With a background in financial journalism across national titles, Ruby loves helping people take control of their money and specialises in pensions, tax, banking and benefits.
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As with the vast majority of assets, inheritance tax is levied on property when you pass away.
But thanks to an extra allowance introduced in April 2017, couples can now leave property worth up to £1m before paying any tax.
The tax-free amount depends on who you leave the property to, when you pass away and the overall value of your estate.
Our short video explains what inheritance tax is, and how the main residence nil-rate band works
The main residence nil-rate band is an extra property allowance that allows people to leave their homes to family tax-free.
Under the rules, if you're passing your home to a direct descendant, you can benefit from a £175,000 in tax-free allowance in the 2025-26 tax year.
The allowance only applies if you leave your home to a direct descendant - either a child or grandchild. Nieces and nephews, or friends, for example do not qualify.
Not everyone will qualify for the full allowance. If your total estate is worth more than £2m, the extra allowance tapers off, falling by £1 for each £2 above the threshold.
To find out more, read our section on estates worth more than £2m.
Married spouses and civil partners can apply any unused allowance of their deceased partner - meaning they could pass on property worth up to £350,000 tax-free in 2025-26.
The increase to the residence nil-rate band happened gradually between April 2017 and April 2020. The table shows how the inheritance tax allowance has increased over the past few years.
| Tax year | Nil-rate band | Residence nil-rate band | Total for individuals | Total for couples |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 | £325,000 | £125,000 | £450,000 | £900,000 |
| 2019-20 | £325,000 | £150,000 | £475,000 | £950,000 |
| 2020-21 onwards | £325,000 | £175,000 | £500,000 | £1,000,000 |
In the 2025-26 tax year, you'll be able to pass on £175,000. Your spouse or civil partner has the same allowance, effectively doubling what you can pass on to £350,000.
The property allowance will be layered on top of your inheritance tax allowance, which has been set at £325,000 since 2010. This means that in 2025-26 you can pass on as much as £500,000 tax-free as an individual, or £1m as a couple.
The government's rules state that only 'direct descendants' of people who have died can benefit from the new main residence nil-rate band.
Direct descendants are described as:
This means that nephews, nieces, siblings and other relatives will not benefit from the new allowance if a home is passed on to them.
The main residence nil-rate band applies to only one home. It must be included in your estate (i.e. counted within the assets you owned directly, not via a trust) and you need to have lived in it at some stage in your life.
If you own more than one home, the executor of your estate can nominate which one should be used against the inheritance tax property allowance.
The good news is that you don't have to have lived in or owned the property for a minimum time - it can be any property you've lived in at some point.
The home doesn't even have to be in the UK, but whether or not your heirs pay UK inheritance tax depends on your 'domicile' at the time of your death.
If you have a larger estate, the main residence nil-rate band, and therefore the amount you can pass on tax-free, reduces gradually, known as 'tapering'.
For every £2 that your estate is over £2m, the new property allowance is reduced by £1.
So, if your estate is worth £2.4m in the 2025-26 tax year, you'll lose the entire main residence nil-rate band.
The table shows the size of estate when the entire nil-rate band is lost.
| Tax year | Main residence nil-rate band | Size of the estate when all nil-rate band is lost |
|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 | £125,000 | £2.25m |
| 2019-20 | £150,000 | £2.3m |
| 2020-21 onwards | £175,000 | £2.4m |
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It's crucial that any gift is a genuine gift. If, for example, you give away your home but continue to live in it rent-free until your death, you'll be deemed to be the beneficial owner, and it will still be taxed as part of your estate when you pass away.
The same gifting rules apply to property as other assets. If you give away a home within your lifetime, it will be classed as a potentially exempt transfer, meaning inheritance tax may be charged if you die within seven years of making the gift.
If the gifts are worth less than the £325,000 allowance, they'll be added to your estate to work out your taxable estate.
If they're worth more, then they will use up your tax-free allowance, and you'll be charged a tapered rate on the excess, which depends on how long you live after making the gift.
| Time between date of gift and date of donor's death | Effective rate charged on gift |
|---|---|
| 0-3 years | 40% |
| 3-4 years | 32% |
| 4-5 years | 24% |
| 5-6 years | 16% |
| 6-7 years | 8% |
| More than 7 years | 0% |
If you live for at least seven years after making the gift then no tax will be due - and your £325,000 tax-free allowance will not be affected.
If there is a tax bill, the new owner will be liable to pay it.
The tax-free threshold has stood at £325,000 for many years, but rising property prices meant more and more people have been pulled into inheritance tax in recent years.
To reduce this burden, the property allowance was introduced to help people leave property to family without being hit with large tax bills.
Crucially, you only qualify for this new allowance if your estate includes a property that you've used as a home at some point in your life.