This represented a £0.4bn increase on the same period the year before.
Canada Life tax and estate planning specialist, Stacey Love, said this data shows IHT receipts are “on a trajectory to break all previous records”.
A similar sentiment was shared by Just Group group communications director, Stephen Lowe, who said it is “evident that the chancellor can once again bank on record-busting IHT receipts for a third successive year”.
Lowe additionally explained that freezing the thresholds has “dragged more households into paying inheritance tax”, especially when combined with the property price rises of the past five years or so.
He predicted that, at the current rate of collection, IHT will raise around £7.6bn for the Treasury this financial year, surpassing the OBR’s forecast of £7.2bn as well as last year’s all-time high of £7.1bn.
However, Love cautioned that, while records might be broken, in reality IHT yields far less for the Treasury than other wealth taxes, for example capital gains tax.
Lowe also looked ahead, predicting the rumour mills will go into “over-drive” ahead of the Spring Budget around the future of IHT.
