Will You Safeguard The Future Of Your Countryside By Leaving A Legacy To CPRE Hampshire?

Did you know that money left to CPRE Hampshire in your Will can be given completely free of tax, and that includes Inheritance Tax (IHT)? Moreover, if IHT could affect your estate, making bequests to charity may be a way of leaving nothing to the taxman.

Why not take professional advice to see whether this could apply to you? One way might be to arrange your affairs so that the total value of bequests left to members of your family, friends and similar benefi ciaries would be at or below your tax-free IHT threshold. Then arrange to leave anything that is left over, i.e. your residual estate, to charity.

Leaving a residuary legacy in this way is likely to be much more straightforward than by giving a lump sum (a pecuniary legacy). This is because a residuary legacy allows your friends and family tobe looked after first (tax-free) and only the residue (or the percentage of it stipulated in your Will) is given to charity, such as to CPRE Hampshire.

The value of this residual estate represents the sum that is normally liable to 40% Inheritance Tax. You can almost certainly avoid this by wording your Will carefully to ensure that the whole of your residual estate is left to your favourite charities. Then everything left under the terms of your Will would be free of IHT, instead of leaving some of it to the tax man!

You are probably reading this because you support CPRE and we hope you will consider supporting us in your Will. If you would like to discuss the idea in confi dence with one of our trustees or would like more information, please write to us at the County Office. It is your choice, your Countryside, your Will.

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This article first appeared in Hampshire Views No.1, Spring/Summer 2009.