IHTM15064 | Investigation of form IHT404: joint debts

As well as joint assets the taxpayer or agent may include details on form IHT404 of joint liabilities that are deductible from the value of the assets. The deceased’s share of the liability will usually be the same as the deceased’s share of the asset it is deductible from. Any case where the taxpayer or agent claims or you think the deceased’s share of the liability should be different and this affects the amount of Inheritance Tax payable should be referred to Technical.

Example

Chris and Sue (who are not married or in a civil partnership) own a house jointly. The house is mortgaged for the purpose of financing Chris’s business. In this case it is possible that the debt may be solely Chris’s

In most cases though the review of joint debts should be the same as for any other liability included in the IHT400 (IHTM10021). But you should be careful to look out for situations where the liability is more than the value (IHTM28397) of the joint assets.