
Interest on late IHT
Interest runs from the due date until the tax is paid
The interest rate is not in the ACCA tax tables, so the exam tests the start date rather than a calculation.
Lifetime and death rates
Lifetime rate 20%; death rate 40%
Given in the exam tax tables. They are not due dates, but they tell you which tax is being paid.

How to solve Due Dates for Payment of Inheritance Tax questions

Use this method for any question that asks when IHT is due or when interest starts.

  1. 1Identify the trigger: a chargeable lifetime transfer, a PET that has become chargeable, or death.
  2. 2Write down the exact date of the transfer or death, including the month.
  3. 3For a lifetime transfer, work out the two dates: 30 April following the 5 April that ends the tax year of transfer, and six months after the end of the month of transfer. Remember that a transfer on 1 to 5 April is in the old tax year.
  4. 4Pick the later of those two dates for a lifetime transfer.
  5. 5For death, and for a PET or CLT that becomes chargeable because of death within seven years, take six months after the end of the month of death.
  6. 6State the due date in full and say that interest runs from that date if the tax is unpaid.
  7. 7If the question gives a payment date, compare it to the due date to see if it is late.

Quickest way: Date test for lifetime gifts

When to use it: Use it when a question gives a lifetime transfer date and asks for the payment date.

  1. Look at the month and the day of the transfer.
  2. If it is from 6 April to 30 September, the answer is 30 April of the following calendar year.
  3. If it is from 1 October to 31 March, add six months to the end of that month. October gives 30 April, November gives 31 May, December gives 30 June, January gives 31 July, February gives 31 August, March gives 30 September.
  4. A transfer from 1 to 5 April is in the old tax year. The 30 April after that 5 April is earlier than six months after the end of April, which is 31 October. The later date is 31 October.
  5. For death, always take the end of the month of death plus six months.

Common mistakes in Due Dates for Payment of Inheritance Tax

  • Using the date of the gift for a PET that fails on death.

    Students assume tax is due from the gift date.

    Fix: A PET has no tax until death. The due date is six months after the end of the month of death.

  • Saying all lifetime transfers are due on 30 April.

    The 30 April rule is memorised without its second limb.

    Fix: Always compare it with six months after the end of the month of transfer and take the later date.

  • Counting six months from the day of death or transfer.

    Students count from the exact date.

    Fix: Go to the end of the month first, then add six months.

  • Starting interest at the date of the gift or death.

    Students mix up the tax-point date with the due date.

    Fix: Interest runs from the due date, so there is none until the payment date has passed.

  • Treating the tax year as the calendar year.

    Students forget that the tax year ends on 5 April.

    Fix: A gift on 20 March 2026 is in the tax year ending 5 April 2026. Check the month first.

Worked examples

Example 1

Anna makes a chargeable lifetime transfer into a trust on 14 June 2025. When is the lifetime IHT due?

Show the solution
  1. The trigger is a chargeable lifetime transfer.
  2. The tax year of transfer is 2025–26, which ends on 5 April 2026.
  3. 30 April after the end of that tax year is 30 April 2026.
  4. Six months after the end of June 2025 is 31 December 2025.
  5. The later date is 30 April 2026.

Answer: The tax is due on 30 April 2026. Interest runs from that date if it is unpaid.

Example 2

Ben makes a chargeable lifetime transfer on 20 November 2025. He dies on 10 February 2028, having made no other gifts. The transfer was within seven years of death. (a) When was the lifetime IHT due? (b) When is any additional tax on death due?

Show the solution
  1. (a) The transfer is in tax year 2025–26, so the 30 April date is 30 April 2026.
  2. Six months after the end of November 2025 is 31 May 2026.
  3. The later date is 31 May 2026.
  4. (b) Additional tax arises because of death within seven years, so the death rule applies.
  5. The month of death is February 2028, which ends on 29 February 2028.
  6. Six months after that is 31 August 2028.

Answer: (a) Lifetime tax is due on 31 May 2026. (b) Any additional tax on death is due on 31 August 2028.

Exam tips

  • Write the two lifetime dates side by side and circle the later one. It shows the examiner your method.
  • In objective questions, check the month of the gift before you look at the options. Wrong options are often the other date.
  • For PETs, state that tax is only due if death occurs within seven years, and that the due date runs from death.
  • Check whether the question asks about tax at the time of the gift or at death. The answer differs.
  • Remember the tax year ends on 5 April when you place a gift in a tax year.

Practice questions from Payment of inheritance tax

Due Dates for Payment of Inheritance Tax in other exams

The same ground in other exams, if you are preparing for more than one or want another angle on it.

Due Dates for Payment of Inheritance Tax: frequently asked questions

When is IHT due on a lifetime gift?

For a chargeable lifetime transfer it is due on the later of 30 April after the end of the tax year of the gift and six months after the end of the month of the gift. A gift made from 6 April to 30 September is due the following 30 April.

When is IHT due on death?

Tax on the death estate is due six months after the end of the month of death. The same date applies to additional tax on lifetime transfers made in the seven years before death.

When does interest start on unpaid inheritance tax?

Interest runs from the due date until the tax is paid. If you pay on or before the due date, no interest arises.

Is any tax due when I make a PET?

No. A potentially exempt transfer is treated as exempt at the time of the gift. It only becomes chargeable if the donor dies within seven years, and the due date is then based on the date of death.