HMRC crackdown on gifting money to children with 5,000 investigations opened

Nearly 5,000 further estates were referred05:46, 30 Jul 2026Nearly 5,000 inheritance tax investigations were opened during the 2025-26 tax year as HMRC increased scrutiny of estates. HMRC opened 4,940 formal inheritance tax enquiries during 2025/26 which amounts to an 18% increase on the previous year. At the same time, nearly 5,000 further estates were referred to HMRC’s compliance team for review before a formal investigation was even opened.‌HMRC checks bank statements for unreported gifts that could be liable for death duties, as well as property data that suggest an estate might have been undervalued. Experts warned that taxpayers were often caught out by the complex inheritance tax rules around making gifts made to friends and family.‌Nikita Cooper, of Price Bailey, the accountancy f