Estate Planning : Northern Ireland/UK

RoseColoredSkies · May 25, 2011

So, I'm working on plotting a new novel in which a great grandmother wills her home to her 2 great-grandchildren (leaving them most of her money as well) and completely excluding her grandchildren (even though they are still living). She has no living children or spouse. I want to make sure that this can actually be done in Northern Ireland.

So if anyone knows anything about that area of the law, i would be most grateful.

Gracias.

shaldna · May 26, 2011

From my own experience in NI, you can challenge/contest a will if you are the legal next of kin, and in that instance it would be up to a judge to decide if you should have been left anything.

In addition, it depends on the ages of the great grandchildren, if they are under 18 then their parents would be the legal guardians and they would control the estate until the children were of legal age.

Also, you can't take control of an estate until after probate. Inheritance tax here has to be paid before you can recieve the items/property, and you can't sell the property to pay the inheritance tax. Inhertiance tax is charged at 40% over the threshold of £325,000.

But, like I said, the main issue would be the grandchildren contesting the will, and in the case of an elderly person where it could be suggested that they were not in sound mind, the grandchildren could win. If they were dependant on the deceased financially, for instance, if they lived in her property, then they stand a greater chance of winning, even though grandchildren are not normally eligable to contest a will.

These links should help - they are mostly about Northern Ireland.

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/inheritancetax/intro/probate-process.htm

http://bfime.custhelp.com/app/answe...s,-probate-&-inheritance---challenging-a-will

waylander · May 26, 2011

shaldna said:
In addition, it depends on the ages of the great grandchildren, if they are under 18 then their parents would be the legal guardians and they would control the estate until the children were of legal age.

Unless the property is put into a trust for the great-grandchildren and their parents are not appointed trustees

Buffysquirrel · May 26, 2011

The law in Northern Ireland is different from that for England and Wales, so when researching this it's important to look at the law in NI, not elsewhere in the UK. So-say British law is a quagmire for the unwary

.

In NI, probate is handled by the Probate and Matrimonial Office,

Royal Courts of Justice
PO Box 410
Chichester Street
Belfast
BT1 3JF
Tel: 028 9072 4678
Email: [email protected]

Given the highly specific nature of your query, I'd put it to them

.

RoseColoredSkies · May 26, 2011

Thanks to both of you. The 2 great grandchildren are 26 and 24 so no worries about legal guardians. While the great grandma was in her 80s she was of sound mind (a bit nuts in other ways which come out in the story later on). Two of the grandchildren no longer live in Ireland (they live in the US). The third grandchild still lives in Ireland but hasn't had contact with her in years.

It may also be of note that the great grandmother basically acted like at least 2 of the grandchildren no longer existed because of their lifestyle choices (can divorce and single parenthood be classified as lifestyle choices?). Anyway, I don't see 2 of the grandchildren protesting the will. The third, he probably won't either (though he's got some secrets).

Now I read briefly yesterday about the Inheritance Tax. How long do you have to pay it off? The main setting of the novel is in the house she's left them. So can they not even be there until the tax is paid off? And it only appears over £325,000? I was reading something about getting the tax down to like nothing but I didn't quite understand it (I probably should have taken Personal Income Tax....but I'm not fond of math).

@Buffysquirrel: I wasn't sure if NI was covered by British law or not. Thanks for clarifying. I hesitate to contact the office directly. I don't want to waste their time, you know?

Buffysquirrel · May 26, 2011

I think they'd be delighted to be able to use their expertise, but la

.

There's a form here that might help: http://www.courtsni.gov.uk/NR/rdonl...57D120ED7040/0/p_ul_Deceasedpersonsestate.pdf but my computer is refusing to open it, so I can't be sure.

RoseColoredSkies · May 26, 2011

Thanks for the form, Buffy. I think once I figure out all the important details that could affect probate, I'll send them an email. I tried to download the PDF but it wouldn't open for me either. I'll try searching the site itself to see if I can find it.

ETA: I got the PDF to download from the site and it looks really useful. Plus the website has lots of other good information so I don't think I'll need to contact the office. Yay for good research!!!

pdr · May 26, 2011

As I understand it...

if Great-Gran made a will which specifically states why she does not wish her children and grandchildren to inherit, and why she wishes those two great grandchildren to inherit, then those are her wishes and have to be taken into account in any challenge to her will.

BenjaminB · Dec 16, 2018

Hey,

I realise I'm a little late on this one (posts were 7 years ago) but was anyone able to answer Rose?

I'm doing some similar research for a book where my protagonist lives in Ireland and has an old house in the north of England which she wants to leave to an old friend. I need the friend to get the house though and not lose it all to inheritance tax! I came across this guide to probate which seems to suggest that if the house isn't worth over £325,000 there won't be any inheritance tax. Is this right? Do the same rules still apply if my protagonist lives in Ireland? Totally confused!!

Thanks for any help you can give.

Ben

Bufty · Dec 16, 2018

Hi, Ben.

The posts above this are still relevant.

I obviously have no idea how the actual value of property or the precise manner of the calculation of Inheritance Tax is relevant to your story but if the details are not relevant I would suggest avoiding the swamp and keeping it simple.

If the friend is going to get the house free of any death tax burdens, that's basically all she needs to know. And from the protagonist's viewpoint that's all the lawyer needs to know in order to prepare her will.

Good luck.

waylander · Dec 16, 2018

Is the protagonist in NI or the Republic? If within the UK, the protagonist's entire estate is worth less than £325,000 then no duty is payable. Don't immediately know what the numbers are for the Republic. The executor of the protagonist's estate is responsible for paying the duty. If there are other resources (cash or stocks) then these oculd be used to pay the duty and then the friend gets the house. Plenty of areas of the north of England where a house is worth less than £325,000.

Estate Planning : Northern Ireland/UK

RoseColoredSkies

It's a long and winding road

shaldna

The cake is a lie. But still cake.

waylander

Who's going for a beer?

Buffysquirrel

RoseColoredSkies

It's a long and winding road

Buffysquirrel

RoseColoredSkies

It's a long and winding road

pdr

BenjaminB

BenjaminButton

Bufty

Where have the last ten years gone?

waylander

Who's going for a beer?